I love consignment stores.  Specifically, I love the consignment stores in Winston.  Our house is furnished almost entirely with furniture from these various stores, sometimes fixed up, sometimes changed a bit, and sometimes looking exactly like it did when we bought it.

Yesterday, I bought two old, wooden filing cabinets. They are sturdy, made of solid wood, painted white and distressed (probably from actual use). Right when I saw them, I immediately thought of the storage they would provide in my son’s room. The general idea is toys in the bottom drawers, clothes and blankets in the upper drawers. His room has mostly dark furniture, so I saw the white cabinets as an opportunity to brighten up (add some color to?) his room.

Right away, I knew that even if I didn’t do anything else, I’d have to find new drawer pulls. Those look like filing cabinet pulls, don’t they? They look a little too industrial to use in my 6 month old son’s room. I texted Hubby’s cousin Elizabeth, who is an artist and master of restorations (her blog is here). She is my go-to for advice on projects and furniture design, if I’m looking to change/update something (and also to have a cocktail with). She told me if I didn’t want to paint the fronts, I’d better keep moving and find something else. Well, I liked the storage and space so much that I figured painting the fronts was doable. I’m also thinking about putting a thick coat of lacquer on the inside of the drawers so they don’t snag clothes, blankets, etc. So here I am, with a new project. Good thing I have Elizabeth to call and ask a million questions of.

Today, all I have managed to do is clean them with a wet cloth and remove the drawer pulls. They’re currently spread all over my living room, drawers out, the pulls and screws collected inside one of the drawers. Since it’s already close to my bedtime, I’ll be starting on the next thing tomorrow… you know, like picking colors and designs and such. Didn’t want to overwhelm myself by doing everything at once!

Any suggestions on an easy fixer-upper? Or a suggestion on paint or lacquer for me?