I purchased this little dresser for a project I had in mind for our bathroom renew. I thought it would make a perfect sink vanity. The piece needed a lot of work and I considered just painting it. Then I came across this technique on Instagram that I had been wanting to try and thought why not? What is this magic I speak of? Oven cleaner!
Oven cleaner? Yes! Easy off oven cleaner! It is as easy as it sounds. I tried my best to document the process as I went. First I wiped down the piece and removed the hardware (tip always put the hardware and screws in a baggie so you don't miss place them). Then I drug the dresser outside. I highly suggest doing this outside it can be messy and even though the can says "fume free" I don't think its the best to be breathing in, I also wear gloves during the whole process. I then generously sprayed the dresser from top to bottom with the oven cleaner and let it sit for 20 minutes.
This is what I started with pictured above.
After the 20 minutes I took some soapy water and a hand brush and scrub it again from top to bottom. Scrub the piece well and rinse it off with the hose. I don't suggest using this process on anything with veneer or press board. Only on real wood! Rinse, and let dry. Never judge the piece while it is wet. Dry wood takes a whole different look than wet.
The first picture is one coat with the oven cleaner and scrubbing process, the last here is two.
Once the dresser was dry I had to repeat the process two more times (totaling three) before achieving the final look. I still do have to do some light sanding and clean up.. then I plan on sealing it with something. I don't want to change the color of my dresser from what it is now so finding a sealer that will not change it can be challenging. Some will turn it a orange color, and I want to stay away from that.
I stuck with the original hardware on the dresser but you can always change the look of a piece by just switching that out alone. Another thing I loved about this dresser is the casters. They age it and add to its charm. Compared to sanding this down, or stripping and scraping this process was so much easier to me!
How do you think it turned out?