Farm House Barn Wood Shelf

DIY Furniture Flip: Refinished Solid Maple Dresser in Classic White

In this tutorial, I’m sharing how I completely transformed a solid maple, Canadian-made dresser into a fresh, modern piece that’s both timeless and functional. Originally a tired chest of drawers, this sturdy maple beauty got a full makeover — from sanding and priming to a crisp classic white finish and new stainless steel bar and knob hardware . The result? A clean, elegant dresser with five easy-glide drawers that looks right at home in any bedroom, guest room, or entryway. Follow along to see each step of the refinishing process and how a little paint and hardware can give solid wood furniture a brand-new life.

Follow along to see how this raw pine shelf was given a barn board finish.

First step was to scrub and let dry.

Staining was the next step. I tested 2 Weatherwood Stains on the back; pining on left and light oaking on right.

Note quite sure I added Varathane's aged wood accelerator on the far left. Which would you choose?

I went with Weatherwood Stains in pining as it was the dark color I wanted for the base.

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To get the barn wood finish, Fusion Mineral Paint in Champlain and plaster were dry brushed over the dark stained base.

Once dry everything was sanded smooth. Everything was sealed using Weatherwood Stains satin conversion varnish. And as an additional step, Homestead House antiquing wax was brushed on too.