Milk Painted Antique Chest of Drawers

Milk paint and antiques pair so well, here is a custom antique dresser I just refinished for a great client. Let me share what I did to get this look.

This tall chest of drawers has seen allot of wear over the many years of use but is so worth reloving. Just look at the classic bones.

It was manufactured by The Meaford MFG CO (circa 1900's) and sold at T Eaton's in Calgary. I just love when these tags remain intact on a piece and always save them to put back on once finished.

Now it was time to give this dresser a deep scrub. I like to use Fusion TSP Alternative in a bucket of warm soapy water and a scrub brush. See the dirt and grime washing away?

Once all the pieces were cleaned inside out and upside down they were rinsed well and left to dry. This is 2 dressers the client sent to be made over; this chest and a shorter mirrored dresser. They seem to be matching in style but not wood species.

It is crazy to see the original finish in almost perfect condition under the hardware pulls. These pulls gouged circles over the years being spun around.

To reveal the solid wood top I used EZ Strip paint and varnish stripper brushed on with a Fusion Chip Brush. A nice thick layer was left to soak in for a few hours.

While it soaked I moved on to the gouged drawer fronts. DAP premium wood filler was applied with a metal spatula and left to dry well.

When the finish was ready a few hours later it was scraped off to show the beautiful grain. Once all the "gunk" was scraped off a green scotch brite pad was used with clean water to remove any stripper left and neutralize the top.

When the wood filler was dry, the drawer fronts were hauled outside to power sand smooth. The front was wiped clean of sanding dust and on to the next. (above 3 are done with 1 to go)

Now to paint the base after it was hand sanded with the large Richard Tool Sanding Sponge to remove any loose finish and smooth areas then wiped clean with a damp cloth.

The client asked me to surprise her with the body color suggesting the colors she liked to go with a requested dark stained top. I wanted the colors to be fun but classic and look like they had been done over the years.

Fusion Milk Paint pairs so well with antiques as this was the type of paint used way back when. I chose a fun blue called poolside as the first layer. To be sure it did not chip off I added Fusion Bonding Agent/Ultra Grip.

Here is poolside milk paint on the body above and drawer fronts below. Two coats of poolside were applied.

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Using a Richard Tool Sanding Sponge the top was hand sanded after the stripping process, wiped to remove the sanding dust and ready to stain. My favorite all in one stain is Fusion Stain & Finishing Oil. And my favorite color is cappuccino. Isn't it lovely? I apply with a blue shop towel and wipe back once the coat is evenly applied.

It is such a rich brown.

The third painted coat was in Fusion's night swim. This rich navy blue is so classic. I have used it on this antique table and modern accent table.

Again both dressers (shorter one) were done in the exact same steps.

4 coats of the Fusion Stain & Finishing Oil were applied (1 a day) lightly sponge sanding between coats. Perfect!

Everything was sponge sanded to smooth the layers of milk paint and reveal the color layers. The edges were lightly distressed as well to keep the antiques feeling authentic. Notice the right drawer that is sanded looks much lighter, this is normal with milk paint.

To seal the darker milk paint colors I like to use Fusion Hemp Oil. It soaks into the layers of milk paint and brings them back to the rich color which you can see on the above right drawer.

Here the oil is going on the sweet turned legs.

The excess oil can be wiped after about 20 minutes then buffed in the next day.

However the next day I did not like the 2 lower drawer colors once I put them in place.

Easy fix; repaint them, let dry, sand and reapply hemp oil. To add a bit more dimension I used black Fusion Furniture Wax on the edges once the oil was absorbed.

The original hardware was scrubbed well, dried then polished with metal cleaner. This took longer then painting it seemed but the difference was worth it. The 4 left ones have the perfect shine and patina combo compared to the dull single one yet to go.