HERE’S HOW I UPCYCLED THIS TRASHED 1980s LINGERIE CHEST  INTO AN ELEGANT UPDATED PIECE WITH ONE COLOR | YOUTUBE VIDEO COMING THIS WEEKEND!

Hi, creative friends, and welcome back to our Furniture Fixer Upper tour. So happy you’re here! This furniture makeover was created with love. My sister has been looking for a tall, skinny cabinet for her dressing room. Something she can use for jewelry, belts, scarves, and accessories. When I saw this 1980s six-drawer lingerie cabinet — it fit the bill, and I knew with some TLC it could be turned into a beauty.

In today’s post, I’m also sharing –

• A classic color that gives an elegant look
• How to tint primer
• How to update a wood base
• And more!

*As an Amazon Associate, I earn from qualifying purchases. There are affiliate links in this post to other companies/products I use and love as well.  You will never be charged extra when you purchase through these affiliate links. If you purchase from my links – A BIG thank you for supporting me and the #siblog! To see my full disclaimer, click here.

Bonus, it’s Furniture Fixer Upper Day! If you’re new here, on the fourth Thursday of every month, I join four super-talented friends (Christy – Confessions of a Serial DIYer, Kathy – Petticoat Junktion, Natalie – A Ray of Sunlight, and Gail – My Repurposed Life) to share our before-and-after furniture restyles. I’ve included the links at the bottom of today’s post, and I hope you join me in seeing what they’ve created this month! I always learn something new from these talented ladies.

Below is the lingerie cabinet that nearly ended up in our landfill. It was sitting curbside along with a few other pieces.

This is a mass-produced piece from the 1980s is made from pine and plywood. Since pine is a soft wood that scratches and dents easily, the surface showed plenty of wear from years of use. What really made the piece feel dated, though, was the hardware and the skirt base.

THIS POST IS SPONSORED/CONTAINS AFFILIATE LINKS TO PRODUCTS I USE.  YOU CAN SEE MY FULL DISCLOSURE HERE.

SUPPLIES

1980s Lingerie Chest – SALVAGED
White Lightning Cleaner
Auto Sponge
Sanding Sponge
Two Part Wood Epoxy 
Bonding BOSS Primer
2″ Angled Paint Brush
Coffee Bean Chalk Mineral Paint
Gator Hide Topcoat

TOOLS

Oscillating Multi Tool
AstroEuro HVLP Paint Gun
Heat Gun (25% off as of writing!)
Plastic Putty Knife
Bosch Orbital Sander
Brushed Brass Drawer Pulls

PREPPING THE CABINET

To start the prepping process, I removed all the old hardware. Then I cleaned this cabinet with a  heavy-duty furniture cleaner, and a large automotive sponge. Once I had the inside and outside of the cabinet sparkling clean, I used this two-part epoxy wood filler to fill in all the hardware holes. I really enjoy using this putty even though it’s not inexpensive to buy here in Canada… and you all know how thrifty I am, so that says a lot! 😉 It’s easy to mix in small quantities, no smell, and dries hard and fast.

BASE REPAIR & UPDATE

The skirt on this piece was already hanging partly off, so it was the perfect opportunity to repair and update.

1. Using an Oscillating Multi-Tool, I cut the curves off the skirt to give it a more streamlined look.
2. Then I removed the skirt from the chest
3. I smoothed out the cut by giving it a good sanding
4. Primed with Bonding Primer
5. Glued and screwed the skirt back into place
6. Clamped and let it dry

PRIMING & PAINTING

I went ahead and scuff-sanded the entire piece using my orbital sander. I removed the dust and then applied a coat of clear bonding primer. I tinted it with a little white bonding primer so you all can see it being applied. I bought a few jars of clear and then realized it might not be the best for you all to see it being applied here on the blog and on videos.

You can tint primer by adding a small amount of paint to it — usually the same color family as your topcoat. This helps with coverage, especially when painting over dark colors or when using bold paint colors.

Here’s the basic process:

1. Start with a clear, white, or light gray primer.
2. Add a small amount of paint (no more than about 10% of the primer volume).
3. Stir thoroughly until the color is completely blended.
4. Test a small area to make sure the primer still applies smoothly and evenly.

A few tips:

• Use the same type of paint as the primer base when possible (latex paint with latex primer, oil with oil).
• Don’t over-tint — too much paint can reduce the primer’s adhesion and stain-blocking ability.
• Many paint stores can professionally tint primer for you, which is often the easiest and most consistent option.

For deep or vibrant topcoat colors, a gray-tinted primer usually works better than white.

I like applying this primer with a four-inch foam roller. It rolls on beautifully, and the tip of the roller even gets into all the nooks, crannies and frame of this piece.

COFFEE BEAN

The next day I came downstairs and did a scratch test on the bonding primer. Here’s a super short video on how to do a scratch test. It passed with flying colors, and now it was time for paint. My sister chose the paint color – this beautiful warm black with brown undertones called Coffee Bean. This is one of my fave colors as well. It’s a classic. If you ever want to elevate a piece with just one color, you can’t go wrong with a moody black.

To paint the body of this tall chest, I laid it down on the floor to get all the under edges and drawer frames. If your piece is light enough to lay it on the floor, this is the best way to make sure all the underside is painted nicely.

The new base of this piece looked soooo much better all painted up as well. The entire chest got two coats of paint and then I let it dry overnight.

FINISHING TOUCHES

To protect this paint finish, I sprayed three coats of Gator Hide. Because I used an open jar of the topcoat, I strained it through one of these filters. I also like this stand for my paint gun. It makes pouring the paint or topcoat into the cup a much cleaner, easier and faster process.

For the final detail, I added beautiful brushed brass drawer pulls that really pop against the rich Coffee Bean paint color.

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