Turquoise Empire Dresser

Empire dressers have been my obsession lately. They are very pricey, so I always thought I would never have the chance to work on one. I found this one on craigslist. It was listed as a project piece because it needed a lot of work. The girl was moving and needed it gone. While I prefer the less obnoxious more toned down empire dressers, like my other one I have yet to do, (it can be seen at the end of this post) I decided to go for it and see how it turned out.

Yes that picture is off of craigslist. Yes I have the craigslist app on my phone. Yes I am addicted to craigslist. I admit it.

The top back was missing as you can see in the picture. I think there may have been another set of drawers that went there, or possibly a hutch. The two bottom drawers also needed some work and new hardware.

I wanted a turquoise color, so I used some paint that I already had on hand and made a custom color. I sanded the whole piece, painted it, distressed the corners/edges, and gave it a coat of wax. The color looks darker/a deeper shade or turquoise, but the camera washed it out to more of a light blue. I ended up buying a piece of wood for the top, which I painted the same color as the dresser. It is just sitting in its place so there is always the option of adding something in its place.

The first two pictures show the color the best (how it actually looks). I have to say that the dresser reminds me of a gorilla. The front curved/leg part looks so heavy compared to the wimpy baby legs it has on the back. It is definitely not my favorite piece, but I think in the right spot it will be a great statement piece. I hope someone gives it a good home!