Dresser-ing up the house.

It took me ages to find the post I needed. I am a really bad recorder of things sometimes. I thought I'd blogged about my welsh dresser (bargain £60 at Oxfam) but it transpires I never have. Or at least not with pictures and much joy.
But I found a post with a bad picture of it here;
My Best Friend for Afternoon Tea

You can just see it in the background of the last photo. That's my dresser. It was in my dining room until Mr Mister told me it was golden pine and not mahogany and, ergo, did not match. I moved it to the garage and left it there, mourning my lost storage and especially the loss of a living style I was seeking (cottage kitsch; I love it!) And it stayed there. For. Years.
 And I wrote my planning list every year including "Paint dresser"
And every year the list entry remained unticked.

But this year a little fire has entered my belly. Or I've found my house mojo at last. For last Sunday in a golden autumn afternoon of sunshine and printer failure (I had to clean the inside, fit more parts and still admit to failure) I grabbed a paintbrush and had me a touch of therapeutic painting. The paint is the same shade I used for the door (we had a pot left over) and the handles came off the old drawer unit from Sarah's bedroom so total cost of the transformation is zero. A win.

I've only painted the base and I have to sand and paint the shelves (on my list, and won't take me years to do; I need the full Welsh Dresser hit this year, I really do) but I am really pleased with the effect so far.

I've left the top a plain wood, just sanded and not varnished. I can't decide whether it needs waxing. I can't wait to get the shelves and get my red, white and blue china up there. Imagine a shelf of willow pattern saucers and cups. Bliss.

But it still has to be useful as well as beautiful, so I took a few minutes yesterday to Brocante my dresser (as in Vintage Housekeeping from Brocante Home) and to make it pretty inside and out.

I used the same old tablecloth I lined my kitchen shelves with back in May and lined my cupboard base and the drawers. I'm sourcing baskets for storage inside, and a hessian bag for some Special Christmas Stuff.

I have more stuff inside (think two boxes of crackers for a start) but this morning is too dark for a decent photograph. I'm thinking you will see more of it as the year goes by.
Already I am trying to decide what sort of fairy lights would suit it best, how early is too early to string them up (answer; no time is too early. They can go up as soon as I buy them and stay up all year long) and whether I use green tinsel and red gingham ribbon along the edges or the back of the shelves.

If this afternoon cracks a sunny smile, I may well dive out to the garage and finish the job. Quiet Sundays are made of this.