Repurposing An Old Chest of Drawers into a Play Wardrobe

I’ve been keeping a really fun secret! When my SIL asked me to turn this Entertainment Center into a Play Kitchen for my niece, she also told me she wished we could do a play wardrobe for her, too. She even entertained the idea of turning half of the entertainment center into a wardrobe and the other half into a kitchen. I worried that wouldn’t leave enough room to do all of the fun kitchen things, namely a pantry AND a refrigerator. Plus, I already knew I had the perfect piece for transforming into a wardrobe. So I talked her out of a wardrobe “for now” and promised to make her one in the very near future.

I couldn’t tell you then because I didn’t want to spoil the surprise. But I had the perfect piece just waiting for a transformation. I had used it once in a booth and I had used it my living room, mostly because I couldn’t decide what do with. It was a beautiful piece but so broken it was that no matter what I decided to do with it, it would take a lot of work.

But turning it into a wardrobe meant that I could take out all but the one drawer that actually worked, so that made for a little less work.

But then there was the business of removing the loose veneer from the top, adding a new back {and dressing it up a little} and a bottom base for the wardrobe.

Once I was done with the rebuilding, it was time for the fun to begin. Here are the materials I used:

You will need:

Americana Decor Stain Blocker/Sealer

Americana Decor Chalky Finish Paint in Everlasting (white)

Americana Decor Chalky Finish Paint in Smitten (coral)

Americana Decor Chalky Finish Paint in Refreshing (green)

Americana Decor Soft-Touch Varnish

 

Optional:

Americana Deco-Page

Wrapping Paper

 

First I painted the entire outer shell with Stain Blocker to prevent any bleed-through. Then it all got a fresh white coat of Everlasting.

{It helps if you have a cute helper. She’s cute but she’s more curious than helpful!}

Then I added some cute wrapping paper to the back of the wardrobe and to the bottom of the drawer using Deco-Page. First, I put a thin coat of the Deco-Page onto the wood’s surface, placed down the pre-cut paper, smoothed out all the bubbles and allowed it to dry thoroughly. Once it was dry I added another coat over the wrapping paper to protect it.

I painted the sides of the drawer a fun, pastel green called Refreshing, the inside of drawer’s front detail with Smitten – a beautiful coral. I used the same shade on the sides of the inside of the wardrobe. It is also nice if you can add an extra sparkly glitter mirror to your wardrobe. Personally, I think everything is better with glitter.

Add in a large dowel rod for hanging all of those fun dress up clothes and you’ve got yourself one really adorable wardrobe!

The super smooth finish of this paint paired with the Soft-Touch Varnish is to die for! And I adore these colors.

It will be even more adorable with this little Cutie’s dress up clothes inside. And it was very well received!

The new Americana Decor Chalky Finish paint is now available in Home Depot and Michaels stores. It is also available for purchase online at homedepot.com.

Visit the DecoArt Chalky Finish website for more information and for more chalky finish project ideas.

*My blog post was written as part of my collaboration with DecoArt. As always, the thoughts and ideas are all my own. 

 

See More of My DecoArt Chalky Finish Paint Projects

Nightstand to Bathroom Vanity

Entertainment Center Turned Play Kitchen