Share
We needed more storage for our daughter's bedroom, and as soon as I saw this whimsical vintage wardrobe on facebook marketplace, I immediately thought of The Lion the Witch and the Wardrobe!
I spent a lot of painstaking time removing the pink paint from all of the detailing - then gave up on removing ALL of it, and decided to go for a rustic, whitewashed look. That way I didn't have to kill myself or my marriage with all of the paint removal that was driving me crazy!
This project was way bigger than any others I've done before, (this wardrobe is bigger than me!) so while I did finally manage to get 98% of the exterior pink paint off, whitewash it, and seal it, I did need my dad to come and rescue me at the end, to put the doors back on, and bolt it to the wall.
I am super proud of myself for this project, and my daughter's Narnianesque, princess bedroom is now my favourite room in the house.
Materials
Dulux antique white 100ml sample pot
120 and 240 sandpaper
Cabot's satin water based cabothane clear polyurethane timber varnish
Tools
Orbital sander
Kitchen scrubbing brush, sponges, cleaning towels, paper towels
Screw driver
Steps
Step 1
The wardrobe came to me painted in Porter's baby doll pink, inside and out. I removed all of the hardware, and took the doors off so I could work on them more easily.
I started removing the paint with my heat gun and scraper, but that was very difficult to do in the small details. I switched to a chemical stripper, and found that that was just as much of a headache to then remove the residue from the wood!
The stripper was a lot more effective though, and left the wood with a much cleaner finish.
I also left a few burn marks in the wood with the heat gun. I was impatient, so I had the heat too high, and I held it too close.
Above was removed with the heat gun and scraper. Below was removed with the stripper, scraper and a kitchen scrubbing brush (I later realised steal wool would have worked a lot better).
Step 2
I sanded everything that had the paint removed, with 120 grit first, and then 240 for a really smooth finish. I used an orbital sander for most of this, and sanded by hand for the detail.
I then made sure I cleaned all of the dust off.
Step 3
I used the 100ml sample pot of dulux antique white, and that was enough to whitewash the entire wardrobe.
I mixed the paint with water, roughly 80% water, 20% paint (I kind of eye-balled it!).
I wet the wood first with a damp cloth, especially for the large areas, because the paint would dry too quickly otherwise, and would leave brush marks. I painted the whitewash on, and then wiped it off straight away.
I ended up having to do this about 3 times before I was happy with it, because I had diluted the paint so much.
there was a lot of going back and forth and comparing different parts to make sure the colour was basically the same. I still somehow ended up with a lot of variation in the colour, but good thing that just adds to the rustic charm!
As you can see, the whitewash was a necessary choice, because I just could not get all of the pink paint off.
Step 4
Since it took me weeks to get to this point, I decided against stripping or repainting the interior of the wardrobe, and just focused on the exterior.
I used 2 coats of Cabot's water based poly to seal the wardrobe. I've used this for a few projects now, and I can't recommend it highly enough. It dries clear, and has a delicious smooth texture. It also doesn't change the colour of the wood or the paint that you are sealing.
You do need to make sure you put the coats on evenly, because any drips or blobs will become discoloured.
I absolutely love the little writing desk drawer that opens up! I didn't try to restore the leather, because I didn't want to ruin it, but I might revisit this later!
