Furniture restoration comes in all shapes and sizes.
One thing I wish I knew how to do in the “furniture restoration” realm is upholstery. Then, I could recover dining room chairs and simpler projects like that, but the full upholstered pieces are not my jam. I would be picking up so many more pieces if I could do that. (As I write this, I am thinking maybe it is a good thing I have no clue how to do those kinds of projects because it keeps a cap on the amount of things I can rescue). 🙂
This furniture restoration project is not hard at all.
It is the kind of project I get asked about at least once a week because it is such a common problem.
In the beginning of my “restoration” career, I would never pick up pieces that had veneer that was missing, chipped or peeling. I thought there was no way to fix it so I didn’t bring them home. Then, I got smarter and learned so much that now, pieces like this always come home with me (if everything else is okay with them).
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Supplies Needed For This Furniture Restoration:
Dixie Belle Paint “Collard Greens”
When I bought this dresser at a yard sale, the sides had a lot of missing veneer towards the bottom. (You can see it in the photo above.)
I initially started stripping the dresser to get the many layers of paint off it of before I put another layer of paint on it. The photo above shows what it looked like after I used the heat gun to get the cream-colored paint off the dresser.
I wrote a post about the easy way to remove veneer from furniture HERE, but this is a different furniture restoration approach. This fix is more for pieces that have small pieces of veneer missing or chipping. If you have a piece where most of the veneer is coming off or is already off THIS POST shows you what you need to do for that.
For smaller, missing veneer chunks like this dresser had, you need Dixie Belle Paint “Mud” and a Putty Knife.
The “Mud” makes it so easy.
All you have to do is spread it over the areas of missing veneer with the putty knife to fill it and make it smooth so it is flush with the rest of the dresser.
Once the “Mud” dries, sand the area so it is flush and looks like part of the dresser and you can’t see the missing veneer area anymore.
After it is all sanded, you are ready for primer. Depending on the size of the area, I will prime the area before I paint the piece. If it is a smaller area, I can sometimes get away with just the paint alone.
As you can see from the photo above. You can’t even tell that there was veneer missing on the bottom edge. The “Mud” is amazing and is so easy to use. 
But, can we please take a moment of silence to appreciate this green paint color {insert a moment of silence} ……………………….
I AM OBSESSED WITH THIS COLOR!! O-B-S-E-S-S-E-D!
The color I used is “Collard Greens”. You can find it HERE. It is the most beautiful and perfect olive-green color. If you have been here for any length of time, you know that green is my favorite color. I told Matt that he will be seeing a lot more of this color in the near future.
I added new hardware to the dresser from Hickory Hardware and it is complete.
Like I said earlier, furniture restoration can mean a lot of different things. If you have pieces that are missing a little veneer here and there, this is the easiest way to remedy it and come out with a piece you will love all over again.
What color would you have painted this piece?
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If you liked this furniture restoration post, you will also love these posts:
Furniture Repair: How To Fix A Broken Dresser Drawer
This is some really good information about furniture restoration. It is good to know that you might want to use chemicals to get the paint off the wood. Personally, I would want to get a professional to do that for me. That way, I don’t destroy my furniture on accident.
🙂
I love love this color! Everytime i see green furniture i think of you. Thanks for sharing information. Love it!! ❤
That makes me happy that you think of me! Can’t go wrong with green! 🙂
Love love love the color is awesome!
I love it too!
The “here” link for the color information is not working. What is the brand for the collard green paint? It is beautiful! Love the piece!
Thank you for letting me know. I try to catch them all. This helps so much! Thank you for the kind words about the project as well!
Hi Lyndsey! I think this is the first time i have read your blog. When i see one about furniture restoration i click on it. I love Dixie Belle Collard Green. I have used it before but i have never painted a whole dresser with it. It is beautiful. I new that the Mud could fill scratches but to cover up missing veneer? I have the perfect piece to try it on. Thank you so much for the Inspiration.
Your welcome!! I am so glad you are here! Good luck with your project!
I have a grandfather clock that was handed down to my husband (family heirloom). A piece of the veneer came off during our last move. I still have the piece. Is there any way to re-glue it back in place without having to use the mud? Thoughts? Thank you! Love your site!
Thank you! I would try and use some strong glue and some clamps. Depending on how much or how bad it is, you may have to use some mud around the edges??? Not seeing the piece, it’s hard to tell.