Reader Robert has just acquired two vintage blond dressers for the bedroom at his new house. He’s basically starting from scratch and wants to know — should he keep the blonde finish, or refinish these two bedroom dressers in a teak stain. Read on for Robert’s dilemma and our decorating ideas…
Robert writes:
I recently found these ultra cool dressers — marked United Furniture Corporation – Lexington NC. The drawers are dovetailed. The exposed wood is veneer. They are very heavy and well built. My question is, do you feel that if I redo these dressers in a teakish/fruitwoodish tone, that it would ruin them? Should I leave them this blond color or proceed with teak?
I like the 60’s era for furniture the best. Perhaps late 50’s and a tad of 70’s. I just like it all blended together via my finds and redoing them to blend. My hobby is to go to thrift stores and find things and play with them. For example get a mirror in a 1970’s era yellow fake/plastic wicker frame and redo it to look neat in my home today. Or take a cheap plastic brass candle sconce and redo that to look like pewter with black in the crevices. I like to have new modern day timeless things mixed in with finds that I can blend together. I generally do not like the Haywood Wakefield Blonde and their furniture.
For these dressers, they are going into a blank slate bedroom so I either blond or teakish/fruitwoodish, I will just decorate around them.
I am just concerned about the integrity of the dressers.
Kate’s advice: Have a fling with these blondes!
Well, Robert, I think you know what Pam and I are going to say — if it ain’t broke, don’t fix it. From what I can see from the pictures, the finish on both dressers seems to be in great shape. I think it would be a shame to refinish them — plus I can imagine refinishing the tambour (rolling slot) doors would be tedious! Instead of refinishing the dressers, I think you should work with them — they are fantastic! Hey, have some fun with these blondes! You mentioned that you weren’t generally a fan of Heywood-Wakefield blond furniture, but these are very different in style and with a few creative decorating ideas, you can make a very 60s-70s/modern looking bedroom room with this blond finished furniture.
If you’re into a 1950s Heywood-Wakefield look, then light pastel wall colors work really well with blonde furniture — however, Robert is a fan of 60s and 70s style — which is why he needs to take a different approach to choosing a wall color for his blonde dressers. To make the light blonde dressers feel a bit more punchy, contrast is key. Placing a light blonde dresser on a mid to dark wall color will make them really stand out in the room. Highly saturated colors — like the two I chose for Robert — will make the room feel lively and modern.
For Robert’s consideration, I made two mood boards — one orange, one blue…
1. These white curtains from IKEA really pop off the dark wall. The silver pattern on them coordinates with the grey floor and the curved shapes found in the dresser pulls, hairpin table and headboard detail.
2. Robert’s ultra cool long and low vintage dresser!
3. I’d put something eye catching on the wall — possibly this metallic starburst mirror from Crate and Barrel — or since Robert likes to come up with creative projects to transform his thrifty finds, he could find a cool mirror and repaint/refinish the frame if necessary.
4. A bright orange wall color for the bedroom is not everyone’s cup of tea, but I think it works well with the grey rug and really makes the blond dressers pop off the wall. Personally, I’ve had two orange bedrooms — waking up in one is like having a glass of orange juice before you even get out of bed!
5. This vintage lamp from Etsy seller AustinMetroRetro (link now gone) is a lovely shape and would also work well with the orange and grey color scheme of the room. (Blue and orange are complementary colors.)
6. This mid century inspired bedding (now discontinued) from Crate and Barrel really caught my eye. Not only are the shapes colorful, but they also add a playful aspect to the space.
7. I went looking for non-Heywood-Wakefield style blond bed frames to fit in Robert’s bedroom and found this lovely vintage bed frame (now sold) from ebay seller buckscounty. Even though this retro bed frame has a blond finish, the style of it is very 60s & 70s — right up Robert’s alley.
8. With all of the thick wood furniture going on in the space, I thought it would be nice to inject a lighter-legged nightstand into the space, such as this hairpin leg stepped end table (now sold) from ebay seller pjzredskins13. The shape of the hairpin legs echos the pulls on the dresser drawers and the iron detail in the headboard nicely.
9. Robert’s tall vintage blond dresser!
10. I love this retro alarm clock made by Newgate (link gone) and found on Amazon.com. The shape is fun, and it fits right in to Robert’s room — which is sprinkled with little bits of black and white.
11. I’m not sure what type of flooring Robert will have in his new bedroom, but he could either do an area rug with this silvery grey FLOR carpet tile in Fog (discontinued) (if his floors are wood), or even wall to wall if needed to replace any flooring that doesn’t go well with his style.
Now I realize that not everyone loves orange as much as Pam and I do, which is why I made a slightly tweaked alternate plan for Robert.
The idea board above uses many of the same components as the orange version, with a few changes:
4. Using a dark blue — similar to Pam’s 2012 Color of the Year, Bitossi Blue — for the wall will make Robert’s bedroom feel cozy and act as a striking backdrop to the blond furniture in the room.
5. This white and orange and mustard mid century lamp (now sold) from Etsy seller lavintagefurnishings will also pop off the dark wall and coordinates well with the blond furniture while also adding more color to the space.
6. If Robert is not a fan of patterned bed linens, this simple and silvery quilt (no longer online) from Crate and Barrel is simple and sophisticated while coordinating with Robert’s room.
So there you have it Robert, two ways to design a room around your retro blond dressers without refinishing them. Of course we’ll be interested to see what you decide and as always, would love to see pictures of the final results!
Readers — what’s your 2 cents?
Would you keep the dressers as-is — or refinish them?
Lynne says
I wouldn’t refinish. You could potentially end up with a mess. The blond finish ruined, and the darker stain lifting the veneer. Then, you have nothing!
Personally, I like a dark green with blond furniture. I can’t really tell from the pictures, but what is the finish on the handles/hardware? Maybe you could go with a metal headboard. Wrought iron black, or a brass? That would bring in your 1960’s flair, as well as year appropriate lamps and artwork. Same goes for the bedding, bring in your 60’s there. The slightly 50’s look of the dressers will fade away.
Sierra says
I agree with Lynne. I wouldn’t do blue or orange but a vivid deep green or even a deep purple. Check out Sherwin Williams 6733 Grasshopper, 6925 Envy, or Benjamin Moore 1386 Purple Rain. For a much lighter feel, Sherwin Williams 6435 Gratifying Green would be nice.
Kate B says
Great suggestions Lynne! Green would be great too!
Rick says
Those are great dressers, but unless I missed it, how DOES one clean up, freshen up a blond (blonde?) ’40s, ’50s piece to it’s original glory? I’ve spotted a couple of blond(e) pieces I’d maybe like to get, but they are kind of dull, tired and dirty looking. I’m hoping for an answer too that helps Robert leave them with their original finish.
ChrisH says
If there is no damage to the veneer, just a very light sanding (and I do mean light) then a clear finish. Since you would not be re-staining you don’t need to take all the old clear finish off. You just need to dull it.
Clear shellac would probably be my choice (stay away from the amber, you don’t want the orangey tone- though it looks great on knotty pine) A clear polyurethane would also work. Then use either 600 grit sandpaper, or #0000 steel wool and any spray wax (lemon pledge for example) to smooth the finish. Spray on the wax (after the clear finish has dried, obviously) and rub very lightly WITH the grain. Don’t go across the grain.
ChrisH says
Forgot to mention that a satin finish (sheen) is probably closest to the original. These blonde pieces were not usually super shiny.
Rick says
Thank you Chris.
I was wondering if say, Murphy’s Oil Soap could be used for starters to clean up a blonde piece and then decide about using your suggestions.
ChrisH says
Yes, clean it first, then maybe some furniture polish. If it looks good w/o refinishing, don’t refinish.
Mark says
BLONDE!!!!!!!!!! I’m restoring my Storybook Ranch house & plan to build kitchen cabinets and wall paneling in BLONDE mahogany..! LOVE that finish — nothing says “retro” or “MCM” than BLONDE… 😉
ChrisH says
I grew up with some blonde furniture in the house and for me, well, it just doesn’t move me. It’s not my thing. So I understand your desire to blend it with your other furniture, but….
If you really don’t care for the blonde furniture sell it/trade it to someone who does. Get yourself something darker, if that is your preference, but don’t ruin the blonde look so that no one else can ever enjoy it. Once it’s stained teak, it’s very unlikely it will ever be put back to it’s original look.
We can appreciate the beauty of things, even when they are not exactly to our taste. Don’t destroy the beauty. Work with it or let someone else have it.
If you do refinish be very careful of the veneer. Nothing will look worse than damaging the veneer then wiping dark stain on it.
Sarah G says
Don’t feel like it’s one or the other when it comes to decorating. In my master bedroom the dresser and vanity is blonde and the bed and end tables are teak. No one has ever said ‘oh no your woods don’t match!’
The furniture is lovely as it is, it’s in beautiful condition, and it’s ORIGINAL. I’ve watched antiques roadshow enough to know it’s better to not mess with it. Save that elbow grease for projects that really need it.
julia [lifeonchurchill] says
I really like the blue mood board. We painted our living room a dark blue last year and it looks great with vintage/mid century accessories. great post (and I agree with the others–I wouldn’t mess with them if they are in good shape!)
Jenny A. says
I love orange, and my house is full of it, but those blue walls really set the blonde dressers off. Yum. I’d add some more color to the bedding, though. (I really like the bedding in the orange mood board, maybe not with the blue walls, but just in general. I have a bed linen addiction, though.) Also, unless the finish on the dressers is worse than it looks in the pictures, I would leave them alone. They’re really cool pieces.
Stacey says
Keep the dressers as is and put all your energy into recreating the mood board with the blue walls! The furniture is gorgeous; there is plenty of teak around but not many beauties as these, IMHO. And I love the mood board Kate created with the blue walls. I’m partial to blue and the splash of orange really livens it up.
Kate B says
Thanks Stacey! 🙂
lynda says
I think the blond looks great. If the veneer was chipped or something, I might say refinish or paint. However, I think original finish looks best. You could also go with a bookcase headboard. They were popular in the day. That could be painted a color, if you want. I like the blond with the blue. I like orange, but just think the blue looks right with the furniture. The rest of the accessories Kate chose look very nice. To me the light Heywood Wakefield furniture has a bit more of an orange or yellow cast to the wood than the blond furniture that was popular at the time. The blond bed Kate has chosen looks very nice. Also, a padded headboard with the right retro print might be nice. I think this furniture will make a very pretty room.
gsciencechick says
I agree with Kate, if the finish is in good condition, I would not do anything with it. The pieces are beautiful as is, and I also agree refinishing the tambour doors would be an enormous pain. I like the orange and blue colors Kate chose, but I would probably go with the blue for a BR vs. the orange that I would use more in the living areas.
Kate B says
Thanks gsciencechick! I agree, not everyone wants an orange bedroom — but they are fun! I’ve had 2 different bright orange bedrooms before! I think I’m partial to orange because it is my favorite color, but yes the blue would be nice and relaxing for a bedroom. 🙂