I posted this dresser in my WIWW post about nurseries stated that it was wayyyyyyyyyyyyy over our budget. Luke had the idea to find one on Craig’s list to refinish so I set out on the search to find the perfect cheap jewel in the rough. In the mean time, Luke went searching for DIY plans online. At about the same time I haggled down a dresser to a reasonable price on CL, Luke had found plans online and called his dad to schedule a build date. When I told Luke I got the CL dresser down to $125 from $250 he got excited but then realized he had gotten himself and his dad way more excited about building their own dresser to change plans. I happily obliged as I wanted to see if the Leonard men were as handy as I heard. On a Friday morning I left for work with nothing but a stack of wood and Rich & Luke strategizing then came home 8 hours later to this:

 

I couldn’t believe they actually did it! And in only a day! I was impressed and so were the neighbors. On a walk with Zeus later that week one neighbor stopped me to introduce himself and then asked me, “so did your husband build or refinish that dresser?” When I told him Luke built it, he was immediately impressed and I was beyond proud. At that moment I realized I had married myself a real life Ron Swanson.

It turns out that building the dresser was the easy part – it took the next month to find time to prime, paint and stain the dresser. One weekend Luke had to work so no progress was made. The next weekend it was supposed to rain so we didn’t want to move the dresser into the open only to get rained on, but of course it didn’t rain at all. Valentines weekend we managed a little bit of work but then my parents came into town so having fun won out over work. Last weekend Luke finally had the time to put all the pieces together and it came out amazing, definitely worth the wait!

Here’s a few pictures from the journey. Let me note, though, that Luke gets all the credit for this masterpiece even though I am the one in the pictures!

 

I spent Valentine’s morning filling and sanding the frame of the dresser getting it ready for paint while Luke stained the drawer fronts. This was the only day and activity I was allowed to partake in because Luke didn’t want me inhaling the fumes from the stain and paint. I don’t know if I’m actually supposed to stay away from that stuff but any time Luke gives me an out I take it! It was a beautiful day so between coats I sat in the grass in the front yard, read a book and watched Luke work. It was splendid!

 

This is proof of me working and also proof of pregnancy brain in full effect. I can’t even put my shirts on right side out. Oh well, at least I could still bend over at this point!

 

There aren’t many things in life that Zeus hates, but the air compressor and impact drill are in the top 5. Luke had to use both to finish painting and attach the drawer fronts to the dresser which is why Zeus looks so terrified. We figured that the boys would be pulling the drawers out in a few years to climb to the top of the dresser so we used Zeus as a tilt test and the dresser passed! Luke built, Zeus approved!

 

It took us a long time to decided on which kind of knobs to use for the dresser but then one magical morning while drinking coffee and trolling the internet in bed, Luke stumbled across these sleeping fox knobs from Anthropologie and we instantly knew they were meant to be. Our nursery theme is woodland so these are the perfect subtle accent to tie the dresser into the rest of the room. Anthropologie, as everyone knows, does not run cheap so Luke made sure to point out that the hardware cost as much as the rest of the raw materials. I made sure to point out that he was the one who found them so it was his fault! Either way, the knobs are the icing on the cake.

The finished product! I still can’t believe Luke and his dad built this, it’s absolutely stunning and exactly what I wanted. What makes it even more special is that someday the boys will appreciate that their dad and grandpa built that dresser with their own hands! However, Luke and Rich have opened a can of worms they may soon regret. Now that the family knows they can build furniture nicer and cheaper than anything found in a store they are going to be really busy fulfilling all of the orders. Luke’s “build the wife stuff” list tripled after this dresser came out so perfectly!