Making Over A Vintage Hutch On A Budget

 

I’ve been hankering to refinish a vintage hutch for a while, but I was told the hutch needed to be done on a budget.  Scouring Craigslist, I took a large bite off the apple.  After locating one for free, I realized it came with strings attached.  It was over 50 years old and it had a distinct odor about it.

Before heading home, we stopped at Ace Hardware and picked up three cans of Kilz spray paint. The Kilz spray paint was the biggest cost at $8 a can. Kilz was perfect for covering the stains and blocking odors, including past smokers. If you haven’t used it yet, get involved by watching a couple of my videos.

After I spray painted the entire piece, including the insides, back and bottom, I let the piece dry overnight outside.  I used the original hardware, spray painting it gold.  The cost of the spray paint was about $1.50

I mixed up my own version of the Annie Sloan Old White for the outside and because it was Oops paint, it cost me about $4 to paint the outside (to make your own chalk paint, read this article).  To make chalk paint, mix 1/3 cup of plaster of Paris and 1/3 cup of warm water; stir until completely smooth. Mix that with 1 cup of latex paint and stir thoroughly. I needed about 3 cups.

I chose to give it a pop of color on the inside, painting it turquoise.  I used about a third of the quart and because it was Home Depot Oops paint ($2 a quart), it cost about 80 cents to paint the inside!

The back of the hutch needed to be replaced because it had a tear on the bottom of it.  My handy-men helped me remove it by popping off the staples with a screwdriver.  A fresh piece of wood at Home Depot was less than $10.  Having the piece taken off the back made painting the inside so much easier and got rid of a lot of the odor.  

Now, for the grand reveal.  I styled the hutch up a bit for the photos.  Another plus about this hutch, the inside light works!

In case you can’t remember what it looked like before, take a look the comparison side by side.  It’s not bad for less than $45 spent!  Even better, it smells just like every other piece of furniture now.