I came across this beautiful American of Martinsville dresser with this incredible brass hardware. As soon as I saw it, I knew I wanted to give it a facelift and paint it a beautiful color. Now, WHAT color stumped me for a bit until I saw this moody shade of dark green, Benjamin Moore Salamander! Here’s a tutorial on how I did it.
Check Out My Latest YouTube Video
Y’all know how much I love to paint things. If it’s not cabinets, then you can find me painting different pieces of furniture. Lately, I have been really into painting dressers, like this Lancia dresser in glossy navy blue!
When I found this dresser from American of Martinsville and brought it home, I knew I was going to paint it. And, after going through a paint catalog, I knew it was meant to be painted in green paint.
Choosing A Green Paint From Benjamin Moore
There’s just something sexy about a deep and moody shade of green. Right?!
The best, moodiest shade of dark green I’ve found is Benjamin Moore Salamander (2050-10). With an LRV of 3.66, this paint color from BM has a hint of dark cyan blue undertones creating a gorgeous sheen on this dresser.
I have been wanting to use a super dark green color on a piece of furniture for a long time.
Don’t you love it when a plan comes together? Yeah, me too!
Painting This Dresser In Salamander From Benjamin Moore
Clean and Prep The Dresser
Before I started painting the dresser, I gave this furniture piece a good cleaning using hot water and TSP. After a thorough cleaning comes sanding.
I sanded the entire dresser using 180 grit. I didn’t sand all the way down to bare wood, though. When painting furniture, you don’t have to sand away all of the original finish to bare wood, but you will need to sand the shine of the clear coat until it’s completely and uniformly dull.
Priming
After a full sanding session, I sprayed two coats of oil base primer. My primer was white, and truth be told, I really should’ve had the primer tinted to match the dark green paint color. Tinting your primer to match or closely match your paint color is ALWAYS a good idea.
Filling the Grain
After the primer dried, I filled in all of the imperfections with Bondo Spot and Glazing putty (that’s the red stuff everywhere). Bondo Spot and Glazing putty is a fast-drying filler that is great for filling shallow imperfections, dents, dings and wood grain.
When the Bondo dried, I sanded the whole dresser again. This time with 320 grit sandpaper, cleaned it up once more, and it was almost ready for paint!
Building A Paint Booth
Since my paint sheen is high gloss, building a paint booth is a must. A booth with accomplish two objectives: 1) it will contain overspray and 2) it will control the environment inside the booth and prohibit (most) dust from landing in my finish as the paint dries.
Here’s a YouTube video on how to build a paint booth. This video will walk you through how to build, vent and filter a temporary booth for painting furniture. Plus, all of the supplies and materials are linked for your convenience!
Paint The Dresser In BM Salamander
I used Fine Paints of Europe Hollandlac Brilliant tinted to Benjamin Moore’s Salamander. It is literally the most perfect shade of green/black.
Painting Tips:
- If you want to know more about the primers, paints, and all the tools I use in my shop every day, download a FREE copy of The Glossy Furniture Guide here!
- Check out this post for a more detailed step-by-step tutorial on how to paint high gloss furniture.
- Also, if you want to make the brass knobs to be super shiny and look new, you can read this post about how I like to polish brass hardware!
Aren’t those original knobs crazy cool! I loved this dresser so much, and I’m ready to use this color again 🙂
Hope you enjoyed this quick before & after, my friends!
xo Kayla
More Posts To Read:
- The Best Ready-To-Assemble Cabinets – My Cabinet Joint Review
- Extreme DIY Kitchen Renovation (Before & After)
- My ZLINE Appliance Review: Would I purchase them again?
- 12 Best Tips For Using Fine Paints of Europe High Gloss
- Exactly How To Paint Oak Cabinets (Written By A Pro!)
This post was originally published on April 5, 2018, and was modified/updated on November 20, 2021.
Love the color and deep shine! How did you treat your hardware?
Thanks! I polished the hardware with Bar Keeper’s Friend:) You can read how in this post.
Oh. Oh, my. That is gorgeous.
Hi,
I so loving the green dresser. Did you sell this piece. Or is it yours.
Thanks Rosie, this piece sold:) xo
Did you first order the paint from fine paints of europe then take it to Benjamin Moore to tint? I really love this color! I’ve been looking hard at doing my cabinets in acrylic but I thought I could update my existing ones using this method. I’m just not sure how you obtained that paint color from 2 different places.
No, the company, Fine Paints of Europe, will tint their paints in any other paint brand you want. They have other paint company’s colors in their computer system so they can make up just about anything! hope this helps. xo
Hi Kayla! I am obsessed with your site and your high gloss painting method! Can’t wait to try it on an incredible Thomasville bamboo lingerie chest I just found on facebook marketplace. While I feel generally comfortable with the sanding of it, what do you do with the curves and details of these intricate pieces? Do you only sand the flat surfaces and the rest is just covered with the primer? This is the only piece I need clarity on before I start my project. PS I am totally going to use this Salamander Green- it is PERFECTION and will look incredible in my bedroom.
Outstandingly gorgeous! Well done sister!
Thanks Debbie! xo
You always do such beautiful work!!! Thanks for sharing your talents with us
I’m so jealous of your talent!! You don’t overlook one detail either. Brilliant.
Do you order your paint or is there a dealer near you? I’ve never ordered paint.
Did you brush or spray? Love the piece.
This was sprayed:)
This is a beautiful piece. did you top coat with any product? or did the paint have it in? thank you
No top coat needed!! xo
I love the finished look of the dresser so much that I am in the process of painting my kitchen cabinet lowers in Salamander (semi-gloss)❤
After seeing several pictures of Salamander used on cabinets, doors, and other features, I was set on using it on my doors, but the paint chip sample I picked up at Benjamin Moore looks so black, I’m hesitant. I will have to get a samlle can to make sure I have enough lighting in my home to pick up the green hues. It was so so black, I’m worried if they changed the formula.
Girl! I never knew green could be so sexy. You’re right! Green is the new black with this dresser. Amazing finish. You have mad skillzzz with the spray gun. Pinned! 😘
Love the Salamander color. Unfortunately, before seeing this color I went with another dark green Benjamin Moore color BLack Forest Green.
What spray gun do you use? I am using the Graco Ultra Cordless Airless Handheld Paint Sprayer. Not sure this sprayer will give the high gloss finish like you have done.
Currently I’m using a Sata x5500 RP w/ 1.3 I