When we found this old dresser in my parents attic, I was taken aback by the beauty of the design and the wood, and also so sad, because it had no drawers. We didn't know what to do with it, but it was much too pretty to throw away, so it was placed in a corner of my sister's shed with my name of it. I forgot about it until I noticed it again 15 years later and was like, "Duh, I could add shelves." I brought it home and it sat at my house for several more months while I worried about how to accomplish this.
I thought about hiring my nephew, who is a professional woodworker, but I kind of wanted to do it myself. I am not extremely handy, even though I try. I'm the person who hangs my own curtain rods with much sweat and tears, and ends up with five extra holes in the wall.
Still, I wanted to try this project because when something does work out, it's fun! Finally I worked up the courage. I measured the spaces where the shelves would go....then measured again. I picked out a very long piece of shelving wood at Lowe's and had them cut it down to size with their nice big saw. I only own a small Black and Decker that would have murdered that wood. Then I brought the pieces home and held my breath as I slid them in to see if they would fit. (The board was non-refundable because it was cut, and too expensive to buy again.) I was blessed to find that the top two shelves slid right in without much problem. The bottom shelf was a little more problematic since the drawer slides were missing. I was able to secure it with some simple brackets though.
I thought I wanted to stain the shelves to match the wood of the dresser, but this wasn't working out too well, so I decided to just go with black paint, and I'm pleased with how it turned out. I went to about five different stores picking out the baskets. Then I just mixed them up to create the eclectic mismatched look that I love.
