G-Plan meets Cath Kidston

Looking for nursery furniture I was pleased when my neighbours had a garage sale and I picked up this retro G-Plan dressing table for £15!

It was tough carrying down the road! We had to keep stopping every four steps and waving to the traffic. It’s solid teak and a good quality piece. Interesting that you can still bag a bargain if you want modern retro. 1950’s domestic furniture may still conjure up bleak images for the generation that witnessed it first hand. I know for a fact that my mum can’t stand utilitarian furniture. It apparently represents mass production and the bland suburban pre-feminist ideals of the mid 20th century. I think the baby boomer generation do prefer either historic styles (pre 1930) or ultra modern furniture. Us 21st century girls perhaps look at this style afresh and see that it’s actually really useful.

 I love the geometric simplicity of it and decided that it will be great for a child bedroom as it’s low and good on storage space. I really don’t normally go in for the whole princess pink idea for girls and I definitely will be avoiding the whole fairytale “everything will be perfect” stories as she grows up. However…

I did have some girly Laura Ashley fabric that I made cot bumpers with and so I thought I’d follow suit with the furniture.

After removing the handles I sanded the whole thing down and wiped off the dust. Then I applied two coats of Wilkes primer undercoat in Brilliant White. It took a couple of hours to dry. I followed this with a coat of Wilkes satin wood and metal paint in Brilliant White. Then I put a top coat of Dulux gloss wood and metal paint in Fantasia which took off the harsh white glare and gives it a little  blush.

For the top drawers I applied a layer of PVA glue and attached some Cath Kidston fabric in the pink & green old english rose. It is a heavy twill and so once the PVA had dried underneath I gave it another coat to seal the fabric.

I found these lovely pink and cream ceramic rose handles in Homebase and I really love them on the bottom drawers.

I still haven’t decided on handles for the top four small drawer. I have the original wood handles which I will paint to match but I really want some new ones. Laura Ashley have a nice range of acrylic clear handles.

 

 

 

 

Now I just need to decorate the nursery! The brown carpet has to go and the beige walls need an injection of colour. It definitely won’t be pink so I think neutrals will work for the walls and flooring. Any ideas gratefully received!