How To Turn A Dresser Into A Makeup Vanity

Turning an erstwhile dresser into a vanity for your bathroom is a doable DIY project that saves coin and creates a unique pattern statement. Discover your vintage dresser and use this photo tutorial to brand a one-of-a-kind bathroom vanity - including ideas for adapting drawers so they are withal useable.

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I've loved the thought of turning an quondam dresser into a vanity for a bathroom afterwards seeing them in a Do-It-Yourself magazine many years agone. Non merely is it a really distinctive look that isn't a cookie-cutter home shop look, if you discover an old dresser for a good price, it can be a huge money saver over like furniture-style bath vanities.

In our first home (a city bungalow) there wasn't enough room in either bathrooms for a dresser-vanity, so when it came time to remodel the bathrooms in our ranch-turned-cottage I was thrilled to run into at that place would exist enough room in the primary bath with the claw foot tub - but just barely.

Notwithstanding, when I started looking effectually I realized that there were now pre-made vanities you could buy now that look similar dressers (seems like others like the expect, too!). So I briefly thought about going that route, until I saw that the price tags kickoff around $300 - and climb up from there.

Um, right - back to the original thought - DIY bathroom vanity it is!

Once we found a dresser that would work, including fitting in our space, it was relatively simple to accommodate it to agree a sink, pipes, and still contain our bathroom things. In the end we spent about $150 total on the dresser and sink. Nosotros already had the paint, stain, and finish for the surface, equally well equally the faucet. Half the price of ready made for just the await I wanted? Winning!

If you'd like to make a dresser into a bathroom vanity, also, read on for all the supplies, steps, and details you'll demand to create your own i-of-a-kind vanity.

DIY Bathroom Vanity Video

We created the video above to share more about the idea with steps and tips to turn whatever dresser into a vanity. Use the video and the steps beneath to assistance guide yous in making your ain vanity.

How to Make a Dresser into a Vanity

Supplies Needed:

Dresser in width to fit your space and desired acme (Note: we measured many vanities at a abode store and there seems to be no standard height like at that place is for kitchen cabinets. Nosotros institute everything from thirty inches to 38 inches in meridian, so our dresser at 32" loftier is right in there. Yous tin can recall about making a platform to raise upward a dresser if you'd like it higher)
Sink to fit the inside top measurement of dresser - either a self-rimming sink or vessel sink.
Faucet for sink. Hither's one like ours with white handles.
Jigsaw to cutting out holes.
Palm sander and sanding newspaper in variety dust.
Paint and/or stain. We used Minwax Special Walnut stain for the top and Behr's 'Creamy White' in semi gloss for the painted body.
H2o-based polyurethane sealer. This is the brand we used in a satin finish.
Constructed paint brushes.
Clear caulking sealer.
Long screws and drill for attaching to wall.

First Things First: Observe A Dresser

The first footstep you'll demand to take to plow a dresser into a vanity is to discover the dresser. Search austerity stores, Craigslist, Facebook Marketplace, and assignment shops. Measure the area you lot have for your vanity and wait for something to fit those measurements. If yous would like to have two sinks look for longer dressers with two sets of drawers or sideboards with two cupboards.

The dresser nosotros concluded up with (shown above) was a $79 find from the Salvation Army that I had originally bought to be a nightstand (I idea I needed the storage, only actually didn't, and then it sat empty). It'due south measurements are 32" high and 34" broad. You may be able to score something cheaper, merely when looking for specific measurements, price isn't always the most important (although $79 for a bath vanity is pretty skillful!).

Our dresser wasn't a fine antiquarian - the slats separating the drawers had been replaced with a lighter color wood and both of the side panels had large cracks in them that needed to be filled. The top also had a major scratch (height left in the picture above) that went all the way to the wood. It needed to be painted and the elevation refinished. So it was a perfect candidate - in improver to being the exact size we needed to fit between the clawfoot tub and wall!

Once you lot have your dresser (sideboard, fifty-fifty a table will work!) simply follow the steps below to create your own unique dresser-to-bathroom-vanity.

Steps to Make a Dresser into a Vanity

1. Purchase the sink beginning, fit to the dresser pinnacle measurements. Make sure to measure out the true cabinet and not just the summit slice of wood - this dresser had an overhang of more than than 1 inch, so I measured inside of the dresser top past removing the meridian drawer to go the measurement for the sink.

Nosotros bought the smallest, basic self-rimming sink that we could observe for this dresser, similar to the one pictured above. About of the models were also large, so look at dimensions carefully. We seriously considered a vessel sink like this one, but with the new faucet needed, it would've cost more than than double (we'd already added a new faucet).

ii. Trace the sink hole. Remove the elevation drawer, lay the template that came with the sink on the dresser height and trace around information technology with a Sharpie-like marking.

iii. Cut along the lines. Accept a deep breath and cut it out with a jigsaw. It's OK, you can do it...

4. Lay the sink in the opening and breath a sigh of relief when the sink fits in the hole.

(Sorry about the lack of photos for these side by side steps...poor planning):

5. Finish the dresser superlative. Remove the sink and sand and refinish the top (if needed- alternately, the top tin be painted). Pigment dresser body and drawers, if needed, at this time too.

6. Coat & protect the dresser top. Using a water-based polyurethane, apply 4 to 5 coats (I like satin finish and accept good results with both this brand and this one). Since this summit had a short back slice, I made certain the joint betwixt them was covered well and then that no water from the sink would become between them.

vii. Attach the sink to top. When dry out, run a dewdrop of clear caulking (it works much better with woods counters than white) around the rim of the opening (here'south what we used). Advisedly identify the sink right on superlative, pressing down lightly (you do not demand to add caulk around the rim of the bowl after information technology's in place- that's a certain sign of a practice-information technology-yourself chore).

8. Cutting opening for plumbing in back. Fix the vanity close to its eventual spot in order to measure where the plumbing hits on the back of the chiffonier (subsequently many DIY slip-ups, we don't trust only measurements anymore - we use our eyes plus measurements - but this is just the states, you lot don't actually have to have it well-nigh its spot). Apply a jigsaw to cutting a foursquare out of the back slice of wood big enough for all the plumbing to fix in. Fix the vanity in information technology'southward permanent spot.

nine. Secure to the wall. For this step, nosotros found the studs and put in a couple screws in and so that the vanity is secured and not attached only past the plumbing. Considering this dresser had an overhang in the back, we had to add a piece of wood to the dorsum to permit it to touch on the wall before screwing in, simply non all dressers would need this.

10. Adhere the faucet and plumbing. In one case the dresser is secure, hook up all the plumbing with no drawers in place. Plow it on to make sure there are no leaks and everything is fastened properly.

11. Customize drawers. Each drawer will need to be treated differently:

Elevation drawer cutout options:

The drawer can be taken out entirely and made into a fake drawer past cutting the front off and gluing it back in place.
Use a kit that turns sink drawers in cabinets into a flip-out with a narrow plastic holder fastened.
Customize the drawer to fit around the sink and still accept storage.

I wanted more storage, and then we went with option iii: nosotros cut out what was needed to fit around the sink and so added 1x4 wood scraps for new sides to make small sections on each side of the drawer with wood glue and nails in the lesser and back.

These niggling pockets are perfect for toothbrushes, deodorant, and lotions, so I was really happy with this solution. (Notation: if you notice a dresser with iii drawers on top, it'due south easiest to lose the middle drawer and still accept 2 functional drawers on each side - that would exist ideal).

Middle drawer cutout:

This took the most finagling, but basically we (of form you lot've probably guessed that this part doesn't really involve me...I'm using "nosotros" merely to testify my support) made a box to fit around the plumbing. This leaves enough of space for toiletries. The box was made with scrap lumber, wood glue and small-scale nails.

Lesser drawer cutout:

This was the simplest - we just cut a square cutting out of the back of the drawer to fit effectually the drain pipe. This drawer lost no space at all.

Insert all of your drawers, turn on the water and enjoy your new DIY bathroom vanity.

That'south all at that place is to turning a dresser into a vanity to add a pretty and unique look to your bath. I hope you were able to run across, besides, how this tin be done in your ain home!

This article has been updated - it was originally published in May 2010.

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