Kammy's Korner: DIY Drawer Pulls Using Round Dowels {DESK before & After}

Monday, June 1, 2020

DIY Drawer Pulls Using Round Dowels {DESK before & After}

This desk had a lot going for it, and a lot NOT going for it. It's never difficult to find a cool knob or pull replacement in my stash for a night stand but when there are EIGHT to replace, not to mention three screw holes being left behind - not a walla-walla-bing-bang fix. And y'all should know I ain't looking to spend money on new pulls! It's how I keep my prices for you guys low!

But first, let's check out this crazy finish job. It had some eccentric pink tones mixed in with the browns. And it wasn't wood, so I couldn't just sand 'er down and refinish. I did sand, however, and most of the pink hues came out - thank goodness. So I mixed up some DIY white chalk paint and did all the drawer fronts and bottom of the beast and then just covered the top in Old English stain to blend it all a little. Still not "blended" the greatest... but it was the best I could do with what I was working with. My dad says that about me a lot. I wonder what he means.... 🤷‍♀️🤣

Good timing is what this is called - I've been organizing my junk upstairs in my workshop, otherwise I probably never would have known I had all these wood dowels just wasting away being useless up there!

I grabbed a couple and cut them into 3 inch pieces. HOT DANG this Ryobi miter saw is a GAME CHANGER. My dad gave me this for Christmas. I didn't have any idea the piece of crap I've been putting up with until I started using this!! But hey, makes me appreciate this beauty all that much more. Dad, seriously. You know how to make a daughter happy! He might not ever tell me he loves me, but this makes up for it. Ha.

Next, I lined up my piece with the holes on the drawer front and using a pencil made marks where the pull holes would need to go.

I hammered a thin nail into my marks, just so it would be easier to get the screws started.

I'm an amateur and I'm sure there are better ways to do this. But I do what I want to do.

My wood pieces weren't without flaw, plus the raw edge looked tacky (duh), so I fixed that with good ole' Old English. Everyone should keep a bottle of this handy. I used a rag to wipe it over the piece. The thing is, it's like that bottle of lemon juice that sits in my fridge. It just never seems to run out. I swear I bought this eighteen years ago.

My first attempt cracked the drawer pull right in half because my screw was too fat.

So I wasted another chunk of time rummaging around for the perfect screws. Thin, fat head, sharp, just the right length.... I'm an experimenter, yo.

And BAM, just like that, I have awesome rustic wooden drawer pulls!

I will definitely be making these again!!!

I've been lazy with my photography lately and using my phone camera. My phone camera was at one time decent, but after it falls out of your pocket as you climb into an uber and sits submerged in a street gutter for a couple hours, not so much. Or the latest adventure, in a river. But we won't discuss that here.

I should take time for a little shout-out to my daughter's friend for the desk. They are moving into a new house and the previous owners left furniture that Saint Vincent De Paul was scheduled to come pick up. So cute little Bridget says, "Mom, I think Tori's mom might want some of this stuff". GIRL, you are awesome. That is all. You will be seeing more from that haul in the future, I'm sure!

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