I love watching furniture flip reels online! There’s something satisfying about giving old pieces new life. I firmly believe that older furniture is usually built better than most mass‑produced pieces today, so I’m trying my hand at it, to try to keep solid finds out of the landfill and make a little money while I’m at it. This cherry dresser was my fourth flip, and it sold within a week at a local consignment shop. Here’s how I transformed it from curbside freebie to a cozy, modern piece someone snapped up fast.

Finding the Freebie

Step one is to find the right piece. Score – this cherry dresser popped up for free on Facebook Marketplace right in my town (yup, showing my age here)! My husband (the brawn and chauffer in this experiment) and I went to pick it up that day. It was heavy, so we pulled the drawers out to load it, which also let me check the drawer slides.

First: A Deep Clean

Once we got it home and it was in the garage, I removed the knobs, dusted the interior, tackled stickers with Goo Gone, and scrubbed everything with Simple Green. Cleaning first matters. Sanding a dirty piece just grinds grime deeper and can cause grease bleed‑through later, ruining all your hard work.

Design + Supplies

With the piece clean, I planned the look: stained top and drawers with a painted body since that’s what is selling these days. I used AI to test paint/stain combos and landed on a modern, cozy mix. At the store I found that I didn’t love the AI-picked color, so pivoted to a darker shade. I did use a dark and moody stain color that the AI suggested. I ordered a pack of knobs online because it was cheaper than singles at the store.

Prep Work

I scuff‑sanded the body for paint adhesion, then sanded the top and drawers down to raw wood with 80‑grit followed by 120‑grit. After that, I vacuumed and wiped everything clean. Then, I cleaned the piece again with a vacuum and wet towel to remove the dust. A final microfiber wipe kept lint off the surface.

Paint & Stain Time

I primed the body with two coats, sanding lightly between each, then repeated the process with two coats of paint. While the paint dried, I stained the drawer fronts and, the next day, the top. I used a rag and latex gloves to apply the semi-transparent water-based stain and wipe it off.

After a final dry time, I added the new knobs and conditioned the drawer interiors with lemon oil.

Off to the Shop

We loaded the finished dresser into the truck and dropped it at my go‑to consignment shop. I prefer selling using consignment because it’s less of a hassle and product turns over faster than if I posted it online. In this case, the piece sold in a week – not bad for a newbie at the game!

Cost/Profit Deets

Here’s the cost breakdown excluding hours worked (I do this for fun).

Item	Cost
Dresser	0.00 – free on marketplace
Knobs	23.65 – for 10 knobs
Bonding Primer	14.98 – for one quart
Paint	30.98 – one gallon – I have loads left for future projects
Satin Poly Spray	31.76 – two cans of spray
Semi-transparent water-based stain	19.98 – bought a pint and have lots left for future projects
Paint brushes, rollers, towels	0.00 – already had on hand
TOTAL COST	121.35 – without labor
MY EARNINGS	165.00 – includes the sold price minus the cut the consignment shop keeps
PROFIT	43.65 – what I ended up with in my pocket

The profit wasn’t huge, but that’s the reality of furniture flipping – especially when you’re still learning the ropes. Regardless, this project was worth every minute. I enjoyed the process, someone loved the finished piece enough to take it home (instead of it going into the trash), and that’s a win in my book. On to the next project!