As we mentioned in last week’s rug post, our search for a new master bedroom dresser came to an unexpected, happy ending. We’d been trying to replace the old Ikea Malm dresser we’d had for over five years — the one we bought on a moving day from NYC to Richmond — which was headed to the guest room.
That Malm has been through a lot: it’s too small for the wall, one middle drawer went a bit wonky during the move, and it shows the scars of life from bouncing between rooms at our last house. We wanted something larger, with a bit more character — something curvy and ornate to balance the room’s modern elements like Ed the Bed and our big globe-ish light fixture. We imagined a leggy dresser to echo the bed’s legs and help bridge the old-meets-new look we’re aiming for.
We’d been hunting thrift stores and stalking Craigslist for weeks hoping to rescue a pre-loved piece, but with no luck. Then, surprisingly, the perfect dresser appeared — at my parents’ house. They’re downsizing now that the nest is empty, and they’d been sorting through things. When we spotted my dad’s old dresser on a visit, we asked if they planned to keep it. They said no — they were going to list it unless we wanted it.
“Uh, yes please.” Cue Sherry doing cartwheels in my head.
They were babysitting our nephew a couple days later and brought it down for us. Best dresser surprise ever. Suddenly we had this beautiful, timeless piece:
It’s wider than our Ikea dresser so it fills the wall properly, and its traditional styling balances the modern pieces in the room just as we hoped. Now we’re excited to hunt for matching nightstands in a similar warm tone and shape to complete the look — maybe with those ring-pulls or even a few drawers for concealed bedside storage.
The dresser does need a little love: one drawer had a busted rail when we got it, so I tightened a few screws — a ten-minute fix. For now we’re not planning to repaint or refinish it. Although we considered re-staining or painting, the warm wood tone complements the cool wall paint and bedding, and it brings out the honey tones in the curtains, the jute rug, and the gold leaves in the duvet.
Also, the bedroom’s wide plank floors are in rough shape — discolored, stained, and splintering in places — so we plan to refinish them in a darker mocha tone along with the rest of the house to create a cohesive look. Once the floors are darker, the warm wood dresser will stand out even more. We might even refinish some thrifted nightstands in a lighter stain to get a good-enough match that feels like a collected set.
The dresser’s imperfections are part of its charm. It’s our first inherited “antique” piece and there’s something special about its backstory: my dad bought it from his cousin in the ’60s for $100 and he’s used it ever since. There’s even a long-standing scratch on one drawer from when he hauled it in his car trunk decades ago. A stamp inside one drawer reads “Abernathy Furniture Co,” a maker believed to have started in the 1850s in Kansas.
After a few days of living with it, the dresser started to trigger small auditory memories for me. The sound of the metal pulls clanging against the wood when Sherry opened drawers sounded like the same noise I remember from down the hall in my childhood home. Funny how a sound can carry you back.
Besides securing that broken rail, the only other issue was that the drawers stuck a bit. Sherry tried an old trick she’d heard about: rubbing a dry bar of soap along the drawer bottoms and inside the tracks to act as a wax. She used a bar we had on hand, and it definitely improved the glide, though it didn’t cure the problem completely. For a free fix, we were happy with the improvement; we may try furniture wax or paraffin next for a longer-lasting solution.
On top of the dresser we’ve arranged everyday items: a white lacquered charging box, a ceramic egg crate holding Sherry’s jewelry, a small table fan for summer, two white bowls with bracelets and glasses, three frames with anniversary photos, and a bronze ceramic pig that adds a playful touch. Those personal bits help the dresser feel lived-in and loved.
To show how the dresser fits into the broader bedroom, here are a few more shots of the space. The room is still very much a work in progress — we want art above the bed, a long bench at the foot, a built-in or cabinet near the door for balance, matching leggy nightstands in a honey tone, and perhaps some new lamps. But the dresser already makes the room feel cozier and more intentional.
Practically speaking, one of the best parts of finally having a larger dresser is the storage. Four spacious drawers allowed us to move piles of clothes out of the closet and into proper drawers. After months of shirts and pajamas on the closet floor due to limited storage, we finally have room to get organized.
So that’s our first handed-down antique adventure — or “furniture inheritance experience,” if you prefer. It feels a little special to own something older than my dad, even with its scuffs and imperfections. Have you ever inherited a sentimental or standout piece from family? Did you restore it, alter it, or leave it be? We were lucky this time — my parents were happy to see it find a new home — but those situations can sometimes get sticky when family members have strong opinions about changes.