Meet the dresser of my beach house dreams. You may have seen it on Instagram, but here’s the full story—imagine something like The Notebook, except it’s a dresser and a person instead of two people.
I actually found this incredible piece on Craigslist. Yes—Craigslist! I was ecstatic. I paid $400 for a dresser that the seller had originally listed for $650 and that the same model still sells for nearly $2,000 at high-end retailers. She’d bought it at a discount store for $1,200 and even included a photo of the original price sticker in her listing. I loved it immediately, but it felt out of budget for a new piece, even though it seemed destined for the beach house.
I emailed the seller to say the dresser was beautiful but beyond my budget and asked her to let me know if she reduced the price. She replied that she wasn’t ready to lower it—so I tried to move on. I couldn’t stop thinking about it, though, and I refused to buy any other dresser for that nook. A month later she wrote back: no one had bought it for $650, so she’d accept $400. I jumped at it.
At $400, this is probably the priciest secondhand piece I’ve purchased, and a few inlay tiles needed repair. Still, compared to buying a new dresser from a big-box store, this solid inlay dresser felt like an exceptional find—both for quality and for the unique coastal style it brings to the room. My husband agreed it was worth it, and that’s how this beauty came to live at the beach house.
The next challenge was repairing the cracked and missing inlay pieces. The photos I’d posted earlier didn’t fully show the damage. Here’s what the corner looked like when we brought it home—pretty rough.
If you’ve ever found an inlay mirror, tray, or furniture piece with an “as-is” discount, it’s often because tiles are popped out or cracked. Don’t let that deter you: many inlay pieces have plaster or filler beneath the tiles, and a simple joint compound (spackle) can be an effective DIY repair. It’s sandable, easy to shape, and paintable when dry—so I decided to give it a try.
After filling the gaps and missing tiles with spackle and letting it dry, I sanded the repaired areas smooth and painted them to blend with the original inlay. Painting always dries darker, so I aimed for a slightly lighter match to compensate.
The blue-gray tones were easy to match with the paints we had on hand, mixing a deep blue and a soft sand color to get very close. We didn’t have a yellow that matched one small missing inlay at the front right, so that tile looks slightly lighter and rougher in the photo below. It’s not perfect yet, but now that I know the method works, I’ll bring a yellower shade next visit to get a closer color match.
Spackle can shrink a little as it dries, so a second skim coat and another round of sanding would smooth the area even more. I also painted a missing inlay circle on the side and plan to touch it up once I have the right yellow. Even now, with the repairs visible on close inspection, the busy inlay pattern hides most imperfections, and you have to be looking for the patched areas to notice them in person.
sconce / similar mirror
We finished the look by hanging a mirror above the dresser and adding curtains (Ikea Lenda panels, with the tabs removed and ring clips used to hang them). Those touches, along with layered textiles and a few well-chosen accent pieces, make the front bedroom feel airy, coastal, and polished without being fussy. The contrast of the darker bed frame and curtain rods against soft linens and a textured rug keeps the room interesting without overwhelming the calm palette.
bench / rug / blue blanket / frames / curtain rods / curtains
The real stars of this house are the original heart pine floors, which we sanded and clear-sealed, and the doors that we stripped back to their natural wood color. Their warm tones balance the cooler, beach-inspired colors throughout the room.
That solid wood knob and the little keyhole under it are tiny details that make the space feel authentic and lovingly restored.
P.S. If you want to know paint colors or sources for items in the beach house, we’ve assembled a full source list and shared many posts and photos about the renovation over the past year.
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