Free Dresser Makeover: Facebook Marketplace Flip on a Budget

I can’t wait to show you what I did with this free dresser! I think you’re going to love my Facebook Marketplace flip on a budget!

I had been scouring Facebook Marketplace for a dresser for my son’s room for what felt like forever. But that’s what you have to do when you want a good deal and a particular style. (Read THIS blog post for all my tips on successfully buying on Facebook Marketplace!)

But for this dresser makeover, we didn’t even have to buy the dresser!

Let me just clear the air first: If I were buying a dresser on Facebook Marketplace, it would be a solid wood antique or mid-century piece—definitely solid wood and stained. However, this one was for my son’s room, and his style is a little more clean and modern. He does not want to finesse an old drawer just to get it to open or shut.

Actually, as I’m writing that, I’m wondering why—because if we walked into his room right now, all of his drawers would probably be open anyway! But my point is, I was looking for something he would like. Hence, the cheaper particle board dresser.

And that probably contributed to the fact that it was free! The couple was moving, and someone had snapped the legs off the dresser. Two corners were damaged—one worse than the other. I’m sure they didn’t want to mess with it; they just wanted it gone. So it was free! Bonus: it was only a couple of miles away.

I had already had my eye on THESE legs. I was thinking of buying them for an apothecary-style drawer unit I need to refinish. It’s just a little too low for me, so adding legs would give it more height and make it look totally different.

I decided those legs would be the perfect addition to this free dresser. We ordered them in chrome to match the handles already on the piece. To prep the damaged areas, I made a clean cut to the bottom of the dresser using my neighbor’s circular saw. Then I cut down some trim I’d saved from making a board and batten wall in the guest bedroom. (See how that turned out HERE.)

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The trim was ever so slightly thicker than I needed, but it was painted and free—so we used it! The other damaged corner was fixed simply by screwing down the new leg in that spot. I cleaned the whole piece with a Magic Eraser, then used some white acrylic paint I had on hand to touch up the damaged areas. It ended up being a great match! There was also a plastic trim piece covering the exposed particle board. When the corner got damaged, it had also ripped off. While I didn’t have anything to replace this, I did make a fresh cut so that this trim wasn’t dangling. I also used a little wood filler to fill in the seam between the old and new wood.

The biggest surprise of the transformation? There were probably 100 or more thumbtacks floating around inside the dresser!

We got the dresser into the bedroom where I took a few photos. The verdict is still out on whether this will help my son keep his room picked up—he’s definitely my messiest of all of my kids!

In all, I spent $21 and less than an hour on the transformation. I am very happy about that!