Girl's Vanity & Stool

A few weeks ago I came across this child’s vanity and stool. I actually continued past when I saw it, but decided to go back and give it a second look. It was brown laminate over engineered wood. On the upside, it was very sturdy and had both a mirror and a glass top that were both intact.

I’ve been wanting to try out Benjamin Moore’s Advance paint and thought this would be the perfect piece on which to experiment. Advance water-based paint is Benjamin Moore’s answer to an oil alternative. It’s said to go on like an oil and level itself out and then harden like an enamel to provide a protective finish that doesn’t require a topcoat.

I have to say that upon application it seemed to go on like any other latex paint. The instructions say you should apply it to a horizontal surface, which meant only painting one side at a time and allowing 24 hours to dry before turning and painting an opposite surface on a horizontal plane.

Due to the waiting times, I was actually working on two pieces at the same time. The second piece was a rustic cabinet (to be revealed later this week).

After only 48 hours the surface really did harden like an enamel paint. It actually felt more like an enamel than some other enamel paints I’ve used. I’m confident that this paint will hold up to the love any little girl gives it.

One of the things I love about this otherwise plain vanity, was the glass top that covered a semi-open storage area underneath. To give the set a little color, I made a floral fabric matt that covered the inside of the table – opting for fabric rather than paper liner so that Mom could easily remove the mat and place it in the washing machine if her little girl decided make-up was her thing.