Turned an old dresser into a kitchen island for under $40

I had this beat up dresser from a thrift store sitting in my garage for like a year. Finally got sick of looking at it and decided to chop the legs down to counter height, sand it, and add a cheap butcher block top from Home Depot. The difference between the chipped up brown mess before and what I have now is night and day - it took me about two weekends total. I also stuck some hooks on the side for hanging pots and pans. Anyone else done something similar with old furniture in their kitchen?

3 comments

3 Comments

jamieburns2mo agoTop Commenter

Respect your take lisa but honestly i think the opposite is true. Half the time when people try to build something from scratch it comes out janky because they don't know how to level legs or seal a countertop right. At least with a dresser you're starting with something that already has real wood and solid joints, not that cheap particle board stuff. My island's held up for three years now and i just hit the top with some mineral oil every few months.

rileygonzalez1mo ago

My third DIY kitchen island split down the middle after six months because the dresser I used didn't have proper cross bracing inside. The nails pulled right out of the particle board backer and the whole top shelf just caved in. I tried fixing it with brackets but the wood was too soft to hold any screws. Three years is impressive but most people aren't getting that because the dresser was never meant to hold counter weight or take moisture from cooking. Building from scratch with actual 2x4s and plywood might look rougher at first but at least you know exactly how solid every joint is.

lisa8202mo ago

Ngl I used to think repurposing furniture was just a way to avoid buying new stuff. Saw a buddy turn an old china cabinet into a pantry and it looked like garbage. But this sounds legit. The pot and pan hooks part sold me. Might actually try this with that nightstand my wife's been yelling at me to toss.