I have never attempted to refinish a piece of furniture and have no idea where to start. Is this very difficult to do? I have a bedroom dresser with lots of drawers I'd like to get looking nice again but I'm afraid that I can't do this and it's very expensive to get it done professionally. The dresser has scratches from years of use. Should I attempt this job or just save up to have it done by someone who knows how? I'm up there in age and don't want to bite off more than I can chew but with all the new products out there I'm thinking I may be able to do it. I appreciate all suggestions. Thanks and have a very nice day.

If you are worried about biting off more than you chew, you might try and see if you can spruce it up without actually refinishing it. We got a coffee table at a garage sale last year. It was looking pretty shabby. DH used one of those touch-up stain pens on the scratches (marking on and wiping off excess with a rag) and used lemon oil on the whole thing. It looked great when he was done and without a whole lot of work. You could always see how that goes and still refinish if you aren't happy with it.

I'm guessing that it's a solid wood dresser? Is it varnished or painted?

If it's varnished and you want to get nicks and scratches out, you can try using a wood putty (it's like a plastic-compound that comes in a little tube usually) to fill those gouges, which might be easier than sanding the whole thing down to get the scratches out.

If you want to also restain or refinish the surface, you might still have to sand it. My hubby has a "mouse sander" which is a little automatic sanding device, which you just attach sand paper to. It saves on your arms and wrists from having to scrub.

There are probably better experts on here, but my guess is that if it's some kind of clear coat / stain / finish, you can probably just sand it down to the wood, and then re-stain it, and put another kind of clear-coat on top to seal it.

If it's a painted dresser, you can either sand it and then paint it straight on the wood - 2 or 3 coats - or else just prime the existing paint with a wood primer, and then paint on top of that. Of course, the benefit of sanding would also smooth out any gouges in the wood.

Good luck!!

If you decide to sand, stain, and refinish, think about using one of the wipe-on poly/oil blends. It's very easy to apply and almost foolproof. There are no drips or runs to worry about.

As an alternative, check out Howard Restor.A.Finish. It softens the original finish somehow then sets up, leaving a very nice result.

Thanks for all your help. Think I'll give it a try. Will let you know how it turns out. I also have a cedar robe that's all bubbled up but not sure if I'm ready for that yet. Will have to wait and see how the dresser turns out first. Thanks again to all of you. Have a nice day.