Footed Grasscloth Buffet Makeover

How we transformed a bulky thrifted piece of furniture into a chic modern glam buffet with brass spray paint, hardware, and grasscloth wallpaper.

It always starts the same way. The classic thrifty furniture makeover. The Cinderella story. The underdog.

I think there’s a reason why secondhand furniture makeovers have a special place in my heart. Because I’m a sucker for a good underdog tale.

And this one wasn’t exactly the head of the pack when I found it on Facebook Marketplace a few weeks ago.

It wasn’t terrible; it just wasn’t my style. But it had good bones and was solid as a rock. So we decided it was totally worth busting out the power tools and paint.

Supplies Used:

(Some affiliate links are provided below. Full disclosure here.)

• Circular saw
• Power drill
• Power sander with medium grit sanding pads
• Tack cloth and/or shop vac (if you have one)
• Wood filler
• Spray primer
• Fusion Mineral Paint in Picket Fence
• 2″ angled sash brush (great for getting into corners and tight cabinets)
• Brass & frosted glass pulls
• Brass knobs
• Furniture feet (They work on chairs & sofas too)
• Rustoleum metallic gold spray paint (my favorite modern brass paint ever)
• Removable grasscloth wallpaper

The Steps:

1. Since we wanted to change the silhouette of the buffet while keeping it the same height, we decided to cut off the bottom boards to make the bottom of the buffet look less bulky. So we removed all of the screws in the bottom boards first.

2. Then Robert just ran his circular saw along the seam to cut off the buffet’s base.

3. On the drawers, I used wood filler on the knob holes and sanded it down when dry to have a fresh start for the new pulls I wanted to add.

4. We moved the sanding dust with tack cloth and a shop vac and hauled it outside to prime.

5. I don’t always prime furniture (but when I do… sorry. Dos Equis joke. 😉 ) But whenever I’m painting white onto a dark wood piece of furniture, I apply primer or spray shellac as a stain blocker to prevent any bleed-through causing the white paint to turn pink.

6. While the spray primer was drying on the buffet, I sprayed the furniture legs my favorite brass spray paint since I didn’t love the shiny yellow-y gold finish on the legs before.

7. Once everything was dry, we flipped the buffet on its back and attached the legs in the corners of the base with the drill.

8. Then I gave everything two coats of the Fusion Mineral Paint Picket Fence.

9. For the glass fronts on the doors, I applied the removable grass cloth wallpaper, moving slowly from one side and carefully pressing out any air bubbles with a wallpaper smoother along the way.

10. Once I put the glass back in the doors and attached the doors and drawers with new hardware, voila! Fancy new buffet!

It really does look like a super pricey designer version of another buffet I’d found as inspiration for this one.

And in all, it cost about $350 for the buffet itself + paint + pulls + knobs + feet all together. Not too shabby.

If we ever decide we don’t want the grasscloth anymore, it’s completely removable. So we can always switch it back to glass doors if we want. I love the subtle texture it adds and the fact that it can conceal everything stored inside of the buffet.

I still have to figure out how to style the top.

What would you do? A pair of buffet lamps maybe? Leave it plain? Add just a bowl and/or tray for an accent?

Some days I absolutely love this mirror gallery wall in our dining room, and then some days I crave simplicity.

It stays for now though. And it feels a lot more cozy and grounded with this beaut underneath it. Someone on Instagram said I should name it Betty White, so that’s her name from here on out. 😉

Seems fitting. Spunky and sassy yet always a class act.

If you want more thrifty furniture makeover ideas, you can see them all here.

And if you ever feel intimidated to paint furniture, don’t be! You can start with this Beginner’s Guide to Painting Furniture. Fair warning: it’s totally addicting. Just add coffee and good tunes and it’s instant therapy.