You know that projection that you keep saying you're going to do, just you just really don't want to? That was this antique dresser.

I bought this dresser for a great cost nearly a yr agone and have stared at information technology during every meal and said countless times, " I really need to repaint that."

Well, I bit the bullet and finally completed the projection that I had been dreading. Was it awful? No. Do I want to exercise it again? Also no. Only it's over and at present my cute little java station doesn't alloy in with the walls anymore.

Refinishing the coffee station was 1 of my 2022 Dwelling house Project Goals. So happy to cheque it off the listing!

See all the goals I've set for my abode in 2019.

coffee bar update, before and after of a painted antique dresser

While I was waiting for a coat of paint to dry out, I decided to effort to clean upward the drawer pulls a picayune scrap. I honestly hadn't thought much of the drawer pulls, simply I figured since they were already off the drawers I should probably make clean them at present or information technology would never happen.

before and after of cleaning antique drawer pulls
The lesser drawer pull is after simply a couple rounds with Bar Keepers Friend!

I had no idea they actually looked like this!!

Later scrubbing off about 100 years of clay and rust, these beauties were looking pretty good!

3 ways to remove rust and dirt from antique drawer pulls. from gross to glowing

I tried a few unlike methods for cleaning the drawer pulls. Here are the 3 cleaning methods that worked best for me.

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1. Baking Soda

A friend tipped me off to this method, and I'm so glad she did! Boiling water with baking soda worked the best of all the methods I tried.

How to employ the baking soda method

  1. Boil some h2o in a small-scale pot
  2. One time the water is boiling, sprinkle in some baking soda
  3. Use metal tongs to dip your drawer pulls into the bubbly blistering soda water
  4. Agree the drawer pulls in the water for a minute or then and watch the rust and dirt float away (and then satisfying!)
  5. Place drawer pull on towel and lightly scrub in the crevices with a soft toothbrush while it's still hot
  6. Repeat equally necessary
clean antique drawer pulls with baking soda. Baking soda and boiling water is the easiest method for removing dirt and rust

A few tips for this cleaning method

  • Utilize metallic tongs to dip the handles in and shake them a lilliputian bit in the foam/bubbles. This helped to knock more than of the rust and dirt off.
  • Don't practice this in a cooking pot! I picked upward a inexpensive used pot from the austerity store.
  • The baking soda will foam and bubble A LOT. Continue an middle on your pot and so it doesn't boil over.

2. Bar Keepers Friend

The first thing I tried when I decided to clean up this hardware was Bar Keepers Friend. This product is crawly for cleaning metal surfaces so I knew it would exist a smashing selection for the drawer pulls. It worked really well, simply it did require a lot of scrubbing.

How to utilise Bar Keepers Friend

  1. Go the drawer pull wet
  2. Sprinkle some Bar Keepers Friend on the drawer pull and pat information technology downward so the powder gets into all of the fiddling crevices
  3. Permit it sit for 5 minutes or so
  4. Scrub with a toothbrush and rinse with water
  5. Echo until your hardware looks squeaky clean
Bar Keepers Friend removed rust and dirt from antique drawer pulls

Some Tips for using Bar Keepers Friend

  • I don't know if it'due south necessary to wear gloves, but I did simply to make certain the powder wouldn't irritate my hands. These are the aforementioned gloves I vesture for staining woods and they held upward bully against the Bar Keepers Friend.
  • Be gentle with your scrubbing. I accidentally scrubbed some of the finish off of the raised sections of these drawer pulls while trying to clean out the grooves.

3. Brasso

Brasso was the last thing I used on my drawer pulls and it did a great job of shining them up. It was my least favorite cleaning method because of the chemic smell of Brasso. Information technology has a very strong chemical olfactory property that left me with a headache even though I merely used information technology for about xx minutes or less in an area with an open window and fan.

The Brasso worked best on hardware that was already mostly clean. For drawer pulls that still had some rust and dirt I used a toothbrush to rub the Brasso in and gently knock the rust off.

How to use Brasso

  1. Squirt a little bit of Brasso onto a fabric rag
  2. Rub the Brasso into the drawer pull with the rag
  3.  For pulls with a lot of rust, use a toothbrush to get the Brasso into the pocket-sized crevices and knock off the rust.
  4.  Buff the hardware with a clean rag
Brasso removed some of the remaining rust from the antique drawer pulls and gave the pulls a little shine

Tips for using Brasso

  • Make sure you're in a well ventilated expanse and consider wearing a animate mask
  • I wore gloves again considering I wasn't sure if the Brasso would irritate my hands.
  • Be certain to scrub all of the Brasso off of the hardware. It volition go out a light-green tint anywhere that it is non rubbed off.

Cleaning Antiquarian Drawer Pulls

My drawer pulls didn't turn out perfect, but in that location are And so MUCH cleaner than before! I didn't fifty-fifty know they had a pattern before I started cleaning them! Each of the cleaning methods I used worked well to remove the rust and grime from these antique beauties.

If y'all're not certain where to start, I recommend the blistering soda and humid h2o. It's the cheapest method and made the biggest difference for me.

Good Luck!

3 easy ways to clean antique hardware. from gross to glowing, pinterest image