Recently I bought (after measuring very carefully to make sure they were not too tall!) floor to ceiling dark brown, stained and lacquered bookcases from a store that was going out of business and selling (or basically giving away) their display cases. I filled in a few screwholes with plastic wood, lightly sanded a few rough areas, painted the cases inside and out with a good-quality white primer (this is the essential step!), sanded away any drip marks, and then finished with two coats of the same paint my daughter and son-in-law had used to paint the woodwork in the house they had recently bought. I had a handyman bolt them to the walls on either side of the living room fireplace and then add trim around the top which matches the rest of that in the room. The bookcases look completely built in. They were excellent quality pieces with crown moldings and striated rails---they look wonderful!! No one would ever guess in their previous life they were old brown dismanteled display cases from a store that had gone out of business! Paint will do wonders. As for the pulls, don't dream of trying to paint them-- take one of the old ones to Home Depot or a local hardware store. They will help you buy new ones which will fit the existing holes (never try to drill new holes--that leads to real problems which a coat of paint can't fix!!) Good luck with your daughter's room--I know it will be beautiful and she will appreciate your hard work as my daughter and her husband did.

I just used Rustoleum's Cabinet transformations on a medium colored oak cabinet and painted them black. I have to say the cabinet turned out pretty well. For now, I just tried one cabinet in a bathroom. The grain is definitely still visible. For my cabs, I dropped a piece of beadboard into the inset portion of the cabinet to cover up a majority of the grain. it's not clear how durable the finish will be; I've read posts from other folks who have said that the finish starts to chip away. time will tell; if the finish holds up I'll use the product on my kitchen cabs.

Shelly, in the past when I painted a lot of furniture, I tried a number of things, but always loved BM's Cameo White the best. It was the most yummy, creamy shade that gave my vintage pieces a soft glow. It may have more yellow in it than you would prefer, however. Whites that are less creamy than Cameo, but still soft, would be Cloud White, Chantilly Lace, & Swiss Coffee. The SC does have a slightly beigy undertone, but could look great on a vintage piece. The other 2 shades are truer, cleaner whites. Painting furniture is fun & rewarding. I used to paint things all the time...gee, if the cat had sat still long enough, I probably would have painted her! It can be addictive!

With the beige walls and cream trim, I don't think the black/brown would be too dark. That color would grow more with your son too. Not sure how old he is, but at some point, white furniture tends to look more girly to boys. Our 8 year old grandson has preferred black furniture for at least two years now.