Spray on a clear coat or use a foam brush and some semi-gloss clear acrylic polyurathane.

Here's what the top finish looks like:

The Krylon is an oil-based alkyd. I called Krylon, who really only recommended spraying more paint. They also said there was no clear coat finish that they could recommend on top of the paint. I'm thinking what they really meant is that there's no *competitor's brand* they can recommend.

Doug, do you mean something like Polycrylic? I did some poking around on the net today, and it seems like a possibility, but I've also seen a number of people have bad problems with it.

Another thought I had, rather than to keep throwing good money after bad, is to start over with an oil based brush-on paint. I've never used it, but I see that Ben Moore's Satin Impervo is highly recommended. Any thoughts on this? Since the Krylon is oil based, would I need to reprime the whole thing, or could I just use the Impervo over the Krylon?

I'm very frustrated with this project. I bought the dresser second hand, and it's prior owner had stripped the factory finish and applied some type of stain over the wood, but it had all sorts of nibs and rough spots, so I had to sand the entire thing smooth. And because it's got curved drawer fronts, almost all of that sanding was done by hand. I've spent weeks on this thing so far, wasted a lot of money on spray paint, and have still ended up with this mess. Lesson learned.

I don't use paint in spray cans very often, but I will say that the problem with paint in a can is that it is thinned way down in order for the paint to be sprayable through that little hole. I think it's fairly hard to spray a large area like that and have it come out looking perfect. But, you do have to apply it heavy and you do need the sheen to be even across the entire surface or else it will flash like this. If you have low spots in the paint film, the sheen will never be even. I would probably lightly sand and then use some real oil based paint.

. I would probably lightly sand and then use some real oil based paint.

agreed

Thanks so much!

That's what I suspected. Is the Satin Impervo the brand of choice for this kind of thing? I haven't used an oil paint in a decade, so I have no clue what's even out there.

Do I need to reprime the whole thing, or can I just sand, clean, and repaint?

The best oil paint out there is probably Fine Paints of Europe. You may be able to find it somewhere in a stock black color, but it's expensive. Satin Impervo would be a fine second choice. You probably don't need to prime.

THANK YOU!!!!

I know this piece is going to be wonderful when it's done.

I've painted a lot of furniture, and thought this would be a no-brainer project. I've learned an expensive lesson.

I'll let you know how it all turns out!