Should I paint or stain a pine dresser?

After weeks of searching for a solid white dresser for my young daughter and only finding cheap particle board, we ordered an unfinished pine dresser. Now, I am nervous. My daughters bed and bookcase is white, so we wanted to keep this dresser white as well.





My question is should we stain it a white wash? (I know that pine can be a little tricky to stain and would need to use a wood conditioner first) or should we go ahead and paint it a bright white, like the rest of her furniture?





Anyone have experience with this? I really appreciate your help.Should I paint or stain a pine dresser?
I had a similar Job, Use an oil based sealer like zinser 123(red one - shellac base) this helps seal in the natural oils from the pine. Then you can use any paint you want to finish it.Should I paint or stain a pine dresser?
I would do a white wash. It is a shame to paint an wood dresser. you lose the cahracter of the wood. with a white wash, the grain still shows through, yet you get a white color that will work with the rest of the furniture.





I would suggest giving it a coat of sanding sealer first. this will set the grain. then give it a light sanding with 220 grit paper. this let the white wash stain the wood more evenly, and create a smoother finish. seal with a varnish afterwards, if you want a resiliant finish.
I think this is a case of preference. If you think you will want to actually wash the dresser later, I would go with paint...lightly sand, and prime it first. If you like the stain aspect maybe go with a light white wash! But do seal over it!
I would stain it. I like the look of natural wood. Plus, then she can keep the dresser as an adult (I've had the same dresser for over 21 years!). But if all of her other stuff is white, it might fit better in her room as white. I would put the dresser in her room, and look at how it matches. If it doesn't look so good as wood, then do what the first person said and condition/treat it, then paint it. Also, if your daughter is old enough, ask her what she wants...
I would have stained it if I had other natural wood furniture in the room. But it sounds like all her furniture is white, therefore I would go ahead and paint it white to match. If the dresser were a more exotic wood I would still stain it, but with pine there probably isn't a special grain pattern you'd want to highlight by staining it. So, paint is the way to go!