I have soft wood dresser that I would like to refinish and paint. how do I do this??

i dont know the difference between restoring and refinishing. what i would like to do is get some of the scratch dents out of it(since it is a very soft wood) and then paint it and put new handles on it. can you please tell me how to this? thank you soo much MeganI have soft wood dresser that I would like to refinish and paint. how do I do this??
From your description of the dresser it sounds like it is made of pine. For slight dents, and I mean ever so slight dents, you can lay a wet washcloth over them and using a hot iron, iron the dents out. This works for the most part because the wood absorbs the moisture and the fibers in the wood will swell and the dent will vanish. For deeper dents you will need to get some wood putty and fill them in. For a really smooth look on the spots that you fill in...fill once and level them out as best as you can with a putty knife. Let dry. Sand with a fine grit sandpaper and then fill again. Let dry. Sand again. I don't know what kind of finish is on the dresser now but if it is a stain you will have to sand the whole dresser down, seal it with a primer and then paint it. If it has paint on it now then all you have to do is primer it and then paint. If it is an older dresser the drawer pull holes may not be the standard 3 1/2 inches apart as most modern pulls are. If they are not then putty the holes using the method I described above with the two coats, sanding in between coats of putty. You will have to choose your new hardware and drill the new holes to accomodate the pulls. I would suggest using a semi gloss or gloss paint for the final paint coat. You don't want to use a flat paint.I have soft wood dresser that I would like to refinish and paint. how do I do this??
Restoring is bringing the dresser back to its original color.To refinish it and paint it I would use Min-wax latex wood filler.It dries in a couple of hours and is easy to sand once its dry.Dents in old wood are not going to come up with moisture.The wood has been sealed years ago.Sand,prime paint and enjoy it.