How to Paint Furniture

Want a FABULOUS piece of furniture and have a tight budget? Here is your answer P-A-I-N-T! Yes, painting a shabby, old, ugly, $3 dollar coffee table can make is look really, really sharp! Found a beautiful $2 headboard, just the right size and shape, but hate that it is yellow and does not match the red night stand you love so much?Well, painting it will give the uniform look you are looking for!


However, painting furniture can me very, very tricky! I am not a specialist at this at all, and I am learning as I go, but here are some of the tips I have learned as I try to furnish my home with a champagne taste on a pop budget!


Whatever it is that you are painting again the quality of your materials, and not skipping steps, is essential! The great plus of painting furniture is that a gallon, or even a quart, of quality paint will go very far! I have used the same can of black paint for 4 years!


So here is the basic process I use when painting furniture:


1. Sand it, sand it, sand it! Sanding your funiture will ensure better quality of priming, therefore a more finished look project. How much you need to sand will depend of the kind of finish your furniture has on it. If the lacker is heavy and shiny, you want to sand it down more. This does not mean sanding it down until you get all the finish out, but making the surface a little rougher to guarantee that your primer and paint will stick (and last). Also, you want to scrape loosed paint and sand so the surface is smooth and ready for the next step. My husband found me a little (but AMAZING) hand sander at a garage sell for $3, and it has made my projects much easier. I use the hand sander to sand flat surfaces, and I hand sand the details. Be careful not to sand away the character of your piece by sanding outside where lighting is great and you can check on your progress without difficulty.


2. Clean it, clean it, clean it! After the sanding is done, brush it out with a hand brush and use a clean dump cloth to clean your furniture. Let it is for a few hours to ensure the wood is dry when you are ready to prime it.


3. Prime it, prime it, prime it! Quality primer will ensure the finish look of your project. Again, a can of primer will last a long time! I use white primer for light paint colors, and tinted primer for darker colors. Appying primer using my little roller will ensure uniform coverage, always following the direction of the wood grain. Next, immediatly after I apply primer with my roller I get a paintbrush and lightly brush on top of the paint I rolled, to give the brushed look and make sure the bubbles left by the roller are gone.


4. Time to Paint!!!! After all this preparation it is finally time to paint! I follow the same process in applying the paint that I used with the primer, rolling and brushing, rolling and brushing, always follwing the grain of the wood. How many coats your peice need will depend on the color you are using. Usually 2 coats are enough. You can apply the second coat a couple hours after the first one is done, just make sure the surface is dry. However, if you are using red, it is a whole different ball game! I painted the furniture in my son's room red (check it out here _________________) and it is FABULOUS, but it was a painfull process of 4 coats of red paint!!!!! I usually use semi-gloss sheen in painting furniture just because it can be wiped clean easyy! However, when you are going to a more shabby chic look, you probably want to use a more flat sheen. I personaly do not recommend going to a totally flat sheen, especially when painting furniture, but that is just a personal preference. I also have used spray paint as my second coat, as in this project _________________, I love the look!


Now it is time to enjoy your Pottery Barn inspired furniture, Goodwill budget, FANTASTIC piece of furniture! And yes, you can feel really good about all your hard work and talent!!!!!