As with painting walls, painting furniture can be pretty intimidating. But let me share a little secret with you - it has pretty much become my DIY mantra: Don't be afraid to ruin something you already hate. And that's where my love of painting all the things was born.
I used to run my own knit/crochet business making newborn hats and other goodies from 2008-2013. Working 40 hours per week from home with three kids under 5 wasn't worth the stress or the income, so I shut it down and focused my energy on going to the gym, taking care of myself, and being a better mother. When my fourth baby was born in July of this year, the doctors discovered he had a rare congenital tumor in his lungs and he needed immediate surgery to remove one of the lobes of his lung. Long story short, we try to keep him away from people to hopefully minimize his risk of getting RSV this season since he's already short part of his lungs. So instead of spending my mornings dropping my kids off at the gym daycare and lifting weights, I've had to find a new hobby to fill the void. Enter all my house projects, furniture makeovers, and my love of thrifting.
The very first dressers I painted were a super ugly set that my husband had used in his childhood bedroom, which we then took with us when we got married almost 10 years ago. They're probably 40 years old and I absolutely hated them. I tried as hard as I could to convince my husband that we needed to take them to goodwill and get some snazzy IKEA dressers, but, being the frugal one of the marriage, he refused to throw away perfectly good (and ugly) furniture. Now I'm so glad he did because years later it totally jump started my love of redoing furniture.
Fast-forward to present day, I've painted everything under the sun - dressers, end tables, chairs, upholstered chairs, a piano, vases, picture frames and decor, walls, doors, cabinets, floors. You name it, I've probably painted it. Now, if I can learn to do all this then so can you. Take my hand, I'll walk you through it.
Our test subject today is Frenchie, a darling French Provincial style dresser I inherited from my husband's grandmother a few months ago. Isn't she cute? We'll be transforming her into something beautiful in less than 8 hours.
1) Pinterest your paint color.
Yeah, I'm serious. Step 1 of all my tutorials will always be to get on Pinterest. You'll never know where you're going without a little inspiration. If you're not sure what you want to do, whip out your Pinterest app and search "french provincial dresser", or whatever it is that you're painting, and get some color inspiration so you know what you're looking for when you get to the paint store. Nothing is worse than standing in front of those paint chips for an hour trying to decide between shades of white. I happened to have Sherwin-Williams Sea Salt on hand from when I painted the stripes in my formal living room. I've wanted to use it again throughout the house and this dresser was the perfect opportunity.
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2) Gather your supplies.
It's pretty simple. And once you have these items in your painting stash you're good to go for most other furniture-related painting projects.
A) A really good primer. I've tested out my fair share of primers, including Zinsser and Kilz brands that other DIY blogs have suggested, and they were just okay. Nothing to write home about. But then I came across this magical stuff: Glidden Gripper. It's grip-tastic!! (I'm not one to use multiple exclamation points, so I mean business here.) It's absolutely amazing. Super thick, dries fast, grips hard. And that's exactly what you want. Don't waste your time with anything else.
B) Some woven rollers and a 4" rolling frame. As with painting walls, the type of rollers you use to paint your furniture matter greatly. Make sure you're choosing the best quality rollers (see "Best" on the package?), not just what's cheap. If it's in your budget, you may want to splurge on velour or mohair rollers if you're painting something really important like your kitchen cabinets or a special family heirloom. Otherwise woven rollers will work fine. Try to pick the shortest nap possible though. Longer naps = more texture and stippling when you roll. You don't want that on a smooth dresser. And all roller frames are made the same, just pick what feels the most comfortable in your hand.
C) An artist's brush. I happened to have a set of brushes I bought from Joann Fabric and Craft that work really well. It just needs to be small enough to get inside any crevices for detail work. Artist's brushes have extremely fine bristles which don't leave brush strokes like normal paintbrushes. They're also super great for any touch up work you encounter.
D) A foam brush. I just pick up a handful of the 2" foam brushes that are $0.79 at Home Depot whenever I'm running low. I use them all the time so they're just good to have on hand. They'll be used to apply the polycrylic for this project.
E) A small paint tray + heavy duty tinfoil. Any paint tray made for 4" rollers will work. Just cover it with a big sheet of tinfoil before you pour in your paint (as demonstrated above). You'll be switching from rolling primer to paint to polycrylic so you won't want to waste time with the cleanup when you're ready for the next step.
F) A pour spout for your paint can. I don't know what I ever did before I had this. They're only $1 at most home improvement stores, so pick one up the next time you're there. Not a big deal if you don't have one though, it just makes for cleaner pouring.
G) Your choice of paint color. I suppose you can use whatever paint you happen to have on hand, but I always prefer to use Sherwin-Williams' quart-size color pots. They're just $6 and can be color-matched to any color from any brand you desire. They only come in Satin sheen, but if you buy your samples somewhere else, be sure to purchase the flattest sheen available (preferably flat or eggshell). I plan on using 3-4 cups of paint for an average sized dresser.
H) A water-based polycrylic top coat. My personal favorite is Varathane Crystal Clear water-based Polyurethane (it's actually a water-based polycrylic although it says "polyurethane"). It's extremely low odor, easy to apply and clean up, and it dries really quickly. But any water-based polycrylic will work. Make sure the top coat you buy says "polycrylic" or "water-based" on it. You don't want to use anything that says "polyurethane" or "oil-based" because it will amber your paint color over time since it's not a crystal clear liquid. If you're familiar with furniture wax, you could use that as well. Be aware that if you go the wax route, you'll need to re-seal your pieces every so often to keep them durable. I have 4 kids under 7 terrorizing my house. Ain't nobody got time fo dat. So I always use polycrylic. Seal it once and you're done for the foreseeable future.
I) A drop cloth (pictured with Frenchie). If you're painting indoors then you'll want to use some type of drop cloth to put under your project piece. I picked up some plastic-backed kraft paper from Home Depot and have been using it for about 6 months. I even left it out in a rainstorm overnight and it dried just fine. Pretty good quality for a $5 investment.
J) Chalk paint powder (OPTIONAL). I always have bbfrösch chalk paint powder on hand. It's all natural, creates a super smooth creamy texture in your paint, and is so affordable compared to other chalk paints. The small jar in my photo holds enough powder to mix a gallon of paint for just $32. I've had it for 6 months and I still have about 1/3 of the jar left. It goes a long way because I just mix what I need. Here's why it's optional. If you decide to use a primer before you paint then the chalk paint isn't really necessary since the primer sticks to the furniture and the paint sticks to the primer. If you were to forego the primer then you would definitely need to use the chalk paint powder in your paint since the paint won't adhere well to the furniture on its own. Sometimes I'll use primer AND chalk paint for maximum adhesion (like when I painted my kitchen island). In my experience, I've found that I achieve the best results when I prime first, regardless of whether I use chalk paint or regular paint. Because I was painting a decorative dresser that won't encounter a lot of wear and tear, I opted to just use the primer + paint this time around.
3) Remove all the hardware and take out all drawers and doors.
Take a screwdriver or power tool, whichever is less intimidating to you, and remove all the knobs, pulls, hinges, etc. You can either leave them as-is or spray paint them a different color. Some crafters opt to leave them on the furniture and just paint everything one solid color, hardware included. Your choice. Take out all the drawers and doors and place them on a drop cloth as well.
4) Give your project piece a good wipe down.
Make sure that your piece is clean before starting. Grease, dirt, gunk, all that stuff prevents paint and primer from adhering properly. Clorox wipes or dawn dish soap + hot water will do the job. Don't forget to wipe down where the knobs, pulls, and hinges used to be. Wipe it down with a dry towel after. OPTIONAL: You might also consider lightly sanding any rough spots. Now is the time for any prep work that needs to be done. I hate stuff like that, so I skip it all and haven't ever encountered a problem.
5) Cut in all the nooks and crevices with primer.
Assuming you're going to prime first for maximum paint adhesion, durability, and longevity, get out your artist's brush and paint around all the areas that the roller can't easily reach. For Frenchie, that included the lip around the top of the dresser, underneath the lip, around the legs, and inside all the little gold swirls. Make sure you paint thick enough so that you get good coverage, but not so thick that there are drips.
6) Roll on the primer over the rest of the furniture.
I poured about a cup of primer into my tinfoil-covered tray and rolled the remainder of the dresser. I only do one coat of primer unless there's bleed-through from stuff under the paint. This dresser had some bleed-through from the gold in the swirls (I think they were spray painted on??), so I should have used another coat of primer. However I didn't realize this until I had already applied my polycrylic, so I just left it. I'm just gonna say I was going for an "antique" look. The thing about DIY is that nothing will ever be perfectly perfect, so just roll with it. Go for character, not store-bought.
When painting the drawers, only paint the face of the drawer and the four outside edges. There's no need to spend time painting the inside or sides of the drawer unless you want to cover up some funky smell (which primer can take care of) or get super detailed.
7) Cut in all the nooks and crevices with paint.
Once the primer has dried, go back with your artist's brush (that you washed out and let dry after priming) and do the detail work again with your regular paint or chalk paint. I just used the paint straight from my Sherwin-Williams pot and went to town. As with the primer, paint thick enough to get good coverage without needing a second coat, but not so thick that you get drips. You only want to have to do one coat because cutting in takes a while and it's not very fun. Don't let that discourage you though! Every project has its tedious moments. Like my painted kitchen floor (all the heart eyes!). Every moment of that was tedious, but I digress.
8) Roll on the paint over the rest of the furniture.
Pretty much repeat step 6 but with your paint. The only difference is that you'll need 2-3 coats of paint depending on the color you choose. Darker colors can usually get by with just 2 coats, but I like to do 3 coats with lighter colors to get full color saturation. Go with the grain in your first coat, against the grain in your second coat, and with the grain in your third coat. Or if you're only doing two coats, do your last coat with the grain for the smoothest look. Stick your roller in a snack baggie while you wait for the paint to dry between coats so your roller doesn't dry out. You can also stick your whole tray in a gallon size bag if you're worried about that drying out while you wait. I recoat as soon as the tackiness is gone, about 30ish minutes. Usually by the time I've finished doing the dresser and the drawers, the dresser is ready for another coat.
9) Use a foam brush to apply the polycrylic top coat.
Once the paint has completely dried (about an hour) it's safe to coat with polycrylic. Slowly turn the can upside down and right side up a few times to mix the liquid. Don't shake because you don't want air bubbles in your polycrylic. That won't translate to a smooth finish. Using your foam brush, completely coat the dresser and all the drawers with a smooth, even coat of poly. I find I get the best results when I use long brush strokes from one end of the dresser to the other, going with the grain of the wood. Make sure your brush is saturated with the poly so that you don't have to push too hard with the foam, that will create air bubbles as you paint and that's something we want to avoid. Do at least 2-4 coats total, letting the poly dry between coats. Again, usually by the time I've rounded on the drawers then the dresser is ready for another coat.
10) Replace all the hardware, drawers, and doors.
If I'm super careful, I can replace the knobs and pulls about 1-2 hours after I apply my last coat of poly (which is what I did with Frenchie). However, it's best to allow the poly to cure completely for 24-48 hours before replacing everything. Varathane poly dries extremely fast and hard so I risk it more often than not.
That's it! You're done! Now Instagram that beauty and show her off to the world. Be proud of yourself because you're just a tad more awesome than you were yesterday.
Have you attempted to makeover furniture before? How'd it turn out?
xo Amanda
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