Upcycling Furniture with Paint

A big part of the evolution of design in our home is when I learned how to refurbish furniture! One of the first pieces I did last summer is the dresser that is in our bedroom which you may have noticed in the previous post.

It turned out so much better than I ever would have thought!

My mom got this dresser out of someone's trash and kindly gave it to me! My mom is an experienced dumpster diver (curb diver?) and her thriftiness has finally started to rub off on me. I used to be embarrassed by it when I was younger...

The dresser was a little beat up but it was a great solid wood dresser! The drawers are even dovetailed.

STEP ONE

My first step in painting the dresser was priming. I first learned about this primer through icreatewithlove.blogspot.com. It is the only thing I use and a gallon of it lasts me a while! It is stain blocking and odor blocking. And best of all you can paint it right on the wood. You do not have to sand off the existing surface even if it is all "shiny" from poly! (I also recommend using this primer over surfaces like laminate/veneer) I usually only use one coat but two coats is even better especially if you are painting a light color on top. Warning, this paint is very smelly and since it is oil based it is hard to clean up. Best to use outside! For painting furniture I use the small white foam rollers like this. Because this paint is so think I recommend sanding lightly with fine sandpaper after your primer is dry.

STEP TWO

After priming you can just use regular paint that you would use to paint a wall. I usually use a satin finish which is what I did on this dresser. It is shiny but not too shiny. Semi-gloss is nice too for a smooth and shiny finish. Semi-gloss is best when you have a very smooth surface to start with as it will show more imperfections. With this dresser I didn't sand it before I started because I didn't mind that it had some dents/scratches.

I bought a quart of the off-white color (Glidden Shell White) and a sample pot of the light brown (Glidden Whispering Wheat). You really don't need that much paint! I had a lot leftover and have been able to use the Shell White on other projects. I recommend at least two coats.

By the way I did not paint the insides or sides of the drawers. I recommend against that. I have before when the drawers were beat up but it can sometimes make them hard to fit back in. I recommend taping off the edges that you are not painting in case your roller slips...like mine does...If you want to cover the insides of the drawers patterned fabric or paper is good!

STEP THREE (Optional)

The next step is adding a design if you want to! Wait at LEAST a full day before doing this especially when you are taping off. ScotchBlue does make delicate surface paint that you can use sooner. I have heard good things but have not tried it myself.

I didn't want to buy a stencil so I googled chevron pattern and found a free printable. I used this one  from billiemonster.com. I then cut out the stencil and traced it on the drawers and taped off. This took FOREVER. It was worth it in the end but definitely got a little boring...So if you had an actual stencil it would be quicker then all the tracing and taping off that I did.

Once the paint was dry I roughed up the dresser with some sandpaper to give it more of a vintage/shabby chic look.

STEP FOUR (OPTIONAL)

When painting furniture you have the option of using polycrylic to protect the paint finish. I didn't on this piece because if the paint does wear it would be part of its charm. I usually just poly on something like a chair or table top that will get a lot of use and could get damaged. I recommend polycrylic instead of polyurethane as that can start to yellow. Polycrylic comes in different finishes. I use semi-gloss. Using polycrylic can give your piece a very professional looking finish. I use a small foam brush to apply.

After shot again! This project took some time, particularly with all of the tracing and taping, but it was really easy even for a beginner! The dresser came with wooden knobs which I could have painted but I bought these knobs for $2 each so it wasn't too bad for a free dresser.