Transform Furniture With Paint

Transforming a piece of furniture with paint is one of the most creative and economical ways to refresh your home. The right kind of paint makes the job much easier, too!

Kaitlin Madden Armon has painted many a family hand-me-down, thrift store find or Facebook marketplace bargain with her trusty can of paint. Here are her tips for choosing the best furniture paint for your project.

Spray Paint

A great way to put your stamp on a piece of furniture and transform it into something that fits your unique decorating style is to spray paint it. This can be used on items like side tables, stools or dressers to give them an updated look.

According to Love and Renovations, before you begin spray painting your furniture it’s important to clean the surface thoroughly. This will ensure that the spray paint goes on evenly, and prevents drips and pools. It’s also a good idea to practice on some scrap wood or cardboard before you start working on your actual piece of furniture.

Some of the pros of spray painting include its speed and affordability versus brush painting. It’s also easier to get into those nooks and crannies of an item that are hard to reach with a brush. Another perk is that it dries much faster than brushed on paint. This allows for quick and easy touch ups to perfect your finish.

Chalk Paint

Since Annie Sloan’s iconic Chalk Paint was launched in 1990, it has completely democratized the world of upcycling and furniture restoration. Once a specialist occupation, anyone with a tin of the stuff can transform a thrift store find or family hand-me-down into something uniquely their own.

The water-based mineral paint requires little to no sanding or priming, and is suitable for almost any surface. It can also be distressed and rubbed with wax for more texture. While you can buy chalky finish furniture paint from many well-known paint retailers, the original version is still available directly from Annie Sloan’s website and through her network of independent stockists. This brand offers a wide range of colors, from soft neutral shades like Greystone and Naples Yellow to more jewel tones such as Sage Green and Midnight Blue. Once the paint is dry, apply a protective coat of wax with a lint-free cloth and let it set for two weeks.

Acrylic or Latex Paint

Painting furniture is the perfect opportunity to showcase your artistic talents and inject self-expression into your home or workspace. Beginners and experts alike can apply many of the same techniques that are used when painting on canvas or paper to create stunning upcycled pieces.

Acrylic is a water-based paint, which means it can be washed out of brushes and rollers with soap and water. It also dries quicker than latex and needs only a day to reach full hardness, which makes it ideal for those on tight schedules or who are new to painting.

Although it’s similar to latex, acrylic has added chemicals that make it more elastic than latex, which minimizes cracking and peeling. It also helps it to expand and contract with changing temperatures, making it a good choice for exterior projects.

Wood Stains

Stain is a great alternative to paint for wood projects since it can show off the natural grain of the material. It is available in a variety of tints and colors so that you can customize the look of your piece, while still protecting it.

Stains work in a similar way as paint, by dissolving pigment and dye into the wood fibres with a solvent. However, they tend to have less binder than a varnish or surface film would, so the color is more easily absorbed into the wood itself.

Wood stains also help to seal off the pores of the material, preventing it from taking in water and protecting it from UV rays that cause damage over time. This means that stain is more durable than paint, and can withstand heavy foot traffic or weather conditions over longer periods of time. It is important to note that stain cannot be used over bare wood, but will require a primer in order to prevent it from peeling and cracking.