Transform Old Furniture with a Little Love and Paint
You guys I love how paint totally changes the look of stuff. For years I have been painting various pieces of furniture around my house. It’s an easy and inexpensive way to give a new look to your space.
Old Library Chairs
I had these chairs for several years before I refinished them. I instantly fell in love with the style of these beauties. For all the Sooners out there these were used in the OU Library many moons ago.
We painted the chair black first. Then, for the gold at the legs, I taped off the area then sprayed it with gold spray paint. For the seat of the chair, I used upholstery nails and hammered on new faux leather. I was super intimidated by this project, but once I was able to remove the old seat covering it went rather smoothly.
Dining Room Chairs
We have a very eclectic mix of dining room chairs. Some we were given from family members and others we’ve picked up at garage sales and estate sales.
In order to make them feel more cohesive, I painted them all pastel colors. I totally love them. I know many people use special chalk paint but from my experience, any ol’ paint seems to get the job done. Sanding before you paint and in between coats helps the paint stick. Yes, you may need to touch up in a year or two but that is easy to do as long as you still have the paint around.
China Cabinet
This furniture item is a show stopper. So many people comment on it. It was a gift from my friend Connie. You are never going to believe it but she spray-painted the whole thing! It has looked awesome the whole time we’ve owned it. It got a few scrapes during our last move but we just like to call that character.
Metal Patio Chair
These chairs make me smile. I found them on the side of the road, someone was throwing them out, can you believe it? They were purple and had some rust stains. I sanded them up and bought some new cans of purple spray paint.
A tip when using spay paint on metal is to be sure to sand in between each coat. The sanding will give the paint something to stick to. Also, buy more spray paint than you think you will need. It always seems to take just one more coat.
Painted Lamp
Formal Wooden Chair
Old Metal Lockers
I looked and looked for some old lockers to use as storage. After many years of hunting I found these at a garage sale. A bonus is that they are on casters which makes them so much easier to move.
This was by far my biggest furniture painting project. Brent helped a ton by using an electric sander to eliminate all the paint chips to get a smooth surface. He also put the first 3 or 4 coats on. I finished with the final two coats. It was a lot of work and didn’t turn out perfect but I’m okay with that and overall it looks great.
Just Paint It
I know it can seem scary to paint something. I’ve painted bookshelves, vases, tables, doors, metal hooks and knobs, light fixtures, even a wood floor, the list goes on and on. Painting furniture is an easy and inexpensive way to transform and upgrade your space. The hardest part is finding the time to do the project. I usually schedule it over several days since the paint needs to dry in between coats.
In the comments, name a piece of furniture you would like to paint.
You may also like New Life to an Old Building or A Home Tour of a Passive Solar Concrete Home.
If you purchase from a link on this blog a small percentage of the sale may come back to me. You are never charged more for the product. It’s a way to keep this site going and I’m very selective about the things I list. It’s mostly things we already own and love or things I think you would enjoy. Thank you for reading!
