How make painted furniture look like wood again?

Question

I have a dresser with mirror and two nightstands. Once upon a time, the dresser was a shiny dark wood, and the nightstands were a duller medium wood. They were painted black a few years ago. Can I remove the paint and make them look like wood again, but this time the same wood?

The furniture is about 50 years old and still sturdy. I'm not sure if it's solid real wood, or if it has a veneer or anything.

Answer 1

You need to make sure it is wood underneath and not some veneer. Easiest way to tell is to sand a painted section that is not seen and see what is underneath. Check any drawers or doors on the dresser along the draw or door edge. If it is a rough finish on the edge it is more than likely a particle board and veneer covered.

If you find it is real wood you will need to strip it back to the bare wood. Best way is paint stripper from your Hardware store. Put the paint stripper on and leave it till the paint starts to soften - it usually either bubbles or crinkles. Then scrape it off with a scraper or Putty knife. Repeat the process until you get all the paint out of the grain. I usually hit the wood after scraping with water through a hose. If there are bits a little hard to move you can use steel wool. Once all the paint is removed then sand the wood to get a nice smooth surface. I usually use an Orbital Sander or Palm Sander with a fine grit paper. Once you have the wood back to bare wood then you can apply a stain the colour you want. Let the stain dry for half an hour. If you want the stain to highlight the grain in the wood after applying the stain leave for twenty minutes then with a turps rag just give it a light wipe over. This pushes the stain into the grain. But will only work with oil based stains. Then give the piece about 4 or 5 coats of polyurethane clear until the grain is filled or the surface is smooth. Prior to the final coat give it a light sand - basically a scuff over - no need to rub hard as you will end up back to bare wood and you dont want that at this point. Then give it a final coat of the polyurethane. Hope this helps.

Answer 2

Pinkdenia,
Bonnie & Bryan have the best advice. I found out, what they are telling you searching answers for myself. To their advice I will add 1 more thing PATIENCE it won't just magically come off in 1 or 2 times of stripping. I have Formby's, I have 3M Safest Stripper, Klean- Strip KS-3 Premium Stripper, I still have table spindle legs & fancy work that I can't strip or sand off. I did get pretty good results from wrapping the legs in Saran Wrap to keep the stripper wet longer on these patterns. My Son wants me to hire these Men to dip the pieces so all the old finish comes off, then I can redo the finish I want. Tempting I might add but I'm a die hard that finishes what is started one way or the other.
Take your time do 1 piece at a time just relax & enjoy yourself for you will be doing this for a while. It will be worth it in the end who knows we may discover the real secret they are not sharing with us.

Answer 3

Actually, there is and there isnt. What you do is you used 2 or 3 shades of brown and black. You put your base color down, and while still wet you would mix lines of the darker shade, giving the "wood grain" look. The only problem is that its not all that easy to do well. I've seen some people have to restrip all their stuff again and have to do it several times to get it to look right. But it is easy to do, just not easy to do well.

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Answer 4

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Answer 5

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Answer 6

Step 1: Examine Furniture

First, look closely at the piece of furniture before you invest any time in it to make sure there are not any major cracks or warping from moisture damage in the wood, says Lipford. After examining the furniture, the next step is to clean it to get any spider webs or bug eggs (from being in an attic or old antique shop) or basic dirt off it.

Step 2: Cotton Ball Test

Before you buy your refinishing supplies, you want to find out what kind of finish you are going to strip off, says Lipford. For the cotton ball test, take a cotton ball and nail polish remover and touch it to places that are not visible. If the finish starts dissolving, that tells you it's either a varnish or a lacquer. If it has no effect on it, then you know you are dealing with a painted finish or one that has polyurethane on it. Once you determine that, go to the paint store or home center and buy the right chemical stripper that will help you successfully strip the finish off the piece of furniture. Lipford says there are a variety of strippers that can be used, but it's primarily the one that is formulated to strip that type of finish that works the best.

Step 3: Follow Directions and Apply to Small Sections

Lipford advises to follow the directions on the stripper when applying it to small sections of the furniture. Generally, there would be a waiting period, anywhere from 10 minutes to an hour, to allow the stripper to break down the finish, and it will usually result in a bubbling effect. Once it's gotten to that point, then it's best to use a plastic putty knife to scrape all of the loose or bubbled-up finish off of the furniture.

Step 4: Remove As Much Finish As You Can

Continue removing as much paint as you can. Occasionally, a second coat or application will be necessary on some of the more stubborn finishes, Lipford says.

Step 5: Use Remover Wash

After removing as much paint as possible, wash down the furniture with a "remover wash," instructs Lipford. It's basically intended to remove the residue finish off of the furniture.

Step 6: Sand Wood

After washing, you are ready to sand the furniture, either by hand or using a finishing sander, Lipford says.

When you use the block of wood, just rub. When using a sander, Lipford says to go with the grain. He explains, if you go cross grain it will cause a lot of scratches that will show in the finish later on.

Step 7: Wipe Off Dust and Apply Stain

You then wipe the furniture again to get all of the dust off and then you're ready to apply the stain. You would apply the stain again in the direction of the grain using a brush. Then you allow it to sit on the wood for a minute or two and then you wipe it down with a clean rag. That removes the excess stain and forces the stain down into the wood, says Lipford.

When dealing with crevices, for example the decorative legs of a table, Lipford says to rely on the chemical stripper and an old toothbrush to get into the grooves of the furniture.

Step 8: Apply Protective Finish and Let Dry

After the stain dries, Lipford instructs to put a protective finish on it. To give it longevity and generally, Lipford says, you would apply two coats. Also, lightly sand it in between stages, he says. It makes the finish cloudy, but don't panic if it looks like you are messing up the finish. You are kind of etching the finish so you can get another layer on it, Lipford explains. After the first coat, it's going to be shiny and slick and smooth. For the second coat to adhere to the first coat, use sandpaper to knock the sheen off of the first coat. When the second coat goes on, you are through. Then you let it dry.

The stain will allow you to not only make the wood more uniform, but it also gives you the opportunity to change the color, Lipford says. There are hundreds of colors, such as blue or any color, that can be used in the form of a tint. Staining with the color allows you to still see some of the grain without covering up the wood with paint.

Answer 7

use paint remover, strip it completely to the bare wood, then sand it with very fine sand paper or a light grade of steel wood to take of the remaining residue. The removal of the paint depending on how thick it is could take more than one appication. You can stain it again with wood stain afterward to get the color wood you want.

Answer 8

Yes a good paint stripper should even remove the old stain. You probably can't make them real light but you can stain them to match.If you do want to try for light try bleaching the wood after you strip it.

Answer 9

you'll want to use a paint stripper...if it's 50 years old, most likely it's not a veneer...then you'll need to sand, then possibly oil it a little with linseed oil, then seal the wood

Answer 10

put acid on it but be surev you dont spil it on your hands