How do I paint finished wood furniture to look like I bought it that way? What about furn. w/laminate finish?

Question

What kind of paint do I use? Do I use a paint brush or a roller (or neither)? What kind of sealer, if any, do I use? Do I sand it first? Does anyone know of a good "how to" book for this sort of thing?

Answer 1

Well I know what will give it a factory finish, but may be more involved than you care for.... Spray finishing. I made some cabinets for my garage and many people thought they were metal because they were so shiny.

Anyway, use a high quality brush made for the type of paint you are using. Sand your piece first. Use a primer, and following its instructions, probably a light sand after this as well. Then one or two coats of your finish coat.

I used Rust-Oleum's Painter Touch latex. (Yes, Rust-Oleums namesake is for metal, but this product is good for wood, metal, wicker and crafts.) http://www.rustoleum.com/brand.asp?frm_brand_id=14&SBL=1&slid=1

Comes in really nice bold colors. However any good name latex that is made for wood should suffice.

Home Depot has a sef-help section which includes painting help books.

The primer will "seal" the surface and let the finish coat flow better without sucking in or drying prematurely. "Painters Touch" seems to be a very durable finish, so no clear coat seems necessary.

Answer 2

The simplest approach to a 'distressed' paint look is to lightly sand some scuff marks into the paint. Since you mention using this in an outdoor living space, you will want to apply a good sealant to all of the surfaces, to help protect it from moisture also. Using a standard urethane top coat can result in some yellowing of white paint over time, so if you want a urethane finish, use a 'marine' grade finish, also commonly known as a 'spar urethane'. Now - since you mention an 'uneven' paint and question if it was sold as a 'bleached' piece of furniture, I have to question - is this actually a paint finish, or a stain? Because it does make a difference. Stain soaks into wood, where paint sets on top of the surface. There is also a 'pickled' type of finish which some folks like - while I've done a lot of it over the years, it was never one of my favorites, lol. IF this is a stain and not a paint, you would spend a lot more time sanding, trying to get thru the layers of wood that have soaked up the stain. The easier approach to a distressed look with stain, is to actually use a solvent, to help 'strip', or remove the stain from selected areas. If this is a stain, you could take a little acetone on a clean rag, and make some swipes along the wood grain, not hitting all of the surface, just here and there. Afterwards, using another clean rag, and some cold water, wipe over those locations again, rinsing out your rag often. This step is to help 'neutralize' and remove any acetone that was left behind in the first step. Acetone keeps working over time, after it has been applied, if left unchecked. I would recommend giving the piece a few days after the 'cleaning' step, before applying any kind of sealer or top coat...otherwise you'll find that the new top coat will tend to bubble off. Paint is especially affected by acetone, which is why I mentioned it is important to know if this is actually a paint or stain. You can take a rag or paper towel with a little acetone, and just wipe it across a painted surface - immediately wipe it again with a dry cloth - and it looks ok - but give it a day or two, and that surface will actually wrinkle up, and come off. Have Fun

Answer 3

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Answer 4

I hope you are asking how to make your painted finish look like it has that store bought shine and look. Sand first, then seal with a primer. sand between each primer coats and prime and sand until you get a finish on the primer that is close to what you want. Then move to your color or base coat. Use an emamel in the desired gloss. They have many examples at the paint store. You will need to sand between coats with a 400 or finer grit emery paper, but use 0000 steel wool before you put on your clear coat. You wll need to put on three to four coats of finish coat with 0000 steel wool between each coat. Drying times between all coats will take from 24 hours to a week depending on climate (temp and Humidity.To get the best you will need to use an oil base primer and oil base paint and oil based clear coat that it spray finished on with a air compressor. You can get a close match with spray paint (they have all three types of paint in cans) but it would take about two cans each of spray paint to do one normal sized table chair.
You can get a finish that is not quite so remarkable with a water based primer and paint. The steps would be the same, but I would still use the spray seal (Lacquer, Clear Enamel) coat. The more time you use in prep work the better your project will look. You might want your first attempt to just be a piece of wood.
If you ar looking for the wood finish Oak, etc. you will use a stain in the place of a primer on wood that has no finish (bare wood). Start with a gel primer it is the easiest to use for a beginner. Make sure the bare wood has a smooth finish and has been prepped as finely as you would have prepped before priming like above. Hope this helps and is not too confusing or too disscouraging... don't give up because it sounds complicated. All your efforts will be rewarded by the results you achieve. Laminate will need to have a grip and seal and is probably the most amount of work for the least amount of reward.

Answer 5

Its a lot of hand sanding. First clean it with a strong cleaner. Then sand with about 400 grit dry paper, fold the paper to get into the long grooves. Then gets some really good filler and spot fill the bad spots. Nail holes ect. Sand again. Then use a "tack cloth" to get rid of each and every trifle of dust and dirt.

You will need to buy really good expensive paint. Im not going to Tell brands here, but Sherwin Williams and Lowes and Depot have those.

Apply with a really good brush. Less paint is better. Do not brush once it starts to dry. Then get about 600 grit wet paper and again sand down the entire woodwork keeping the paper a flood with water to remove the particles, Fold and sand the grooves too. Then go over it when dry with a tack cloth again. Repeat this about 3 times final sanding with 2000 grit wet paper from an automotive paint supply house. You will then have wood work which is the envy of all.

Answer 6

If you want it to look professional & like it came that way you will need to spray paint.

1. Make sure the furniture is cleaned and primed. (use a degreaser)
2. Using some fine sandpaper or steel wool so the paint will adhere better.
3. prime coat
4. spray finish
5. sealeant is not needed if you use and OIL BASED Enamel.
which is what I recommend.

Good luck
Twila

Answer 7

you have to sand it 1st if it's raw. if you want a wooden finish, stain it...
for a better & durable finish - u have to use a compressor / spray paint it.
if you mean laminated furniture - it cannot be painted over.
or if u want a laminated finish - it's not that easy to laminate it, u got to have the skill cause the edges of laminates are sharp, there's a way to cut it & most laminated furniture on the market are machine pressed.

Answer 8

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Answer 9

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There is enough variety of projects in here, big and small, intricate and simple, and you can pick out new ones as you progress in your woodworking abilities.
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