The old gent who lived here previously left several LARGE & lovely pieces of furniture behind.
It was very kind of him to do so, but truth be told, he couldn’t have gotten these pieces out of here as he refused to hire movers.
He instead transporting all his belongings, including every rusty screw he ever touched & every piece of paper he ever read in his often broken down yellow van to Lake Tahoe ~ 11 hours away. At 82 this was a feat – accomplished over one year & eight months.
But hey, that is another story & maybe even a book. Did I mention he was a hoarder of Olympic proportions?
We’ll, get deeper into that saga & how I earned the virtue of patience over those many many month another day.
Today we are talking about painting furniture & the pieces I was lucky enough to receive with the purchase of our home. Specifically, what I plan to do to refurbish and freshen these pieces up.
Throughout the post are before/during pictures of these pieces. Feel free to ring in with your thoughts on painting furniture.
There are so many choices of paints & techniques for furniture painting that I wanted to get beneath the surface so to speak, before taking action. A primer on paint options ( excuse the pun ! )
We DIY’ers toss around Milk, Chalk and other paint terms, but do we really know the differences & what is best when? I wanted to really know before tackling these massive pieces.
Figured you might like to really know the differences between paints too, so here you have it:
A Guide to Paints for Painting Furniture:
Milk Paint ~
Milk paint is an organic water based paint. It is comprised of a mixture of lime, casein (the main protein in milk), clays and pigment. Milk paint comes in powder form & is mixed with water.
It gives a rich complex finish that improves over time. It bonds best to fresh wood or well sanded wood. The paint is thinner so several coats can be applied with no risk of chipping.
Milk paint is easy to clean up & can even be poured right down the kitchen drain.
Great sources for Milk Paint are Miss Mustard Seed & Amy Howard.
Chalk Paint ~
Chalk Paint is really not a type of paint, but the name of the particular paint trademarked by Annie Sloan in 1990. There are other paints on the market with similar components, but none can call themselves “Chalk Paint” – that is Annie’s paint. Kinda like other facial tissues not being able to call themselves Kleenex.
Chalk Paint by Annie Sloan, or other similar types of paint, are water based, nontoxic, odor free with low VOCs. This paint renders an aged appearance & distresses easily.
Besides, the beautiful matt finish, a big real bonus to Chalk Paint is that it bonds to almost any surface with no need to sand or prime. Nice!
As mentioned Annie Sloan has an extensive line of her Chalk Paint. Amy Howard also has a chalk based paint, her One Step Paint. One step sounds perfect as I gaze at the size of these pieces!
Latex Paint ~
Good old latex paint. Not fancy, but can yield pretty great results at low cost. Did you ever see the little side table I transformed with a rag & some leftover latex paint?
Oh have a look at the post. Here is a close up of the distressed look I achieved. It was so easy & cost nothing, but an hour or so of my time.
Latex paint is also water based. It comprises 75% of the paint sold in the US. The cost is low, the clean up easy, it adheres well and dries fast. In a word ~ reliable.
Oil Paint ~
Oil paint is pretty much a thing of the past and for good reason. It is solvent based, alkyds, petroleum distillates. Not good for the environment or you. It smells bad, is less durable than latex, prone to cracking and clean up is not easy.
In California, I might do state time if found with a gallon of oil based paint. And if they find my stash of pink incandescent light bulbs I might get life! No time for that…
So we can pretty much eliminate this one from my list of possibilities.
So there you have it ~ my paint primer for painting furniture.
The question still remains to paint or not to paint?
This one I am not painting.
Sanding was enough for me. I love the patina it took on when the red-ish stain was removed. Patina this good should not be painted in my opinion.
It needs a bit more sanding in spots and then maybe some hemp oil. Then done with that piece! I’ll show you the after once I get it there.
This Victorian secretary got a coat of white primer. Just primed, so ready for anything, but I believe it will stay white.
It will share the room with my 21 light vintage chandelier. There shouldn’t be competition for star of the room. The chandy will be it.
This piece, grand as it is, needs to play a supporting role. And I am loving it white!
The details really pop. Oops, I missed a spot!
Here is the one that calls out for a creative paint job. It is a massive German piece. A breakfront, an altar in a pinch?
This piece might take me all summer to paint once I decide – milk, chalk, latex – distressed or not… The possibilities are many.
Now that I know more about each type of paint I can make an informed decision.
What do you think about this piece?
Would you paint it? If so, got any good ideas? Love to hear your thoughts!
** Kelly **
Wow, you inherited some great pieces. I wouldn’t paint that last huge piece. I would just hemp oil it. What a stunner!
Thanks Kim! Hemp oil is amazing isn’t it. Can’t wait to decorate these rooms – the wait is almost over…
The Victorian Secretary is gorgeous in all white! What color white did you use? There are so many different whites, I’d love to know which one you used. Thanks! Aimee
Hi Amiee! My favorite white of all time is Ben Moore’s Simply White. Coincidentally the year I am using buckets & buckets of it – is was declared Ben’s color of the year. It is a true white with some warmth. I used it on the walls & trim and the exterior will be Simply White too. Thanks so much for stopping by today!
Referring to the two pieces you painted in white latex…did you use brush, roller or sprayer? I bought a sprayer a few years ago, and I have never used it. Can’t get past the brush and foam roller. There is a iron table and chairs waiting for my attention, and I have committed myself to try the sprayer.
What a bonus to you that the old fellow left you such gorgeous pieces! He sounds like a hoot! That big brown “altar” piece is too dark so it would get paint if it were mine. The cabinet piece is beautiful with just the sanding. The patina of the red and green on it is so perfect.
I am so excited to see the finished pieces, but more so, the finished home!! Your previous home was gorgeous, and I can’t understand how you could leave it, but this one is special in a unique and different way. Your talents will make it the jewel in the crown of the city, to be sure.
Odessa you are too kind – thank you!! I don’t use a sprayer. The secretary was done with a brush & small roller on the inside. I do think that a sprayer might be just fine for an iron set. I like to see the brush strokes on wood. We have lots of projects ahead. Keep me posted on yours…
Oh, that’s a quandary. It’s massive, so that’s a lot of wood on display…which is fine, in my opinion, especially if it can stand out as a star, but if it’s surrounded by more wood, then I would paint it. I think it would be pretty to give it a dry brush technique to bring out the details and make them more visible. If it were mine, I would at least want to paint the inserts, above the shelves, with an artistic, bucolic scene.
I appreciate you taking the time to share your thoughts Rebecca! Now come on over & paint that bucolic scene!! What a wonderful idea…
Holy cow, those are some massive pieces of furniture! Can’t wait to see the finished projects. I love pieces with character.
Yup BIG – thanks for coming by Donna and for your encouragement!
I think this needs to be lightened up a bit. You don’t want to loose the detail with all over white like the desk .
So a mixed bag of finishes?
Light color, not sure it is white, with a hint of destressing/patina.
Does that come in a can?
Good luck. Can’t wait for the pics
LOL in a can – now that would be awesome!! Thanks for your thoughts & the laugh Renee…
Wait. Did you buy this house from MY husband????
You crack me up Nikki…!!
Well. I wrote THAT ^ comment before scrolling down and see those magnificent pieces of furniture and so now I know that you did not buy your house from my hoarder husband. There is no way in ANYWHERE that he would leave those behind. Even if it meant moving the whole house itself to Lake Tahoe.
🙂
https://gwingal.blogspot.com/
So your guy is a “collector” of sorts – any sort! Believe me I think the prior owner tried to drag the house with him – but his 1975 van gave out. 🙂
Beautiful old pieces! I tend to always be against paint as I really love the wood grain and also love preserving a vintage/antique piece, but I’ve just picked up a sweet little farm table/desk which is cream, white, and blue underneath a solid wood of some kind. (Impossible to know without a good strip) So now I’m in the same situation. Strip or sand and paint? Tell you what though, I keep popping into Annie Sloan’s flagship Oxford store and keep thinking how much fun it would be to play with some of her paints and waxes, so I just might do it. 😀
You have mentioned regularly browsing in the Annie Sloan shop before – I think you want to paint furniture Veronica. I can only imagine the beauty you would conjure from even the saddest yard sale find. Go get a can of Chalk Paint today!!
That is a beautiful piece , I would lighten up the wood and highlight the trims.
Thank you Pamela! I agree and since the floor will be much darker when it is re-finished this piece needs lightening up!
Oh my goodness! Those pieces are awesome! I am having secretary envy. And the sanded piece is just gorgeous. Thank you for sharing this paint information. I have a dresser and didn’t have a clue what to use. Can’t wait to see the room reveals for each piece.
Thanks Peggy! Glad the paint info helped.
Oh my! Fabulous pieces, I am green with envy! I have painted some pieces in Annie’s paint and others I have stripped down and hemp oiled…it really does depend on the piece and where it sits in your home. They will be beautiful no matter what you do and I can’t wait to see what you choose.