How to Paint Wood Furniture: A Beginner’s Guide

Painting is the last step of creating a wood furniture. But, how to properly paint wood furniture? What steps are included?

You don’t need to be a professional to know how to paint wood furniture. This skill can be easily learnt during the weekend.

You’ll only need a few tools and materials to make a wonderful piece of art. So, here are all the tools and materials you need to paint wood furniture:

• Primer 
• Paint 
• Medium and fine grit sandpaper
• Sanding block 
• Or random orbit sander
• Paint brush 
• Paint roller 
• Cloth

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I’m sharing with you a guide for successful painting, and some tips that will help you make a professional-looking finish that is going to last.

Related: 5 Types of Wood Glue: How to Use Them and How to Choose the Right One

Painting walls is one thing, but painting furniture is a completely different process that you should pay special attention to. There are a few tips you need to keep in mind in order to ensure that your next furniture-painting project is successful.

Step 1: Sand.

After you’re done building a wooden furniture, you need to prepare it for painting.

The first thing you need to do is to sand the entire surface until it is smooth using a sanding block or a random orbit sander. Start with 80 grit sand paper, and move to the progressively finer grits of 120 and 220.

Then, wipe the dust off of the surface with a rug.

Also, remove the hardware before applying primer.

Step 2: Apply primer.

After your furniture is dry and dust-free it is time to paint on some primer. The primer protects the surface and helps the paint adhere to the piece better. It also prevents stains from bleeding through the new paint. Also, I suggest choosing the same type of primer and paint, for example, they both should be oil-based, or latex based.

Although you can use oil-based primer with latex paint, you must use an oil-based primer with oil-based paints. This is a rule you must follow!

The advantage of using oil-based primers is strong adhesion and stain blocking, but the main disadvantage is their strong odor. When using oil-based primers and paints make sure you have good room ventilation, or ever better, work outside because you really don’t want to be exposed to such strong odor.

If you can’t stand the odor, you should definitely use latex primer and paint.

Then, lay the cloth on the area where you plan to paint.

Make sure to give the primer a good stir. Pour primer into the paint tray until the lower half is full. Roll the roller into the primer and back out to coat the roller. Apply the primer onto the wood in the grain direction. Then let the primer dry overnight, or better leave it to dry 24 hours.

NEVER leave primer unpainted.

Step 3: Sand again.

Sand the primer lightly with a fine-grit sandpaper (220 works just fine). Be careful, you don’t want to completely remove the primer, because you just need to smooth it. Remove the dust with a rag.

You can repeat this step twice, but I usually apply one coat of primer. Also, you need to sand between every single coat of primer and paint to get a smooth and professional finish.

Step 4: Paint.

I usually use oil-based paint with semi-gloss finish, because I really like the way it looks. The glossier the finish, the easier to clean.

The most important thing you need to remember: ALWAYS work in a well-ventilated area and wear a dust mask and eye protection while working.

There are a few different ways of painting. You can use a spray paint, a paint sprayer, a brush or a roller.

I prefer using foam roller on the bigger surfaces, and a brush in the parts that are hard to reach.

Put tape on the parts where you will separate different colors to apply.

Applying paint is same as applying primer. You need to pour paint into the paint tray until the bottom part of the tray is full. Wet the roller in the paint and apply it to the wood in the grain direction. Also, you need to work in small areas, and take your time because you want to apply the paint evenly in order to get a wonderful, smooth surface.

Additionally, you can apply second coat of paint, but it all depends on how good the first coat looks.

Step 5: Seal.

This step is optional.

After the paint has dried for at least 24 hours, you can seal it. But, if you have more time, and you don’t plan to use the piece of furniture, than you should leave it for around 30 days to completely dry, and don’t touch it! You don’t want to damage the surface before it is completely dry. For this purpose you can use Polycrilic, Paste wax, Clear topcoat spray etc.

Paint is a wonderful way to emphasize the beauty of a wooden furniture.

I hope this article has been helpful for you. If you have any questions and suggestions on how to paint wood furniture leave them in the comments section below.