DIY: Refinished Antique Closet Storage Unit

My grandma had this great storage unit in her walk-in closet.  My mom could see great potential in it, so my grandma gave it to her to refinish.  The pictures below will take you through the process of freshening up the tired piece of furniture!  This technique can be used to refinish any piece of wood furniture.

Step 1: Prep the Piece of Furniture 

Remove Knobs

Sand

Sand all parts of the piece of furniture.  Sanding is very easy if you use an orbital sander as shown in the picture below.  Some parts may need to be sanded by hand with sand paper.  In the pictures below, you can see that the piece of furniture has angled shoe shelves.  There is not enough space between the shelves to use the power sander, so those were sanded by hand.

Wipe Down

In order to remove all of the dust from sanding, wipe the piece of furniture clean using a damp cloth.  After it dries, wipe again using a dry cloth to remove any leftover dust particles. 

Step 2: Repair Damaged Areas

In the pictures below, you can see that there was some minor damage to the closet storage unit.  The damage was not extensive, only a few minor holes.  In order to repair the holes place a small amount of vinyl spackling in the hole.  Wipe over the spackling with a damp cloth to make sure that it is smooth and level. 

Before

After

Before                                                    After

Before

After

Step 3: Apply Primer & Paint Base Coat

Apply a coat of a good primer, like Kilz or Zinnser.  This will cover any spackling used to repair damaged and any knots that might be in the wood.  After the primer has completely dried, paint the storage unit with the base coat that you would like to use for the piece of furniture.

Step 4: Distress

Using an orbital sander distress the edges of the piece of furniture.  You can distress to your desired liking.  The more distressing you do, the more rustic the finished piece will look.  The most important thing to remember about distressing is that the paint must cure (fully dry) before you can use a sander on it.  If you try to distress the paint too soon, it will gum up. 

Step 5: Apply Decorative Paint & Reattach Knobs

Using painter's tape, tape off a pattern that you would like to paint on the piece of furniture.  This could be stripes, a chevron pattern, or other stylistic design.  On the piece below plain masking tape was used.  I would suggest using painter's tape, like FrogTape.  If you are concerned about the paint bleeding under the tape (which it shouldn't if you use FrogTape) then you should paint the edge of the tape with a clear paint coat.  This will seal the edge.  Remove the tape immediately after painting the decorative coat. 


The decorative effects created on the closet storage unit shown below were done using two very similar green colors (one lighter than the other).  Several widths of stripes were painted and several sizes of circles were painted using the two different colors.

Painted Furniture - Fun & Classy!

Are you bored with those tired old pieces of furniture sitting around your house?  Is the finish wearing out, or is it just out of style?  Or maybe you found a piece at a yard sale or antique store that could use some good old TLC.  Here are some ways you can rejuvenate and stylize those old pieces of furniture to make them fit better in your home.

Steps to Paint Wooden Furniture

In order to start this project, remove all of the knobs from the piece of furniture and take out all of the drawers.   Sand the furniture lightly using a power sander (if available).   This will ensure the paint coats will look smooth and professional.  Wipe the furniture with a damp cloth then allow to air dry before applying any paint.

Prime the furniture using a paint specifically for priming wood.  If the wood has knots, be sure to use an oil-based primer specifically designed to seal knots, or the resins will bleed through your finished coat.  It is always a good idea to use a miniature foam roller when painting furniture because that will minimize the appearance of brush strokes.   Paint all of the wooden parts of the furniture the base color that you plan to use.   It will probably require two coats of paint.

Once all coats of paint are completely dry you can then distress the edges with a power sander, if desired.   This will give the furniture a rustic, country look.   You can do a small or large amount of distressing, depending on your taste.

Wipe the furniture with a damp cloth.  Apply the decorative coats of paint. (See below for details on each specific piece of furniture's decorative design.)

After the decorative coats have dried completely you can apply a clear coat of paint, if desired.  The clear coat adds a bit of shine and protects the furniture from minor scratches.  If applying clear coat, make sure the furniture is free of dust and dirt.  Also, use a new foam roller to apply the clear coat so that no small particles from an old roller get sealed into your furniture.

For a new look buy new hardware (knobs) for the piece of furniture.  This will provide an instant update.  Attach the new knobs and insert the drawers.  Now your furniture is complete and looks great!

Armoire

If you have an armoire that is in perfectly good condition but looks out of date like the one pictured below, you should try to give it a face lift!  Notice the "BEFORE" and "AFTER" pictures.  (It is not the exact armoire that was refinished, but the type of wood, stain color, and knobs were the same.)


                                                    BEFORE                                                 AFTER

In order to recreate this design, find circular objects around your house (bowls, cups, etc.) of various sizes.  Trace the circles onto your furniture using a pencil.  Using a yardstick draw stripes of various sizes (you could also do this using painters tape).  Select two paint colors that are very similar to one another.  Paint the circle and the stripes the various colors using a small, high quality brush so that the brush strokes are not too prominent.  Finish by applying a clear coat (see description above).  Attach new knobs and Voila...!

Night Stand 1

In order to recreate this design, find circular objects around your house (bowls, cups, etc.) of various sizes. Trace a larger circle onto your furniture using a pencil.  Then trace a smaller circle inside of the larger circle.  Repeat this with as many circles as desired.  Select three or four paint colors to use for the circles. Paint the circle the various colors using a small, high quality brush so that the brush strokes are not too prominent. Finish by applying a clear coat (see description above). Attach new knobs and the new look is complete.

Night Stand 2

In order to recreate this design, follow the directions under "Armoire" above.  This nightstand is used in a toy room.  The base color is lime green and the dots are blue, pink, and orange.  These colors are used throughout the toy room, so the nightstand fits right in.  Depending on the room the furniture will go in, you might be able to get away with some fun colors as used in this design!

Sewing Table

This was my great grandmother's sewing table.  While I am no longer using it to store notions, it is a great piece of furniture for other odds and ends.  In order to recreate this look, follow the "Steps to Paint Wooden Furniture," above.  It is painted white and then heavily distressed.