Painting & Stressing Furniture

Old furniture is often sought out because it has a stressed, vintage look to it. Painting and distressing furniture is an easy way to make new furniture look old. Painted furniture is distressed by lightly sanding around often used areas of the furniture. These places usually include corners, knobs and edges. Wait at least one day after painting before stressing the furniture. Furniture that will be in humid or often used areas should be coated with a coat of polyurethane after painting and stressing. The polyurethane will keep the wood on the furniture protected.

Clean rag
Mineral spirits
Fine grit sandpaper
Primer
2-inch paintbrush
Foam paint roller
Latex paint
Damp rag

Instructions

- 1
  Remove dust, grease and other debris from the furniture. Use a clean rag and mineral spirits to wipe down the furniture.
- 2
  Sand the furniture. Unless it has a very glossy finish, you should be able to perform a light sanding with fine grits and paper. If the furniture finish is glossy you may need to spend more time sanding.
- 3
  Prime the furniture with primer and a paintbrush. Use the paintbrush to get into the corners and hard to reach areas of the furniture. Use a foam paint roller to apply the primer to larger flat areas.
- 4
  Apply latex paint to the furniture. Spread the paint onto the furniture with a foam paint roller and a 2-inch paintbrush. Let the paint dry and repeat until you have painted two or three coats of paint on the furniture. Give the final coat of paint 24 hours to dry before distressing it.
- 5
  Create stress marks on the painted furniture with sandpaper. Lightly sand the corners and edges of the painted furniture. This will make it look as if the furniture has been worn down over time.
- 6
  Wipe down the furniture with a damp cloth to remove the dust.

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