Furniture Redecorating & Painting Ideas

Whitewashing

• Whitewashing creates a worn, distressed appearance, but it is a softer look than traditional antiquing techniques. It is an ideal option for country or cottage style décor. Begin with a plain white basecoat, and cover it with a layer of latex paint that has been thinned with water. For a basic look, add one part paint to eight parts water. If you prefer a milky effect, decrease the amount of water. However, you can create a more dappled appearance by using additional water. Apply the mixture with a brush, working in a horizontal direction. Avoid overlapping your strokes so some of the base coat shows through the glaze. After the first coat dries for at least a day, you can apply an additional coat. When you reach the desired look, apply a matte polyurethane varnish to protect the furniture.

Stencils

• If you want to dress up plain wooden furniture, stencils are an ideal option. You can purchase stencils from the craft store in a wide range of patterns and shapes to customize the look of your furniture. You can also create your own stencils from thin cardboard. You can leave the wood with its natural finish, or apply a base coat to give the item an attractive background color. Decide how you want to lay out your stenciled design on your furniture, and use tape to hold the stencils in place. If you plan to use multiple colors to fill in your stencils, wait for the first shade to dry before applying the second.

Marbling

• For an elegant look, you can paint an old wooden tabletop so it is has the look of a marble slab. The process is called marbling and requires applying a base coat that matches the rest of your decorating scheme. When the base coat is dry, brush a layer of tinted glaze over the surface. Use a sponge to create texture across the tabletop that resembles the natural swirls in a piece of marble. You can mimic the look of veining by using a small brush to apply oil paint and softening the look by dry brushing the area before the paint dries.

Spattering

• Spattering allows you to add speckles of color to your furniture for a fun, modern look. Begin by covering your furniture with a base coat in a color that you prefer. Thin a second shade of paint with water to create a glaze, and use a stiff brush to flick droplets of the glaze all over your furniture's surface. For a more interesting look, you can use several shades of glaze so your furniture is covered with a rainbow of colors. Don't use too large of a brush when spattering because you can easily make a mess. Take care not to overload the brush either, and allow each shade of splatter to dry before applying additional colors.