One of the questions I hear a lot is whether or not to paint a specific piece of furniture. I think you have to weigh each piece individually. Does it have sentimental value? Are you ever going to really love it if you don’t paint it? Will it enhance or distract from the style of the furniture? In other words, there’s no one right answer for all furniture.
(A dresser I ended up painting—details here.)
For fun, I grabbed five current listings from (Charlotte’s) Craigslist to show you which pieces I would leave alone and which ones I would paint. Hopefully, this will help a few of you who are on the fence with a paint brush in your hand. . .
image: Country Living
These oak pedestal tables always seem to pop up on Craigslist. To update the oak, I would paint it and pair it with completely different chairs.
On the other hand, I don’t think I would ever paint a farmhouse table. If you’re going for this look, you almost have to embrace the imperfections that come along with it. That’s what makes it beautiful. You could always dress it up with some tailored chairs.
image: Southern Hospitality
Even if you don’t need it to house a TV, I still like the bulk of an armoire for bedroom storage. This one has a nice wood tone so I’d probably leave it alone. It would work well in a light, neutral room to add some warmth.
I think this armoire would work well painted because it would bring out some of the detail on the doors. I also think paint would help to update the wood carving on the top. Painting it would definitely give it more of a country-cottage feel. Something to consider. . .
image: Design Manifest
I would hesitate before I painted any kind of rattan/bamboo/wood furniture. I always like the texture it adds when unpainted—especially when paired with glossier, lacquered furniture.
I agree concerning farmhouse tables; they have so much character, they don’t need help. (Love the green dresser btw).
Great advice, Emily!!! I asked myself your question #2 and decided to paint the inside of an antique French bookcase. :) I don’t think you should paint rattan either.
This is some good advice. I have a weakness for rattan and bamboo (it’s getting noticeable in my house!), and I have one chair I’d love to strip. When I bought it, it was painted black, I think with spray paint. I’ve tried to find out about stripping paint from rattan, but can’t find much. I guess this is going in a different direction from your post, but do you know anything about it?
Peggy–I had pinned this post a while ago and think it might help :)
http://xolindsay.blogspot.com/2013/05/diy-refinishing-headboards.html?showComment=1382373522491#c6669460964279880579
What a clever and helpful post–and perfect examples of how they would look, too! Kudos, Emily!
Great advice! That farmhouse table is beautiful… I think the most important part though is where you said “will you ever truly love it if you don’t paint it” I (typically) hate wood furniture. It just bugs me… So it has to be really special or sentimental to stay wood. Some of my sentimental pieces should be painted… Like my childhood bed. It’s a light wood my mom picked out that is serving as a guest room bed right now. I love the memories but hate hate hate the wood tone, it needs to be painted if I’m ever going to truly love it in my own home!
Great advice!! I definitely agree with all your tips!
I’m so glad you posted the oak table. I’ve been on the fence about mine.
I agree with all of your suggestions. :) I think wood pieces that have some detail to them look best when painted. If you take a piece of wood furniture that is basically flat with no curves or carvings, it just looks even flatter when painted. The wood grain actually gives those pieces some depth, and I think they usually look better left alone. I have an oak coffee table that has seen better days, and I often think about painting it, but I know it won’t look good. It’s too plain. What would make it shine would be to sand and restain it. Painting would be easier, though! ;)
Great post! Love the examples. : )
This is great advice! I totally agree with these guidelines. Thanks so much :)
Love this topic! That first oak dining table looks exactly like the one in my home. It was not my favorite, but then I painted it white and painted the wooden chairs a gorgeous blue. It is now one of my favorite pieces in our home. (If you are interested, you can see it here: http://onemilehomestyle.blogspot.com/2013/10/dining-room-reveal.html)
Steph
This is a good word right here. I do love painted furniture, but I really love the way just the right wood piece warms up a room. We recently got a farmhouse table and I think I like it more with each little dent and scratch we make, because that’s what makes it ours.
Love your makeovers awesome woman!
This is one of those posts that is well timed! I just bought that exact same armoire from a thrift store that you recommend painting! My plan is to use it for craft, sewing, wrapping storage, etc. I was going to paint it but really don’t want it to look country cottage. If I do a high gloss would that help? Thinking of blue-green sea glass color. Other option would be for me to replace the knobs on the outside and paint only the inside… I will be ripping out the tv stand stuff and putting in 2 shelves.
Emily,
I found your website through a comment someone left on Emily Henderson’s blog. You have quickly become one of my favorite bloggers! I love your consistency and frequency in writing and all your posts are really useful. I think some bloggers feel the temptation to throw something together just to have posted everyday, and the quality can suffer.
I have yet to read a post by you that I did not leave with a fresh idea or good piece of information. Looking forward to continuing reading your work.
Rachel
Thanks, Rachel! I love hearing that :) Nice to “meet” you.
Love this! And i’m glad things are leaning away from being painted every time. It totally appropriate on some pieces, especially when the finish is in bad shape, but sometimes I cringe at what people paint over!
Couldn’t agree more!
Hi Emily,
Great post! I am having this problem right now with a buffet I bought almost a year ago. I decided not to paint it since the wood is so gorgeous, but then we built a rustic table and it no longer matches with the decor. I added it to craigslist and just took it off after multiple offers because I can not part with it. I think I have decided to put a lot of work into and strip it and re-stain…hoping this will make it work in this space. What are your thoughts with a rustic table and a “french provincial” buffet? paint, stain, or get rid of?
Deb
My dad is a woodworker, so I have been indoctrinated to never paint wood furniture–but I agree with all your decisions here. I would add this: if an antique piece has a finish that’s in good shape, leave it. If you don’t like it in that state, respect the piece and leave it for someone who does. And when I say antique, I mean specifically pieces that have unique value, not just any piece of old furniture. ;)
I actually have the armoire with the wood carving that you have last in your post! My husband and I tried to sell it on Craigslist but no one wanted it, so last summer we painted it a lovely cream color. Now it’s in our kitchen and we are using it for a bar. We have more updates planned to make better use of all of the space inside and I can’t believe how much I love it now.
I tried to sell the armoire in our bedroom on CL, too and eventually painted it navy. So glad nobody bought our stuff :)
You should read The Furniture Bible. Pretty cheap on Amazon, and full of the most amazing information on refinishing furniture by a frenchman who has an atelier in Brooklyn.
Sorry for the late comment–I’m catching up after changing jobs with different computer blocks :)
I have been considering painting the furniture in my room. My color scheme has changed since I first decorated it, but I didn’t know how difficult the process would be. I really appreciate your tips on furniture like this and how to know when to pain it and when it would be easier to rearrange something. Thank you for such an informative article, I feel much more confident about my decision with your direction!
My wife really likes solid wood bedroom furniture, and I think that being able to know what we should and shouldn’t paint in the future would be helpful information for us. I’m glad that you talked about being able to update oak through painting, which I think would be good for us to keep in mind. I’m sure that my wife would like to paint our wood bedroom furniture within a few years, so being able to look for oak would be good for us!
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Yes, the fact is farmhouse table does not need a finishing touch as it is the trademark of hard labor, and it looks impressive in its natural form.