Furniture Painting Ideas: How to Add Character
When you are painting furniture the possibilities are endless! That’s one of the reasons I love it so much – using my creativity to create one-of-a-kind pieces of furniture. Don’t get me wrong, I love a clean and classic makeover where the piece and paint color speak for themselves. Sometimes less is definitely more. But often a piece needs a little something, so I’ve compiled eight furniture painting ideas that will add instant character to your next project.
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1. Adding paintable wallpaper
This is a great way to add texture to your painted furniture. I’ve used it on door fronts of cabinets, but it’s also great on drawer fronts or the sides of dressers. There are so many styles to choose from, the paintable wallpaper I’ve used I purchased on Amazon, but I’ve also seen it in big box stores like Home Depot and Lowes.
Complete Tutorial for Using Paintable Wallpaper on Furniture
2. Creating a dipped look
Another furniture painting idea is doing a dipped look. This is just what it sounds like – where the piece looks dipped into the paint. A portion is painted and a portion is left with a wood finish. Just get creative with your painter’s tape and make the “line” anywhere you’d like,
This is a great option if you want to have some wood finish on your peice but there is some significant damage as well. Simply make your painted “dip” cover the damage. I’ve done a reverse dip when there was lots of damage to the top. You can also do this with two different paint colors, creating a two-toned look.
3. Distressing the paint
A classic way to add character to a piece of furniture is to distress the paint. This makes it look old and worn on purpose. Often distressing the details on a vintage piece will make them stand out. Plus, these pieces will age well – any small ding or scratch will look like it was meant to be there!
4. Using milk paint
If you like the distressed look, you will love using milk paint! This paint distresses beautifully, plus it can also give you an authentic old work “chippy” finish. Plus, milk paint is non-toxic and biodegradable, making it a perfect choice for your home!
5. Creating a faux linen finish
This is probably the most challenging finish idea that I’m covering, however, with a bit of patience it is totally doable! I’ve also seen people refer to it as a faux linen or faux fabric finish. And while it looks textured, it feels smooth wears just like a regular painted surface would.
6. Adding cane webbing
Like painted wallpaper, adding cane webbing is a great detail to add to doors or drawer fronts. It is more expensive than paintable wallpaper – however it is not a faux finish, but a real one. You can leave it raw or paint it. Just be sure to buy quality cane webbing. I’ve tried a few and my favorite is from Cane and Basket.
7. Stenciling
This is another painted furniture technique that takes some patience, but the result is so worth it! The sky is the limit with your color choices, just keep in mind you may need several coats of your stencil color (keeping the stencil in place between coats) depending on what you choose. I purchased my stencils from Cutting Edge Stencil, but there are lots of places you can find them (or even make them yourself using a Cricut).
8. Lining the drawers
While this isn’t a painting technique, it is one of my favorite details to add to a project so I had to include it on this list! You can use a variety of things to line the drawers of your furniture. My favorite is peel-and-stick wallpaper and some of my most used patterns can be found here.
Complete Tutorial for Lining Drawers in Furniture or Cabinets
Summary
These are all techniques that I have tried myself and I hope you’ll find some inspiration in them. There are of course many more out there! So I’m sure I’ll have to come back and update this post as I try new techniques. That’s what makes furniture painting so great – there are always new things to create! I’d love to see your creations! Be sure to head on over to my Instagram page and tag me there so I can see!
As always, please let me know if you have any questions. Make sure to sign up for my newsletter to get the latest furniture and DIY projects delivered directly to your inbox!