How to paint real & fake wood furniture black?

Question

I have a very old dresser which is real wood, and a headboard which I think is some sort of fake wood (its smooth on it's surface) black to match each other. I am thinking something semi-gloss or glossy. I don't want things to stick to it as the dresser has my TV on top of it, and the headboard is sort of like a bookshelf, so if non-glossy would be better I would go for that too. I think the old dresser is stained and is kind of "soft" when I scratch it with my nail. I'm looking for suggestions on prep and type of paint to use, and as easy a process as possible. It doesn't have to be perfect, just look put together. Thanks!

Also, I have a papasan (round) chair that I might eventually paint to match. Would spray paint be my best bet for the frame? I believe it is a sort of wicker.

Answer 1

If your dresser is old enough to be valuable, you will decrease it's value tremendously by painting it. Be sure what you have first. My mother took a very valuable antique's value down to nothing with a can of paint. Not a paint expert, just did not want the same thing to happen to anyone else.

Answer 2

Painted a number of bedroom sets when & had my shop.

Would strip off  the "soft" finish since it is a poor base for the new color.

The key to any refinishing is prep, cleanliness & patience.

Short answer is to prep & paint as though it were auto body work .

Scuffing,sanding primer, spotting putty for dings , wet dry sanding & several thin coats of black  auto lacquer.

Found auto paint to be good since it can be wet dry sanded & is very durable.

Would also consider Krylon as mentioned if semi gloss is desired, but not sure how well it will stand up to in between wet sanding.

Would also  prime & spray the wicker w/ same paint.

Had spray equipt, but cans will work fine if you take your time

& rub it out between coats.

Fair amount of work , but you can expect the paint to stay on.

Est about $50 for everything if you use cans.

Best regards

Answer 3

Yeah, just run down to your local K-Mart get you some Krylon Gloss Black, and go for it. Don't use flat, it'll pick up all kinds of dust n junk.

Answer 4

We just finished painting some very old bedroom furniture black. It turned out even better than I had hoped.

Here's what we did:

1. First we sanded the furniture. You don't have to take all the finish off, just enough to "rough it up" and give the paint something to stick too. If the top is almost soft, maybe there's like an oil build up or something. You might trying cleaning first with a cleaner that gets rid of grease? Anyway, sand then wash all the dust off.

2. Next we used a primer. I've read you have to use a primer than others say no you don't. We opted to used a tinted primer. The primer (and paint) were specifically for painting wood. We bought it at Lowe's, I think the brand was American Traditions. We also used foam rollers to paint. I didn't want brush marks, and the foam rollers worked great. You can get them whereever you buy regular paint rollers.

3. Finally we did 2 coats of the black semi-gloss paint. I actually wish we had used the gloss instead, just would have given it a slightly better look. I don't think if you buy paint made for painting furniture that you'll have a sticky finish.

So basically my advice is, use foam rollers, use paint specifically made for painting wood furniture, be prepared to do a couple coats even with the primer.

I'd probably try to just spray paint the chair. It'd be a pain to try and brush all those bars.

good luck