How to Paint Furniture With Patterns
Buying furniture for your house can be a costly endeavor. Furthermore, it may be difficult to find furniture that has a pattern that you love or that matches your decor. By painting your own furniture, you can create a one-of-a-kind piece that you will enjoy for years to come. Painting a pattern on to a piece of furniture can revitalize a thrift store find or give new life to a tired dresser, table or other object in your home. Painting patterns can be simple and easy with the right tools. Does this Spark an idea?
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Things You'll Need
- Paint
- Furniture
- Stencil pattern or mylar
- Painters tape
- Stencil paint and brush
Instructions
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Select your base color or finish. Decide if you want to paint patterns on your furniture without painting the whole furniture piece first, or if you want to totally change the look and provide a new base for your pattern. If you want to simply paint a pattern on an existing piece of furniture and you like the color or style, then this step is simple. If, however, you want to create a whole new canvas for your pattern, you'll need to paint the piece of furniture in that solid color first. If you do want to change the base color, do this first by priming the furniture and painting it the color of your choice.
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Select the pattern you want on the furniture. One of the easiest ways to do this is to simply find a stencil that matches the pattern of your choice. You can find painting stencils in any craft or home improvement store in a wide variety of patterns. Perhaps you will want to choose a flowered stencil for a little girls room, or a stencil of stars for a dresser in a nursery. The wide selection of patterns means that nearly everyone should be able to find a stencil that meets their pattern preference. If you can't, buy mylar from a craft store and make your own stencil. Draw the pattern you want on the acrylic and then cut out the pieces where you will want the paint to go, creating your own stencil to use.
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Select a color of stencil paint and a stencil paint brush. Stencil paint is a different type of paint, designed to be thicker and less runny then traditional paint. You do not want to use regular house paint to stencil your pattern, as it tends to drip and can ruin the look of your pattern. Special stencil paint, latex paint or craft paint are much better suited to this purpose.
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Affix the stencil on the appropriate place on the furniture where you want your pattern to begin, using painter's tape. It is best to measure both the size of the stencil and the size of your furniture to ensure that you can space your pattern evenly. You don't want to end up with half of a rose (unless, of course, you are going for that look) or with an unevenly spaced pattern.
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Use the stencil brush to dab the appropriate color of paint on your furniture. Unlike using regular back and forth painting strokes, stenciling usually involves applying paint by using the brush to dab the paint on in circular motions. Do not saturate the brush with paint. Work slowly. Many stencils allow you to use multiple colors. Some do this with overlays, or separate stencils, so you will apply one color and then replace the existing stencil with the overlay to apply another color to add detail.
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Tips & Warnings
A pattern applied with a stencil may look more professional and finished if you sand the area that you are going to paint first to create a smooth surface.
Make sure your stencil is secured on the furniture. If your stencil slips out of place while you're painting, your design can look smudged and unprofessional.
