How to Repair Light Scratches in Painted Wood Furniture

Stop looking at scratches on your wood furniture--you can fix those scratches instead, even on painted surfaces, and restore much of the original beauty. Even if you cannot match the paint precisely, you have options if you use a creative painting technique. The repair work might not be perfect, but it should improve the appearance of your furniture.

Things You'll Need

• Medium and fine sandpaper
• Tack cloth
• Drop cloth
• Matching paint
• 2-inch-wide paintbrush
• Fine-tipped paintbrush
• Contrasting paint
• Rag

Instructions

Repair Scratches with Matching Paint

1. Sand the scratched area with the medium sandpaper. Sand until the scratched area is as smooth as the surrounding wood. It does not matter how much paint you remove because you will repaint the entire area with matching paint.

2. Sand the entire side of the furniture with the scratch with the fine sandpaper. For example, if the scratch is on the top of a table, sand the entire tabletop. This will prepare the entire area for painting by making it rough.

3. Wipe the sanded area with the tack cloth to remove the sawdust.

4. Spread the drop cloth beneath the furniture. Paint the entire side of the furniture with the matching paint. Allow the paint to dry completely, then apply a second coat if necessary.

Repair Scratches with a Different Paint Color

1. Follow Steps 1 and 2 above to sand the scratched area and prepare the furniture for painting. Instead of sanding only one side of the furniture to prepare it for painting, sand the entire furniture piece with the fine sandpaper. Wipe the furniture thoroughly with the tack cloth.

2. Spread the drop cloth beneath the furniture.

3. Apply the contrasting paint to the furniture in small areas. While the paint is still wet, use a wet rag to remove part of the paint so the original paint shows through the new paint in various areas. Blot the wet paint with the wet rag or roll the wet rag over the wet paint to remove some of the paint. This technique will tie in the old paint with the new paint and effectively cover the scratched area in the process. Continue applying paint and using the wet cloth to remove part of the paint until you have used this technique over the entire piece of furniture.

Tips & Warnings

• If your furniture piece has drawers and you are painting the entire piece, remove the drawers before painting, and paint them separately. Do not replace the drawers until the paint dries completely on all pieces.

References

• Michigan State University Extension: Low-Cost Improvements