When I deliver the bad news, I get the same reaction at every talk I give on downsizing: The kids don’t want your stuff. Invariably, parents moan, and adult children cheer.
“Don’t believe me?” I ask. “Just walk through any secondhand furniture store or visit Facebook Marketplace. They’re flooded with brown furniture no one wants.”
Today, I am sharing a happy exception.
Back in the 1950s, when my parents were newly married, they bought a mahogany bedroom set: a four-poster double bed, two nightstands and a double dresser. Over the years, my father sanded off the old dark finish, and one by one, the pieces reappeared in my room as lighter versions of their former selves. And when my oldest got her first place, the bedroom set went along — and she and her boyfriend painted it white.
That might have been a good idea, if the result didn’t look as if they had painted it themselves. The paint blistered and peeled in spots. I was just glad they hadn’t ditched the well-made furniture and replaced it with inferior pieces made of MDF (Made to Deteriorate Fast) particle board.
Today, my daughter is married (not to the old boyfriend), and the white bedroom set furnishes her guest — and last week, the dress underwent a third transformation. My son-in-law stripped the dresser’s poorly adhering white paint, sanded the piece down to bare wood, repainted it dark green (Benjamin Moore Deep Jungle), and updated the old vintage handles with modern brushed-gold knobs. It looks fantastic.
“We went shopping for dressers and found that a decent one costs almost $2,000,” my daughter said. “Then we looked at this one, and said, ‘Let’s just paint it.’” Total cost, including an electric sander, paint and knobs, was under $200. The revitalized piece is a beautiful blend of old meets new, symbolic since the dresser is going in the nursery for the baby boy they’re expecting in May.
So now, 70-some years later, the mahogany-white-now-jungle-green dresser is waiting to store some very small clothes and be part of the fourth generation. And my downsizing talks will include this tip: The kids don’t want your stuff — unless you repaint it.
“Painting wood furniture is a job anyone can do, and more should,” said Jerry White, owner of Florida’s JW Painting. The trick is to paint so it won’t look like you did it yourself.
Here’s how:
Know what you’re painting over: If your wood piece is stained or painted, and the paint is adhering well, lightly sand the surface to prepare it for painting. If it has varnish, use a deglosser to remove the coating, then sand. If your piece is painted, and the paint is not adhering well, you’ll need to use a paint stripper, a chemical that helps lift paint, then scrape the paint off and sand the surface down to bare wood. “It’s a lot of work, but you should not paint over paint that is lifting and peeling,” White said. If you want to re-stain the wood, not repaint, you will also have to sand it down to bare wood.
Sand well: One of the most common mistakes DIYers make is not sanding enough. Once you’ve deglossed or stripped the paint, lightly sand the wood to give the new paint “something to bite on.” An electric palm sander will help.
Wipe it down: To create a clean, dust-free surface, wipe the piece all over with a tack rag dampened with mineral spirits. A regular rag moistened with water also works.
Prime it: Next, coat the piece with a good oil-based primer. That will seal the surface and create an even base. If you don’t prime it, paint may not stick and may not look uniform, even after multiple coats, White said.
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Fill the holes: If you’re replacing knobs or pulls, and if the new hardware doesn’t align with the existing holes, fill old holes and make new ones. Spackle is good for drywall, but it’s too soft for wood furniture. Use plastic wood or wood epoxy instead, then prime over filled spots.
Use the right paint: The best paint to use on wood furniture is urethane or oil-based, not latex. Urethane is White’s favorite, because it dries harder, faster and doesn’t scratch.
Roll it: White uses a 4-inch roller of foam, microfiber or mohair to apply paint, then uses a bristle brush on edges and crevices.
Know when to call a pro: Although repainting furniture is a job most of us can handle, some jobs — like painting cabinets — are better left to the pros. They can use commercial-grade sprayers that create better, longer-lasting coverage.
Marni Jameson is the author of seven books, including the new “Rightsize Today to Create Your Best Life Tomorrow.” Reach her at www.marnijameson.com.
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