Question about painting for you home DIY'ers or painters out there...

The New Intimacy

Question about painting for you home DIY'ers or painters out there...

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Contributor: K101 K101
This is a little pathetic, but my lack of expertise has me in a situation. I am planning to paint a dresser -- you know, the ol' white dressers with drawers. Thing is, my very un-experienced behind tried re-painting it white once... with latex paint. Hey, it worked on my ceiling.

Well, it all rolled off! Ha Ha. I don't know how to go about these things. I've only ever painted walls. So I suppose sand-papering is necessary? Then, can I paint it (black is my choice) with spray paint? What kind? Does it matter? I almost bought some of this Rust-oleum spray paint because, well, it said "works on all surfaces" so I assume it will work on whatever this dresser is -- wood maybe. I am afraid to screw up really big though, so I figured with all you DIY'ers here, I might get some good advice. Will I be okay to use spray paint? Rust-oleum or is there a type/brand you more experienced DIY'ers would recommend? Or is this plan going to really be a bad idea? Lol. You can tell me if it is.

Thanks in advance!
04/20/2013
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Contributor: P'Gell P'Gell
Last summer I found an old night stand in our basement that used to belong to my husband's grandmother. It was peeling and a gross yellow color.

I put it outside in the driveway on newspapers. I took out all the drawers, I sanded it with a medium sandpaper, then a fine sandpaper (otherwise the paint will roll off.) This is to rough it up so the pain will stick and even out the old paint. Then I washed it well, so there would be no "sand" in the paint. I put down newspapers on the driveway, and My Man bought a couple of cans of Krylon White spray paint. I sprayed each drawer all over, then I sprayed the body of the nightstand, carefully turning it, and using a small brush when it dripped. I let it dry a little, then added a second coat.

It looks great, and now I have a place for my nail polish and my hair stuff.

My husband usually does this stuff, but this was my project. He helped me, but I did most of it myself.
04/20/2013
Contributor: Hummingbird Hummingbird
You'll definitely want to strip the old paint off first and depending how thick the old coat is and how intricate the design is would depend on what you would use. Sand paper and a paint scraper would definitely come in hand. I would look for a multipurpose scraper that has 3-5 different edges on it to get in both wide and narrow spots. Every local hardware store, Lowe's & Home Depot has them and a wide selection. You'll also want one with a secure handle like rubber or a material that won't slip in your hand. If you're using sandpaper you might want to get an inexpensive sand paper holder to do flat areas more evenly. The kind of look like the letter D with the flat side facing down, the curved part would be where your hand would rest making it a little ergonomic.

You'll also want protective glasses, their plastic and inexpensive but as with toys safety first is paramount even when scraping paint.

There are also liquid/semi-liquid paint removers, ones that you can brush on, leave for a while and then easily scrape the paint off. Check this out at your local hardware store too! We bought such a solution to remove paint off of one of our houses and found it worked wonderfully. I have something similar for a bookshelf I'm pulling the stain off to re-varnish.

You will also want to check with you local hardware store about the paint you want to apply and tell them the type of wood if you know it, this certainly would make a difference if you were to brush, roll or spray it on. Wicker for example you would spray on. Do you want your paint finish to be flat, semi-gloss or gloss? Keep those factors in mind and if you want it to match something in the room its going to be in, bring a sample of something in that color with you to the store. You'd be surprised how many white, blue's, green's and reds there are at any store.

I've always found the hardware store personnel only too glad to help out you complete your project to achieve the look and quality you want. It also helps as your doing here to ask for others suggestions and ideas. On some projects around the house I do a little research first, and have a couple of local TV shows that also have websites so you can get add'l details for How-To's around the home, inside and out. I like to be somewhat informed when asking for help at a store so I at least understand what their talking about and so I don't purchase more than I need or want.

Hope this helps.
04/20/2013
Contributor: K101 K101
Wow! Thank you P'Gell and Hummingbird. What helpful advice! I really appreciate yall taking the time to give the info. This is helpful & I do feel much better about doing this to my lovely old dresser!

I think I was wrong about it being wood though. LOL. My lovie says it's... crap... what was the word? I do not remember! I could swear it was wood, but he says it just "looks like wood," but it's something else. Not plywood... what am I thinking of?! I'll just have to ask again. But I hope the type of paint doesn't matter much since it might not be real wood. LOL.

Thank you so much again for the help. Very appreciated! You guys are really sweet to have answered this for me
05/03/2013