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How To Create That Vintage Look On Furniture
This guide will provide you with helpful hints and tips for creating that fantastic ‘vintage look’ on your furniture. We recommend using our Grand Illusions paint range which you can find here.
First of all, you need to assess the correct starting point for your project. How you start depends very much on whether your piece is already painted, or varnished, or waxed, or indeed maybe you’re not even sure.
PAINTED OR VARNISHED WOOD
This is the easiest option – if the piece of furniture has been previously painted or stained and varnished, just give the surface a light sanding with some sandpaper and then evenly apply two coats of the paint. The first coat will act as a primer.
NEW WOOD (ie WHITE PINE)
If you plan to distress your paintwork then we would normally stain new wood with the water-based wood stain first. Just brush it on, evenly and quickly – it’s very easy to use and gives a lovely mellow result. Allow to dry (one hour) and then seal the stained timber with two good coats of our Simply Shellac. Then you can apply two coats of paint.
WAXED FURNITURE
Again this is where our vintage paint differs from some other paint brands – you can paint directly onto a waxed surface if you wish but we doubt that this will be very tough in the future – it is highly likely that the paint will chip off over time or oily stains might appear. So, before painting, you will need to remove the old wax, which is surprisingly easy.
This can be done by rubbing it gently with methylated spirits using a kitchen scourer,and then wiped clean with hot soapy water. Sugar-soap should do the trick as well. Allow to dry completely before applying two good coats of our Simply Shellac to seal the timber nicely.
STAINED WOOD OF AN UNKNOWN ORIGIN
If you cannot tell if a stained piece of wood is varnished or not, then we strongly advise that you seal the wood with two good coats of shellac prior to painting – this will avoid nasty brown stains appearing later on in the process,when you apply your varnish or wax. In all cases, let the paint dry thoroughly before attempting the next stage in the process.
SANDING BACK
For best results, we recommend distressing your paintwork to give it a truly vintage appearance. So.. once the paint is completely dry, give the entire piece
a quick rub with a dry kitchen scourer just to break and soften the surface of the paint.
Use medium grade sandpaper to rub the edges to reveal the stained surface below – go gently and slowly, to assess how much pressure it takes. Go for
random areas rather than symmetry – think where normal wear and tear might occur. Do the same for corners, feet and knobs if your piece has them. On the
flat surfaces go with the grain of the wood – you can do cross-rubs at 90 degrees which can look very realistic but avoid swirly movements. Finish with
another rub of the scourer to flatten and soften. Brush off any excess dust.
FINISHING
Now you have two choices. You can either varnish the piece with our acrylic Simply Varnish – this has a slight sheen and is water-resistant and is how we
used to finish our furniture when sold commercially. Alternatively, you can use our Simply Wax, which will intensify the colour and give a rich lustre to the
piece, but is not water-resistant and can mark – so do use coasters!
SIMPLY VARNISH
Stir well and apply at least one coat of SimplyVarnish evenly onto the paint with a clean brush – It is slightly luminous to start with, but this is nothing to worry
about – it will be touch dry in approximately thirty minutes depending on the temperature. As you will see, although it is ‘flat’ it has a rich lustre rather like wax.
SIMPLY WAX
Apply the wax quickly and sparingly with a soft clean cloth or brush and then leave. Do not continue to rub the wax once applied as you could start to remove
the paint. Allow to harden for a minimum of one hour, ideally overnight.Then with a new clean cloth, buff and polish to a rich sheen.
USING THE PAINT ON WALLS
The paint is ideal for painting on walls where you want the wall to breathe – it’s like using an acrylic distemper or limewash. Very chalky and flat. Just ensure
you keep a wet-edge going at all times rather than ‘cutting-in’.
USING THE PAINT ON FLOORS
When using the paint on a floor you need to ensure that the surface is clean, dry and grease-free. Then you need to create a paint ‘sandwich’. First, evenly coat
the floor with two coats of Simply Shellac, then two coats of the paint and finally finished with two coats of Simply Varnish, allowing each one to cure for twenty-four hours before returning to normal use.
Health and Safety
Do read the Health and Safety instructions on all the products before use. Always use in a well ventilated area.