My Best and Favorite Painted Furniture DIY Tutorials
November 09, 2026
Share this
My best and favorite painted furniture DIYs!
If you're looking to make some updates around your home before the holidays, this post is full of furniture makeovers that will give you tons of inspiration!
Painting furniture is a great DIY project for beginners. The most important part is the prep -- cleaning and/or sanding before paint makes all the difference in your finished product!
You do NOT have to physically sand furniture before painting, I share the no-sand method of furniture painting below.
And this may be an unpopular opinion, but not every piece of wood furniture is beautiful as-is. Sometimes the finish isn't great (I've noticed this more so with pieces from the 70's/80's) or it may have some damaged veneer.
There are definitely times I cringe at gorgeous wood furniture being painted, but often it is the better option. The great thing is, you get to do what you want in your own home!
This skinny bookcase in our family room was a light cream color when I bought it more than ten years ago at HomeGoods. A while back I used my handheld spray gun to paint it one of my favorite green paint colors, Vintage Vogue:
I don't usually pull out my sprayer when painting furniture, but with all of those cut outs it was a life saver! This piece has so much more presence now that it's a darker color.
Years ago I purchased a second hand dresser online and then painted it a blue chalk paint called Aubussson Blue. Later I changed it to a darker blue that I had used in our son's room:
This post may contain affiliate links for your convenience.
I may earn a small commission when you make a purchase through links.
See my policies and disclosure page for more information.
This next one in our bedroom had a speckled finish that I really disliked. I could have refinished the whole thing by sanding and restaining, but that takes way longer than painting.
I shared how I painted this dresser without sanding...the key is to degrease the finish so you don't have to use actual sandpaper to paint over it:
This green color (Jasper by Sherwin-Williams) is SO pretty with the brass hardware. Oh, how I love green and brass together!
I use these foam rollers for a perfect finish on furniture and doors throughout our home!
A brush is best for detailed areas, but the foam rollers give me the best overall finish.
I've transformed a few Ikea products over the years...I love that they are affordable and ready for customization!
Our bedroom nightstands are actually small dressers -- I used the Tarva dressers from Ikea and gave them a makeover with trim, paint and new hardware:
Cutting a few inches off of the legs on this dresser made it the perfect height as a nightstand, plus all of that storage is fantastic! (And the price was great for such a substantial piece.)
This wine colored makeover is one of my all time favorites! I found this dining room console at a friend's decor shop nearby nearly ten years ago. It came in a light washed wood that was trendy at the time:
Later I was craving more contrast (can you tell I love darker colors?) and this wine tone called Rojo Marron was perfect for our dining room:
The lighter wood tone was hiding a multitude of sins on this piece that I didn't notice until I started painting it. In the end I had to add decorative molding and painted way more than I planned, but it was so worth it!
This is one of my favorite makeovers in our home now. :)
I've talked about how a few black touches in decor really pull a room together beautifully. I think a little contrast is always nice. This thrifted dresser was another one that had a weird speckle finish that we really didn't like.
After a couple of coats of a very dark paint, the lovely, detailed hardware became the star of the show! It was lost against the wood before:
Black and brass (or gold) is an instant classic! Gorgeous!
This tall Ikea cabinet has been such great storage in our bathroom, but looks wonderful too:
It's from their Hemnes line, and came with the wood finish (you see inside the cabinet) all over. I love a two-toned look and decided to only paint the outside in this semi-gloss black color.
Finished Ikea furniture like this one needs to be properly primed before painting, so be sure to check out the tutorial if you're going to give this a try!
If you have no interest in painting furniture, I've got you! :) This vintage dresser used to be in our son's room, but I loved it so much we decided to bring it down to the foyer instead:
 |
| See the tutorial for our watercolor mural here! |
It needed some TLC for sure -- so many worn spots and scratches in the wood. Plus the brass hardware had so much patina, it was just blending in with the wood. I shared how I restored this piece without new paint or stain, but still gave it a refreshed look.
Finally, one of my favorite furniture makeovers of all time...my trash to treasure sewing cabinet makeover:
I found this cabinet on the side of the road and used what I had to give it a quick makeover. Some leftover paint and a quick stencil gave it new life! It turned out so pretty and was turned into a beautiful little side table.
Have you transformed furniture in your home with paint? Each makeover featured here includes the full painting tutorial.
Never miss a post by signing up to get posts via email.
Comments