Yep…I painted THAT!
No, that is not a giant bed in this picture.
A few years ago I gave our master bedroom a makeover and I purchased a chaise lounge chair for the room. I envisioned starting my day relaxing, sipping coffee, reading a book while enjoying the sunshine out my window. Unfortunately, I have this problem where I make online purchased based off pictures rather than descriptions. What arrived on my doorstep was a sweet little chaise lounge. Emphasis on LITTLE.
So this tiny chair sat in the corner of our bedroom and became a place for the kids to lounge on. With it’s light linen color, it soon became very apparent that it was the “kid’s” chair. It’s moved around from room to room but I never got to spend those relaxing mornings sitting on it. We are now in the process of moving to a new home and my daughter decided she wanted to have it in her new room but it needed some love. I’ve seen several examples of fabric being painted, but I had never tried it myself. I decided this was the perfect piece to give it a try!
My kiddo LOVES color. I have been wanting to use the color Rocksteady by Wise Owl Paint since becoming a retailer last summer. Mandarina pairs perfectly with this bright color so I chose to go with a blended design between these two colors. Prep for fabric is much different than painting typical furniture. All I needed to do was spot cleaned the fabric of any noticable blemishes and let it air dry. Once the fabric was dry, I dove right in painting with Chalk Synthesis Paint.
I was incredibly impressed at how well the paint covered after just one coat. I used my Cling-On O40 brush as it holds a lot of paint and digs right into fabric. You will use significantly more paint on fabric than you would on other painted furniture, but the results are worth it!
I used about a pint and a half of paint on this entire project.
Blending between the two colors was quite easy. I used my spray mister just as I would on other furniture and the two colors blended effortlessly. After I finished painting, I let the chair dry overnight before adding the finishing touches. I used a high grit sandpaper to sand the entire piece smooth before applying Wise Owl Furniture Salve to seal and soften the fabric. Because fabric is much more delicate than wood, I do not recommend using a power sander to sand your piece. I simply used a sheet of sandpaper. You will notice that your fabric will appear dusty, but the color will brighten back up one you apply the Salve. You can watch this step in a video I did on my Facebook page. I used my 2 inch Palm Brush to apply the salve to the fabric and I really feel this brush is necessary for this project. You will not be able to get the salve pushed into the fabric without using a brush.
I am so happy with the results of this project! It took very little time and was easily accomplished using PAINT!
Laura is a decorative painter, builder, and designer. She lives in a small town in Southern Minnesota with her family. Born from her love of beautiful things and unwillingness to pay for them, a passion for decorative furniture painting, building, and DIY decor began.