Easiest Way To Strip Paint Off Furniture

Easiest Way To Strip Paint Off Furniture – See what’s under the 3 layers of old peeling paint! This dress repair starts with stripping/removing the paint from the wood.

When we removed the paint we saw this beautiful wood underneath and we just had to keep it natural!

Easiest Way To Strip Paint Off Furniture

Let’s dig into the entire process of how to remove paint from wooden furniture so you can reveal the beautiful natural wood again.

How To Strip Paint From Wood

Our client brought her grandmother’s old dress that has been in her family for 100 years! And he had at least 3 coats of paint on it when he got to me.

The original plan was to give it a new chest of drawers and a new dark gray color. But the old finish was in very poor condition. So we plan to remove the old paint to give the new paint a solid foundation.

Let’s go through the steps to remove old paint or dirt from any type of wooden furniture. This also includes wood veneer furniture like this one.

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Lead is a toxin that can make you sick if not removed properly. So if you’re working with lead-based paint, it’s better to remove it with a chemical cleaner (like we did) rather than sanding.

You can find these small lead paint test kits at your local hardware store. (I got mine from Home Depot a lot).

Testing is as simple as dipping both ends of a lead tester, shaking to mix the liquids and then wiping the liquid on all surfaces of the paint.

If the water has a yellow-orange color, it most likely does not have lead in the paint.

How To Strip Wood Furniture

If you only see yellow or orange, just check the little confirmation card to make sure the water in the tester is working properly. If the liquid turns red on the confirmation card, you know your tester has worked properly.

We tried this transport test on this dress and found mixed results. The white color does not contain lead, but the layers below do. (Paint used before 1978 may contain lead.)

So since we know we’re working with lead paint, we know better than to start scrubbing the paint off.

Our favorite way to remove paint or stains is to use a chemical remover called Citristrip. It is not as difficult as most cleaners.

How To Strip Paint Off Wood: My French Style Dining Table

But I have another little trick when it comes to using Citrustrip to remove paint or dirt from wood. (see step 2)

Wear some nice chemical resistant gloves to protect your hands… and some eye protection is good too. Also, this stripper is best used outside, but you can also use it inside with some open windows for ventilation.

I used to pour it out of the box on top of the couch. Then I just moved the stripper around with the brush until it was all over.

The cleaner will also eat the foam brushes in a second. So I like to use a cheap chip brush, or a dollar store brush.

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Go away, go to bed, work on other projects, run errands. Do what you have to do. But don’t mess with it for at least 8 hours. But you can still sit for 24 hours.

*Update* – Citristrip has changed the formula. I know I found myself leaving it on a bit longer with no issues. It doesn’t dry quickly anymore.

A sign that it is ready is when it is really wrinkled as the cleaner has absorbed all the paint and then starts to dry.

For decoration with details (the sides of a flat surface cannot be reached), use an old toothpick, toothpicks or (no joke) even a toothpick to get into the details and seal corners.

How To Strip Paint From Wooden Furniture 14

Get more detailed information on the best way to remove stains from this informative wood or other post and video on removing stains from furniture legs here.

I cleaned everything that was removed and filled it into empty and clean plastic containers like sour cream, cottage cheese, pasta sauce, etc. I like to have something that has a large opening that has a lid.

If the finish has not come on completely, repeat these steps until the color or stain is removed.

I usually use mineral spirits (all in a plastic container) and some fine steel wool to scrub off any residue.

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The mineral spirits really help loosen some of the old finish and the steel wool holds it off.

You can also use a Scotch-Brite scrub pad with mineral beads. However, it does not work as well as fine steel wool.

The front of the dress has been washed with mineral spirits, but the side of the dress has not been washed.

For tight areas, corners or details, use an old toothpick and toothpicks to get the gun out of the details.

How To Strip Paint From Wood Furniture

And when you scrub the dead household items, change the scrub pad because it has a lot of dirt on it. You want to keep the tree clean and fresh.

At this point, the wood you just removed will be very cold and wet. I tend to go over it a few times with a paper towel to clean up as much water as possible.

The surface was very rough due to all the moisture that had been on the wood. So before I did anything else I dipped the tree with 220 to make them happy.

Now at this point you can do the first thing and paint the wood again. That was exactly what the original idea was. But when we saw the beautiful wood under all the paint, we decided to stick with a wood finish.

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However, if they have frozen the wood, the color of the wood will be dark, and sometimes it will turn an orange color.

One of the reasons why the raw wood look is popular is because of the light color of the wood, without orange materials.

So we took another 220 grit sandpaper and really worked to even out the wood grain and remove any “water” spots left by the sanding and mineral spirits.

This piece of furniture is made of wood, so I was very careful with the electric sander not to sand too much.

The Easiest Way To Remove Paint From Your Old Wood Furniture Story

Once the wood was as smooth and fresh as possible, I went over the entire dresser with 400 grit sandpaper. 400 grit is very fine and creates a super shiny finish.

I like to put the brush attachment on the cord of the shop vacuum to brush the dust into the vacuum. The brush really helps with angles and details… and flat surfaces. Pretty much everything! ha ha

They are very sticky (sort of sticky) so they do a very good job of picking up dust. They also work great on painted furniture and can be used several times before they need to be replaced.

Action. I used to use lint free rags and thought that was good enough. But these clothes are my favorite tool for innovation.

Quick Ways To Remove Paint From Wood Furniture

After sanding or stripping, if the wood is not too bright, you can sand the wood to make it lighter! Check out this post on how to whiten wood to see how homemade bleach can make your wood shine!

I love using Varethane Polyurethane in my projects! It is extremely durable and easy to use!

If you use an oil based poly, the wood will really start to turn amber and take on orange tones. And over time, the oil-based poly will be much more yellow than the water-based poly.

To make sure the final coat of poly gives the best glossy finish, I give the dresser a light sanding with 400 grit sandpaper. And of course washed and dusted again with a cloth before applying the final layer of poly.

How To Strip Paint From Furniture Without Chemicals

To make your own wax, simply mix 3 parts Annie Sloan wax with 1 part color of your choice.

I actually chose to mix in a cream color instead of a white color. I want the wax to reproduce the color of the raw wood before sealing. And I think pure white will be very bright and very different.

Then I used part of an old t-shirt to apply the oil to the sealed wood. After the wax is dry, I wipe off the wax with another t-shirt cloth.

To complete the look of the raw wood furniture, we updated the fixtures with a modern oiled brass fixture.

Follow This Guide For Stripping Furniture

There you are! Removing furniture and removing old paint from wood can certainly be a process. But I think it’s the right strategy. Especially when you find a beautiful tree underneath that you can show off.

If you like this makeover, share it with friends and family by pinning it on Pinterest! Sharing is caring and greatly appreciated

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