What do you call the material covering this table? Is it laminate?

Jess
by Jess
It's the stuff that covers a lot of the cheaper Ikea furniture, although this is a very large coffee table from West Elm I received & I want to refurnish it. Not sure if I should try to get the "laminate"(?) off or sand it enough for paint to stick. Any help would be appreciated. icon
  7 answers
  • William William on Oct 07, 2017

    Yep, it is laminate or laminated paper product. A lot of furniture uses cheap secondary wood, particle board, MDF and cover it with wood look or single color laminate. Do not try to remove it. It's a pain. Just lightly sand to remove any gloss and slightly roughen for paint. Prime with a good stain blocking primer like Zinsser 123, BIN, or Kilz. then paint. Seal with at least three coats of a water based polyurethane. Use a foam roller and foam brush for a smooth finish.

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  • Mitchell thompson Mitchell thompson on Oct 08, 2017

    Why don't you put laminate over it , it's a whole lot easier than stripping or going through all that other stuff just to paint it

    • Jess Jess on Oct 10, 2017

      Actually, I found some really cool looking contact paper I was thinking of using. But, I would really rather go with a distressed, mult-media kind of overhaul on this table. It's very large, and pretty much the centerpiece of my living room.

  • Natalie Harmening Natalie Harmening on Oct 08, 2017

    We've always called it veneer. As William said, it's pasted onto a cheaper but sturdy wood to create a nice wood top. When you do your project, maybe sand the edges for a nice rounded look to eliminate the chippiness of the edges. Have fun!

  • Cori Widen Cori Widen on Oct 08, 2017

    Likely laminate, yes

  • Susan Susan on Oct 08, 2017

    laminate or what I would call "Veneer"

  • CeCe813 CeCe813 on Oct 09, 2017

    I painted my laminate IKEA shelves with chalk paint and no prep work other than running a dust cloth over them. I did 3 coats, but they were darker shelves being painted white. 3 coats chalk paint, then I used the brush on finishing wax and lightly buffed.

    • Jess Jess on Oct 10, 2017

      Yes, this pretty dark. Its a very large table, with alcoves (?) underneath. It's not from Ikea, I think it's probably West Elm. Do you have a link or a photo to how your project came out? Also, I keep seeing projects where people are using chalk paint, but not for chalk board purposes. What exactly does the chalk paint do?

  • CeCe813 CeCe813 on Oct 11, 2017

    Chalk paint is different from chalk board paint (that you can write on with chalk). Chalk paint is a different makeup than say, latex, and it gives that matte finish that is nice on distressed pieces, but also seems to be self leveling so it just gives a nice smooth finish. I used the brand that Ace hardware sells, along with a nice brush (not the "special" brush sold as an accessory to the chalk paint!). I included two photos; you may be able to see where I just left the dings on the edge, but I think it's fine. I wanted to keep these bookcases because they are old enough to be made of solid wood (not pressboard) and they are very sturdy.

    • Jess Jess on Oct 12, 2017

      Thank you so much! I'm an artist so I'm pretty well versed in paint, except for "chalk" paint. I just always assumed that it was the same thing as "Chalk board" paint. Thanks again!