Outdated TV Armoire
by
Patricia
4 Materials
$50
6 Hours
Medium
I've had this TV armoire for about 20 years. My husband and I both agreed it looked a bit dated, and we were ready for a change. I know many people, including my husband, think mounting the TV on the wall is the answer, but I don't like the TV to be the focal point in the room. So instead we agreed that I would give the armoire a fresh new look with paint.
Let me assure you that no antique furniture was harmed during this project! This cabinet was made in the 1990's and is constructed of pressboard with a faux wood finish. So it's what I would call a cheap finish, although if I recall we paid a pretty penny for it back in the day.
Over the years the armoire was used to store VHS tapes and DVDs. Now I use it to store my painting supplies. It makes great storage, so that was another factor in our decision to keep the armoire.
Here's a closer look at the "faux" finish. As you can see it is very smooth which can sometimes be problematic to paint. So I decided to use Chalk Paint as it works well on this type of finish.
First I unhooked the television and other electronics. Then I gave it a good cleaning.
I considered replacing the cardboard back of the armoire, but decided to work with what I had instead. I used clear packing tape to add a little support to the back cut out areas. The extra support was necessary so I wouldn't punch through it while painting.
I wasn't planning to paint the hardware, so I removed all the pulls. Once the pulls were removed I would lose the ability to open the drawers, so I created temporary drawer pulls with painter's tape. (The drawers couldn't easily be removed.)
One of the secrets to painting faux wood with Chalk Paint is to apply a very thin and slightly rough first coat.
The rough base coat will help build a subtle texture that the second coat will easily adhere to.
I could already see a huge difference after applying my first coat of paint!
I decided to use a two toned color scheme and started to layer the paint. It looks like a hot mess at this point, but the colors even out for a more subtle finish after a few layers.
Finally here is the finished armoire painted in Coco and Old Ochre. I sealed the chalk paint with soft clear wax. I'm happy that I can keep the TV hidden away when not in use.
One of my favorite things about this style of armoire is the bat-wing doors. When they're open they fold back flush to the cabinet.
The new finish has a subtle texture to it which actually makes it feel more like real wood.
The layered paint colors adds a little bit of visual interest. I added a little bit of dark wax to the corners for additional dimension.
I'd love to have you stop by my blog, The Black Sheep Shoppe, to see more photos of this project as well as other projects I'm working on. I estimated that I used about $50 in supplies, but your cost will vary depending on what supplies you have on hand and whether you choose a single or multiple color scheme.
Resources for this project:
See all materials
Any price and availability information displayed on [relevant Amazon Site(s), as applicable] at the time of purchase will apply to the purchase of this product.
Hometalk may collect a small share of sales from the links on this page.More info
Want more details about this and other DIY projects? Check out my blog post!
Comments
Join the conversation
4 of 6 comments
-
Beautiful job, enjoy !
-
Thank you so much, I have a TV armoire the same as yours and I was afraid to tackle it. You answered my questions and gave me some good ideas. I am ready to do it now.
-
Best of luck with your project Elizabeth! I'm sure it will turn out beautiful.
-
Frequently asked questions
Have a question about this project?