Armoire Makeover

Mercedes Madrie
by Mercedes Madrie
2 Materials
$40
3 Days
Easy

When I found this armoire on Marketplace for only $20, I fell in love and knew that I needed it for our bedroom. Usually it doesn't phase me to paint a piece of furniture, but to be honest, I was hoping I wouldn't have to paint this piece. I loved the wood and thought it was beautiful as is, but no matter what I tried, this piece wouldn't match our bedroom set, so white it is!

I started by removing the doors and hardware to make it easier to paint.

Once the hardware was removed, I began painting. That's right, no stripping, no sanding, no prep work! I taped off the top of the base because the top piece was going to sit on top of it and cover it, so I didn't feel the need to paint it. I will add that I also didn't paint the inside of this piece just because I did love the look of the wood so I thought it would look pretty styled with the original finish on the inside.

I couldn't for the life of me figure out how to get the handles off, so I just painted around them. Later, a few friends on IG reached out to me and suggested putting a flat head down inside the hole where the handle screws in to and trying to pry it off, and that did the trick. So I lightly sanded over the hardware outlines, and repainted to give it a smoother appearance.

After painting, I took 220 grit sandpaper across the entire piece to get rid of any brush stroke marks and create an overall smoother appearance. This will take off some of the paint, but it adds to the distressed look I was going for.

Then, I took 80 grit sandpaper (you can use the 220 grit, but I feel like this gives it a softer distressed look) and went over all the edges to distress it.

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Frequently asked questions
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3 of 8 questions
  • Wease De Haven Rainey Wease De Haven Rainey on Apr 21, 2020

    If you don't want the distressed look.... do you just paint it. Or is there a different step? Thank you in advance.

  • Marilyn Marilyn on Apr 22, 2020

    What can I do to improve really bad saggy sofa cushion?

  • Rebecca Michelle Rebecca Michelle on May 28, 2020

    looks beautiful.. I have an armoire I will be doing and I was thinking of not doing the inside as well ... can you take a picture with the doors open? I’d love to see how it looks ...❣️

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2 of 41 comments
  • Shell Shell on May 11, 2021

    I  IT! Great job

    Painting older furniture brings out details in the pieces that stain does not show It adds so much more character to large furniture too Chalk paint is always the way to go

  • Shana Lyn Shana Lyn on Feb 18, 2023

    I love this! I just purchased one almost exactly like this, but its already painted in this manner. I was thinking of taking the top of the armoire, flipping it over and adding feet to it - to make a media console type of piece.

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