Painting a Metal and Vinyl Hand-Me-Down Bar Stool!

Cait Geddes
by Cait Geddes
3 Materials
$50
1 Day
Easy

Just recently, my cousin and his wife moved close by from way out of town. They just had a baby and were short on spare time. so I happily gave them a hand making their new apartment feel like a home!


Starting from scratch, they had the option of purchasing all new furniture, but opted to take on a handful of hand-me-downs instead. They didn't want to spend a fortune on new furnishings, knowing that their apartment was temporary until they decided to purchase a home. Plus, hand-me-downs are FREE!! Doesn't get much better than that!


Good news is they were able to furnish their apartment with quality, functional pieces for next to nothing... bad news is majority of the pieces were dated and totally mismatched! Nothing some paint can't fix!!


They chose a soft, warm and cozy colour palette of Linen, Angora and Silver Sage.


I took a few of their mismatched pieces and painted them in the colour palette they chose, to create some cohesiveness.




In their kitchen, there is one tiny section of the counter that is the perfect size for just one counter height stool. My cousin uses it a lot to eat his breakfast before work, and he used this old, metal and vinyl barstool. This dingy, forest green stool stuck out like a sore thumb! After all the painting I did to make his apartment cozy and warm, I tried to convince him to just buy just one new stool, but nope!! He wanted to keep it. He loved this silly barstool!


At the end of the day, when you love a piece that much, there's no need to get rid of it, when just a coat of paint will make it look new again. I agreed to take it home and give it a good ol' face lift becuase YES! You can easily paint metal and vinyl!!!


How to Paint Metal


I decided to paint the base using . Just start painting. I like to paint stools upside down first to make sure I get all the nooks and crannies!


If you notice any buildup or drip marks once the paint is dry, you can easily remove them by lightly sanding with your sandpaper!


I did three coats of paint and let it dry over night.


The Furniture Paint is an ultra matte chalky finish, so you need to add a top coat for durability. I used House&Canvas Furniture Wax in Clear. It seals and protects your freshly painted surface!


The wax rubs on super easy with either a wax brush or a lint free cloth. The paint is super porous, so it will absorb what it needs to be protected. Rub off any excess wax with a lint free cloth. The wax is a cloudy white colour until it is spread thin. You just want to make sure you can't see any cloudy bits!


Leave it overnight to dry and it's good to go!


How to Paint Vinyl


I decided to paint the seat with House&Canvas Furniture Paint in Silver Sage.


Painting vinyl is super easy. It requires no prep, other than a good wipe down to be sure there is no grease or grime.


Just start painting in smooth strokes from one side to the other. The Furniture Paint itself is self-leveling, but combined with using a quality brush, you get almost no brush strokes.

First Coat


You only need 30-60 minutes between coats. Apply your second coat.

Second coat


Again, if you notice any brush strokes, drip marks or build up, you can easily remove them by lightly sanding with your sandpaper!


Usually, only two coats are needed, but this vinyl was a dark forest green, and I was covering it with a light sage, so it needed 3 coats.


Once I finished the 3 coats of paint, I let it dry overnight and applied a layer of the Furniture Wax the exact same way I did on the base.


Believe it or not, once the wax dries, the seat is just as soft, squishy and comfy as it was before being painted. The painted vinyl won't crack or chip off. The wax is super durable!


I've done this before on other materials like outdoor cushions which you can read about here!


Now the stool is beautiful and matches the decor in their apartment! Win win!

Before


After
Resources for this project:
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
Frequently asked questions
Have a question about this project?
  1 question
  • Jen Bruns Jen Bruns on Apr 02, 2020

    Do u brush it on the metal?... i have never painted furniture... i have an old metal swing i am wondering it this will work... the only thing i could think of is spray paint... i dont want it to rust... what would you recommend?

Comments
Join the conversation
3 of 8 comments
  • Katherine Katherine on Mar 11, 2020

    Great job on everything!! You’re fantastic!!

  • Katherine Katherine on Mar 11, 2020

    I just did a makeover on these iron barstools that my neighbor was throwing out. I sealed mine with polyurethane but I like the wax idea.

    • Cait Geddes Cait Geddes on Mar 11, 2020

      Holy smokes!!! They look amazing!!! And can't beat the price tag heehee

Next