French Polishing and Bespoke Furniture
The answer is no, you cannot whitewash over a pre-existing finish as the original stain or finish will create a barrier, and the whitewash will not be able to penetrate to the wood . You can , however, use solid stain over old panelling and it looks terrific.
The Best Way to Whitewash Wood Stain the wood (or leave it raw for a light finish). Mix 2 parts white paint (flat latex or matte acrylic both work fine) with 1 part water. Brush on the water/paint mixture in the direction of the wood grain. Use a clean rag to wipe off the paint in the direction of the wood grain.
Milk paint , which you can purchase as a powder or premixed, or even whip it up yourself at home, is a nontoxic and biodegradable paint option that’s great for use on wood furniture —and if you mix it with an equal part of bonding agent, you don’t need to sand the piece before beginning.
Here are 5 Ways To Paint Furniture Without Sanding : USE A MINERAL PAINT. Mineral paint is very similar to chalk style paints in that no prep or prime is required. USE MILK PAINT + BONDING AGENT. As I already mentioned, the antique desk in this post was not prep- sanded . USE A BONDING PRIMER. USE A LIQUID SANDER /DEGLOSSER.
Whitewashed wood comes across its weathered, washed-out appearance honestly, because whitewashing is a wood preservative. Its use goes back to 16th-century Europe, and homesteaders in early America used it to protect barns, fences and even trees.
Step 1: Mix Whitewash Mix white, latex paint with water in a 1:1 ratio, which will give you a nice, transparent look. Test on a scrap piece of wood or an inconspicuous area, then adjust the ratio to your liking. Add more paint for a less transparent finish.
Before applying paint to whitewashed furniture, all you need to do is sand the surface slightly to create a rough texture for the paint to adhere to. The whitewash will not be visible underneath full coats of paint.
Whitewashing is a technique that allows you to brighten your wood without hiding the grain pattern. Whitewashing is best suited for pine. Pickling is a technique best used on oak. Applying a white stain allows you to brighten a wood surface without hiding the grain pattern.
The only effective way to lighten the color of wood after it has been stripped of all surface coatings is to use a wood bleach. Sanding does help to lighten wood in many cases, but this only applies to surface soil or grime, and even then only if the discoloration has not penetrated very deeply.
A lot of folks make the mistake of sanding to either too fine of a grit or not fine enough before applying stain . Too fine and the wood won’t be able to accept the stain . Too rough and the wood will be very dark almost to the point of being black.
Can you paint over varnished wood without sanding ? Yes. There are a few ways to do this, but we choose to use an oil based primer to prepare our varnished wood for new paint . The oil based primer will stick to varnished or sealed wood .
When You Can Skip Sanding , Deglossing and Priming If the finish on your furniture isn’t damaged or chipping, it’s flat not shiny and you aren’t painting it a drastically different color, then you may be able to just go ahead and start painting . Before painting though, do make sure the piece is clean.
Stripping is Faster and Often Safer. It’s almost always better to strip than to sand . To begin with, except in cases where the old finish is flaking off, it’s a lot more work to sand than to strip using a paint-and-varnish remover.
The good news is that painting over varnished wood is possible using either oil or water-based paints. The answer is no, you cannot whitewash over a pre-existing finish as the original stain or finish will create a barrier, and the whitewash will not be able to penetrate to the wood.