It was the best of paints, it was the worst of paints, it was a time of trial, a lesson learned, it was the hottest of days, it was a latex paint, it was aggravating, it was maddening, it was melting, it was the summer of change…
Learning the ropes of furniture refinishing has been a lot of research, trial, and error. I want to share with you two projects completed in the same week with slightly different methods, materials, and outcomes. We picked up both the desks at our yard sale haul of the year. Both older solid wood models, towers of drawers on the sides with a chair space in the center.
Finishing them timed out perfectly for us to take them to a one day flea sale for a friend to stage her quilts.
It was the first of June. It was hot. The sale was outdoors. We were in full sun.
The Tale of Desk 1: (pictured above on right)
Desk one was my husband’s $15.00 find. We cleaned it up and stripped and stained the top. The base was painted in Annie Sloan Chalk Paint Old White and sealed with wipe on poly. She traveled well and while she didn’t sell at the sale she came home exactly how she went.
The Tale of Desk 2:
Desk two was my find. She rung in at $35.00 and we loved the raw wood. Same as before we cleaned the desk up and started to paint the desk shell. The shell was painted in an olive colored latex paint. Since the wood appeared to be raw and dry we did not sand. The desk looked wonderful. The rich olive and wood tones similar to our olive buffet seen here and here. We should have been tipped off by what seemed like an extra long dry time. The finish seemed to stay tacky to the touch for several days which has not been a normal experience for us. Here’s how the desk looked before we packed it up for the sale.
On the trip to the sale some of the paint came off where the desk was secured with straps. Again we should have been tipped off but instead I simply thought “oh well, it chipped, grab the sandpaper and we’ll distress it a bit.” So that’s what I did. I grabbed some sandpaper we had in the car and distressed the desk a bit all around the edges like that was my original plan all along. Around lunch time while the heat was bearing down my husband said “what’s up with the back of that desk”. Upon further inspection it appeared that the paint was bubbling. Seriously!?! So glad the desk did not sell. As we brought it home, the paint, which essentially seemed to melt in the sun, stuck to the moving blanket and ripped off the top of the desk.
Even now after it should be fully cured you can use a putty knife to scrape up the paint like you’re scraping a bar of chocolate.
Now we’re left pondering what went wrong.
Was there some sort of oil rubbed into the wood that kept the paint from adhering and/or hardening?
Would it have made a difference if we sanded the piece before painting?
I thought wipe on poly was cool over latex paint. Was I wrong? We’ve used it before with no problems.
Is heat from the sun indeed enough to melt latex paint right off a piece of furniture?
If I had added a bonding agent to the paint (baking soda, Plaster of Paris, Webster’s Chalk Paint Powder, calcium carbonate) would it have made a difference in this case?
Needless to say we’ve made the decision to forgo latex paint for the time being.
If you have any tips or thoughts on using latex paint for furniture we’d love to hear them! No one wants to see their hard work and supplies melt away. So let’s help each other out!!
They both look amazing!!
i have had a similar experience- i think that it's when people are selling them they maye wipe down with a dusting spray and that makes it impossible for paint to adhere properly. i LOVE that first one especially!!!
I've had the same experience. The more I use chalk paint (boutique brands) the more I hate latex. Even my DIY chalk paints will sometimes chip and not take the wax as easily. I think Cassie is right, though, so I always try to wipe every piece down with Simple Green just to be sure. Sometimes I even use clear shellac if I'm concerned about buildup or bleeding. Even with chalk paint. 🙂 They are both beautiful pieces. I hope the green one can be salvaged!
I have limited experience, but I am a true believer in cleaning a piece well and using the tried and true prep, prime, paint, and patience (with dry times and prep work) in finishing any piece. That said, I have never used the real deal chalk paint, only homemade and I don't prefer the look of 'chippy' or 'distressed' furniture in my own home. Although, I love the look. Great points and thanks for sharing the downside to refinishing and/or painting furniture.
Hmmm, that is interesting. I wonder if there was a surface condition like you said with the second one. I usually always clean my furniture that I'm painting to sell with mineral spirits, then denatured alcohol and then warm water. Not sure if that would help. But I always use MMS or Chalk Paint now not latex. I really love how both desks came out! x
Well I know for sure that if I plan to use latex again I will definitely be taking every precaution I can. Sanding, cleaning, priming, etc!
I first started painting furniture for myself well over ten years ago, when my grad student budget and limited time and space made painting furniture from the Goodwill the best option for my small apartments. Back then the choices were latex or oil, and oil was too stinky. So I have a lot of experience with latex on furniture!
I found that prep was key: at the very least scuffing the piece up with sandpaper AND cleaning it with a degreaser such as mineral spirits or TSP, then rinsing. Then letting it dry out well. Priming helps latex paint adhere. But even when it doesn't peel or tear, it's still a softer and less durable finish, prone to nicks, dents, and rings — which don't sand out well, especially if you've used a gloss paint (which I did, back then before I knew about waxing). I never poly'd, because that would have made repairs or changes more difficult.
I haven't painted a piece of furniture with straight latex in years — at the very least, I add Plaster of Paris to it, which helps a lot. But I've heard really good things about how Benjamin Moore's Aura line behaves on furniture, and I'm thinking of trying that out.
Thanks for taking the time to share our experience Elizabeth!
Always use a wood sealer before painting. I use a non-wax base shellac. I think it's Zinsser. It goes on easily and dries fast. And you can sand it. Paint goes over it like a dream. And, if you ever want to take it down to it's natural wood finish again, you don't have to hog off the top layer of wood! I use this wood sealer on all of the mahogany pieces. prevents the bleed through as well. Hope this helps!