Did you know that you can paint over mid-century modern Arborite furniture? It's totally doable but there are two simple but important steps to doing it right for a long lasting finish. In this post, I'm sharing the scoop on how to paint Arborite as well as a retro dining table makeover. The mid-century modern table is small and has one drawer that I think would also make a great desk or vanity table.

I'm sharing the retro table makeover first and the Arborite painting tutorial further down in the post.

How To Paint Arborite Retro Dining Tables

It is Furniture Fixer Upper Day where six talented furniture painting friends come together once a month to breath new life into a piece of furniture. You can find links to the other makeovers at the bottom of this post. Last month I tried my first attempt at a painting technique that I had been itching to try and I'm pleased with how the Pink Ombre Waterfall Dresser turned out.

This month it's a bright bold vintage table makeover that works well with the unique mid-century modern gold metal legs. But I couldn't stop with just a bright color. Remember my Geometric Waterfall Dresser? Well the stencil I used on that makeover was calling my name and it added a fun playful vibe to this retro table.

To see where we started, this is what table the looked like before...

And here it is after the makeover paired with a Glam Vanity Stool I refinished last year to show you how the table would make a cute vanity table.

The legs were showing some wear and so they got freshened up with gold paint.

The table is glam on the bottom and party on the top with this fun blue and white geometric pattern.

The inside of the drawer has a little stencil surprise too.

And rather than replacing the original knob like I normally do, I decided to keep the brass knob and paint the wood button in the center white. It plays nicely with the gold trim around the table top and the table legs.

How to prep Arborite furniture for a lasting finish

This post contains affiliate links for your convenience so you can see what products I used or recommend to make this project. See my full disclosure policy.

The next three steps for prepping Arborite furniture for paint are the most important for a lasting finish. I'll be the first to admit that these steps are tedious but if you skip them, you will regret it later. Ask me how I know!

Clean

Remove any dirt, grime, and grease with a scrub pad and pail of warm water, 1/4 cup of vinegar and a drop of Dawn dish soap. Another option is using this cleaner but I ran out and have it on my shopping list.

Sand

Sand the Arborite to rough up the smooth surface. I used a mouse sander with an 80-grit sanding pad. Be careful not to sand beneath the veneer.

Wipe the dust with a damp microfibre cloth and follow with a tack cloth to remove fine particles. Rub your hand over the Arborite to feel if it's rough to the touch. If not, carefully repeat the sanding process.

Dust free sanding tip:

If you paint indoors like I do, here's a great dust free sanding tip that I learned from my fellow Furniture Fixer Upper pal Kandice at Just The Woods. Connect the end of your sander to the hose of your shop vacuum and hold them together with duct tape. Genius!

Prime

Prime the roughed up Arborite with two coats of primer, rolled on with a foam roller. Wait about an hour between coats and lightly sand with 220-grit sandpaper for a smooth finish.

NOW that we've done the necessary dirty work, it's time for the fun part, making the vintage Arborite table pretty with paint.

How to paint Arborite furniture for a lasting finish

For this retro dining table, I decided to go bright and bold and keep the retro vibe going with a fun stencil.

Paint

I painted three coats of Peacock blue chalk mineral paint over the primed surface with a small foam roller. I waited an hour between coats and lightly sanded the paint with 220-grit sandpaper followed by a wipe with a tack cloth.

The table apron and inside the drawer was brushed with three coats of Fluff chalk mineral paint.

The metal legs were showing some wear so I removed them from the table and headed outside. It was the perfect sunny Spring day to refresh the legs with this pure gold spray paint. It's a good thing I painted them when I did because the weather turned the following day.

Stencil

Like I mentioned earlier, I couldn't stop at the bright Peacock blue paint color and decided to add some retro fun with this geometric wall stencil.

To stencil the table top I poured the same Fluff chalk mineral paint onto a paper plate and dabbed the excess onto a paper towel so very little paint remained on the brush.

I opted not to use the quicker method of stenciling with a stencil roller because the top had only been painted less than 12 hours earlier and I didn't want to risk using stencil adhesive to hold the stencil in place.

Instead, I used delicate surface Frog tape to hold the stencil in place and pounced the paint with a stencil brush.

A surprise waiting inside the table drawer

The outside of the drawer was painted the same Peacock blue and the inside the Fluff white. I added a surprise to the bottom of the draw with this polka dot stencil.

Protect

Normally I wax my chalk painted furniture pieces but with table tops, they will likely have drinks set on them and so I protect the chalk paint with three thin coats of this matte water-repellent clear coat. This will give the table a rock hard finish after 48 hours.

Part of me wonders if I should have painted the apron Peacock blue and the drawer front white. What do you think?

I'd love to get your feedback and/or any questions you might have about this makeover. Please leave them in the comment section below or press the Contact Me button at the top of the blog to drop me an email. I love hearing from you!

Please join me to take a look at how my talented friend's transformed these furniture pieces...

Press the links below to see the after photos and tutorials...

1. Girl In The Garage
2. Confessions Of A Serial DIYer
3. Petticoat Junktion
4. Prodigal Pieces
5. Just The Woods
6. The Interior Frugalista (that's me)

I share my projects at these inspiring link parties.

This is a great example of how not to be afraid to paint furniture for fear of ruining it. This is the second makeover for my black French poem flip top table. That's the beauty of working with chalk paint if you're not 100% satisfied it can easily be changed with little prep, even after waxing.

The first makeover involved metallic gilding wax and decoupaged paper and still, the table could be redeemed. Heck, it even survived falling onto a concrete floor and part of the trim flying in two directions. My hope is that you walk away encouraged to pick up a paintbrush and give that piece of furniture collecting dust in the basement a fresh new look.

Look What Happened To The Flip Top Table

Today is Furniture Fixer Upper Day where five talented furniture painting friends and I come together to breath new life into six pieces of furniture. You can find links to the makeovers at the bottom of this post.

For last month's challenge, I shared how I completely transformed my glossy white Vintage 9-drawer dresser by giving it Farmhouse charm with chalk paint and sandpaper...a lot of sandpaper.

But first, let's look at the table before I repainted it.

You can see remnants of the metallic decoupaged paper from the original makeover on the top and a close up of the metallic silver gilding wax details.

To see the original makeover and the terrible shape the table was in before that makeover, visit my Antique Scalloped Tilt Top Table post.

There was nothing wrong with the first makeover and I thought the table was quite lovely but it didn't sell. Perhaps the papered top was scaring people off. I decided to keep it but the metallic finish didn't really suit our home so onto plan B.

I think it looks so much classier painted black, wouldn't you agree?

I love all things with a Parisian flair, especially French typography on furniture so I couldn't resist adding a French poem on the top.

"O time, suspend your flight and you, propitious hours, suspend your course. Weary you enjoy the fast delights of the most beautiful nowadays."

This post contains affiliate links for your convenience so you can see what products I used or recommend to make this project. See my full disclosure policy.

Here's how I did it

Like I said at the top of this post you can chalk paint over previous chalk painted furniture, even if it has been waxed. Visit this post on How To Prep Furniture For Chalk Paint A-Z for more information.

Chalk paint over clear wax

It doesn't matter if the wax was applied 15 minutes ago or 15 months ago, as long as it is NOT tacky to the touch, you can paint right over it with chalk paint. I painted over the original white with three coats of Raven black chalk paint from FAT Paint Company.

After the final coat was completely dry I applied black wax to deepen the color and protect the finish. But I didn't do that step until the table was completely finished.

It was at this point went things went awry.

Remember I mentioned the scalloped trim along the top suffered some damage? I had detached the top from the base to remove all the remnants of decoupaged paper and fill any imperfections. I had just finished sanding the top to a perfectly smooth finish and was moving it over to the worktable to start painting when it slipped out of my hands and went crashing onto the concrete floor.

After a few choice words, I threw my hands in the air and marched myself upstairs and straight to bed feeling totally defeated. Thankfully stubborn is my middle name and when I woke up the next morning, fueled by coffee and determination I showed that broken top whose boss.

Repairing broken trim

I reattached the broken trim but the wood had suffered some damage on both ends so it didn't fit seamlessly back in place like a jigsaw puzzle so the repairs are not perfect.

1. On a time crunch to get this table finished for today's post I needed to use strong, quick drying glue. I applied this glue on both the back of the broken trim and the table and held it in place with these clamps until cured. Sorry for the lack of photos of this process, I was in panic mode at this point and didn't stop to take photos.
2. I used non-shrinking, fast drying filler to conceal the joints and fill the missing bits of trim. If I had Bondo on hand, that would've been my preference but this did the job. With my fingers I applied it in two layers, letting it dry about 30 minutes between applications. The photo above is after the first application.
3. Once the filler was dry I sanded it with 180 grit sandpaper. 
4. Then I finally returned to the task of painting the top with the same Raven black chalk paint. 

Stenciled top

I used this delicate surface tape to hold the French Poem Stencil onto the center of the painted top. I didn't risk using stencil adhesive because the paint had only been dry for a few hours and didn't want to risk lifting the paint. I stenciled with this Antique White craft paint using a small stencil brush.

After the stencil paint dried I lightly sanded over it with 220 grit sandpaper to remove the raised bits and then waxed over the entire top with black wax, buffing to a matte finish. The black wax also gave the white paint an aged appearance, which I love.

Next, I attached the top to the base SUCCESSFULLY this time!

Scalloped Top Highlights

At the last minute, I decided to highlight the scalloped edge by rubbing white wax with my finger and buffing it smooth with a lint-free rag. I like how it adds some visual interest AND masks the damage.

I hope this table and its challenges and metamorphosis served as a good example that it takes a lot to ruin a piece of furniture. And that after putting paintbrush to furniture and not being 100% satisfied with the results, it can always be changed. It's just paint!

If you have any questions about this makeover, please leave them in the comment section below or press the Contact Me button at the top of the blog to drop me an email. I love hearing from you!

Now let's see how my talented friends in the Furniture Fixer Uppers group transformed these furniture pieces...

Press the links below to see the after photos and tutorials...

1. Girl In The Garage
2. Confessions Of A Serial DIYer
3. Petticoat Junktion
4. Prodigal Pieces
5. Just The Woods
6. The Interior Frugalista (that's me)

I share my projects at these inspiring link parties.

I tried a new stencil technique that adds gorgeous detail to furniture. You may have seen furniture with this technique online and like me, itching to give it a try. I decided to start with a smaller piece to get some practice and I can't believe how easy it is. So I thought I'd share a tutorial in case you want to try it too and did it on Mom's favorite chair makeover with a raised stencil design.

Chair Makeover With Raised Stencil Tutorial

This chair belonged to my Mother and she was so proud of her thrifty find during a shopping trip with her sister. It was one of her first purchases after Dad passed away and she moved into an apartment. I think she paid something like $4 for it. She paired it with a sofa table and used it every night to put rollers in her hair and every morning to do her hair and makeup.

Sadly, seven years later we moved that chair into her room in a secured dementia unit at a designated assisted living facility. It was such a depressing place and in an attempt to inject some personality and charm into that dreary room, I gave her chair a makeover.

When we moved her again a few years later to a long-term care facility I noticed the chair had suffered some damage and was no longer safe to sit in. I brought it home to repair and there it sat.

After she passed I put the chair aside with the intention of giving it a makeover one day to use as a prop for my furniture makeover photos. That day has finally arrived and it feels like a piece of Mom is and will always be hanging out with me on the blog.

Before I get into the how-to, today is one of my favorite days of the month. It's Furniture Fixer Upper Day where myself and five talented furniture painting friends come together to breath new life into six pieces of furniture. Links to all the makeovers are included at the bottom of this post.

For last months challenge, I transformed a plain wood dresser that had been in my family for over 30-years with a Geometric Stencil Makeover.

I've included affiliate links in this post so you can see what products I used or recommend for this project. See my disclosure policy.

How to add a raised stencil to furniture

I used the same floral stencil that I used on the pretty Mint Green Nesting Tables and Antique Wash Stand makeovers.

Apply the stencil

1. Spray stencil adhesive onto the back of the stencil and wait about a minute before setting it onto the furniture.
2. Depending on the pattern, stencil from the center outward. I didn't because I placed the floral pattern randomly.
3. Apply embossing plaster with a putty knife and spread it across the stencil evenly. I used a light creamed honey embossing plaster but it comes in multiple colors.
4. Remove the stencil and wait until it hardens a bit before applying the next stencil.
5. Wipe the back of the stencil with a wet rag or baby wipes to remove excess embossing plaster.
6. Once the stencil is finished, let it cure overnight to completely harden.
7. Sand the embossed stencil smooth with a sanding sponge to remove any clumps (like the ones along the top rail in the photo below). 

Paint the raised stencil

The goal with a raised stencil is to enhance the raised details. To do that you want to paint the piece in two colors; a dark base coat and a light top coat that will be distressed to show the dark color underneath. This is how I painted mine...

1. Because my chair had already been painted, I chose a dark charcoal Trigger Metallic Accent Cream (not an affiliate link) by Country Chic Paint. It dries fast and rock hard, making it the perfect base for distressing. With the accent cream, you must have a painted base that has dried at least 12 hours.
2. You could use dark chalk paint for the base color but you'll need to let it dry thoroughly for good adhesion when distressing.
3. For the top coat, I used Simplicity White chalk paint also by Country Chic Paint. 

Wet distress technique

The wet distress technique is perfect for distressing furniture indoors because there is no dust, unlike using sandpaper. It's also a great option for distressing pieces with a dark painted base because it will not sand down to the bare wood. Here's how you do it...

1. You'll need a bucket of lukewarm water, a rag, and a scouring pad.
2. It's important that you distress BEFORE the top coat completely dries. No more than an hour and no less than 15 minutes. 
3.  Dip a rag into the warm water and wring out so it is damp but not soaked.
4. Lightly rub the rag over the raised stencil details and along the edges of the piece. Don't apply too much pressure or you risk removing the dark base coat and getting down to the bare wood.
5. If some areas are more difficult to distress, apply more pressure or use a wet scouring pad.
6. It's important that you rinse your rag/scouring pad often. 

Helpful Tip: 

I tried using both an old t-shirt rag and a piece of 100% cotton. I personally preferred the 100% cotton because when wet it is more rigid, like sandpaper. I felt I had more control over the amount of distressing. It's a personal choice and you may want to test both to find yours.

Protecting the finish

You will need a clear protective finish for the top coat. I used clear wax applied with a round brush. If you stencil something like dresser drawers that receive a lot of wear an tear, you may want to use a Tough Coat Clear Finish or polyacrylic. 

New fabric on the seat

Recently I bought this handy upholstery staple remover tool on Amazon. I was shocked at how much quicker and easier it was to remove the gazillion staples. No more bleeding fingers!

For the new seat fabric, I salvaged a white linen drapery panel that once hung in the master bedroom.

While I liked the simplicity of the white linen, I wasn't fond of how plain the seat looked. At the last minute while staging the photos, I added some white upholstery braid (gimp) that I had in my stash and attached it a with hot glue gun. Much better!

Have you ever done a raised stencil? If not, did my tutorial inspire you to give it a try? If you have any questions, don't hesitate to ask in the comment section below or send me an email by pressing the Contact Me button at the top of the blog.

Now let's take a look at how my talented friend's in the Furniture Fixer Uppers group transformed these furniture pieces...

Press the links below to see the after photos and tutorials...

1. Girl In The Garage
2. Confessions Of A Serial DIYer
3. Petticoat Junktion
4. Prodigal Pieces
5. Just The Woods
6. The Interior Frugalista (that's me)

I share my projects at these fabulous link parties.