How do you know which used pieces are the best to paint? Here are 5 tips for buying used furniture.

 

I LOVE painted furniture! Know what I love even more? Saving money! The best way to furnish your house when you’re on a budget, and to create your own unique style,  is by buying used furniture and making it your own with paint.   I’ll admit, it does take some time to find just the right pieces and build your collection but my thought is, invest the time, save the money.  If you do, you’ll create one of a kind pieces and a home and look that’s just right for you.

So how do you find pieces that create the look you want without spending a fortune? Here are my tips:

1. Look for Solid construction

• You want to look for pieces that have some weight. Heavy = solid construction. With solid wood pieces, the wood will look the roughly the same on the inside (the drawer and inside cabinet spaces) as it does on the outside. Solid, well built pieces will last longer. You don’t want to spend all your time giving the piece a makeover if it’s not going to last.

 

Hutch Makeover

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• I always look for pieces that have dovetail joints vs staples or thin nails. “Noted for its resistance to being pulled apart, the dovetail joint is commonly used to join the sides of a drawer to the front. A series of ‘pins’ cut to extend from the end of one board interlock with a series of ‘tails’ cut into the end of another board. The pins and tails have a trapezoidal shape. Once glued, a wooden dovetail joint requires no mechanical fasteners.” – Wikipedia.

 

 

• Solid wood vs. veneer –”In woodworking, veneer refers to thin slices of wood and sometimes bark, usually thinner than 3 mm (1/8 inch), that typically are glued onto core panels (typically, wood, particle board or medium-density fiberboard) to produce flat panels such as doors, tops and panels for cabinets, parquet floors and parts of furniture. ” – Wikipedia.

 

DIY Round Coffee Table

 

• To be honest, I’ve stayed away from veneer so far.  However, veneer can be painted (with a good coat of primer) and patched with spackle or putty but if you’re planing on stripping and staining, there may not be enough of the thin veneer layer to sand.
• Laminate – While veneer is actually made from wood, laminate consists of synthetic materials used to form a thin layer created to look like wood. Because of this, laminate pieces often look manufactured. While laminate can be painted with some prep work (lots of primer), you definitely cannot stain it because it has nothing for the stain to soak into like real wood. I’ve seen a number of Ikea pieces painted and they do come out looking good especially when using a paint sprayer.

 

DIY TV Stand Makeover

2. Make sure it’s in working order

• When buying used furniture, always operate all of the drawers and doors to make sure they work. If the drawers don’t slide all that well, that can be fixed fairly easily with a light sanding and a coat of paraffin or furniture wax.
• Missing/broken pieces – If it’s missing a pull or other hardware and you are going to replace those anyway, no worries. Keep in mind older hardware may not be the same size as hardware today which has a 3”gap between screws. That’s a simple fix if you just fill in the old holes with wood putty and drill new ones where you want the pulls to go. I’ll cover more on this in the next step in the series.

 

 

Don’t rule out a missing drawer necessarily. Can you add a shelf and use baskets in it’s place.  This hutch that was missing a door and I added baskets to the shelves instead.

 

 

Hutch makeover

 

• Broken legs/wheels – can be changed out with new ones.

3. Check for Smells

I know this seems kind of gross, but when buying used furniture, give it a good smell first.  Many pieces you find in thrift stores or at garage sales may have been in someone’s basement, attic or barn for a very long time or in a home where people smoked cigarettes or had pets. There are certain smells that can be removed but others, like cat spray or really heavy duty cigarette smoke, that no matter what you do, you will never get those out. You can see how I used a couple of methods on an old dresser HERE.

 

 

4. Ask yourself, “how much work am I taking on?” Is it worth it in the long run?

• You have to ask yourself how much am I going to put into this. Is it really worth the thrift store price if you have to buy all new hardware, wood putty and paint? You also have to take into consideration the amount of time it will take to do it.

Not only that, is it something that you are able to do? Do you have the tools or the knowledge? Are you taking on too much?

 

 

Painted Wash Stand

5. Be prepared – make sure you know what you need or have space for.

• You don’t want to buy the deal of a lifetime and get it home only to have it not fit. Make the most of your time and money by having your list of things you may be looking for and measurements with you along with a tape measure. You also may want to keep a picture of the space with you on your phone so you can see it while you are looking at the piece.
• Can you use the piece in a different way? Need a bathroom vanity? Maybe you can use a dresser.

This was a hutch but I just wanted the bottom part as a buffet:

 

 

Farmhouse Buffet Makeover

 

• Know your style – only buy pieces if they are the same style of the furniture you already have no matter how cheap. If all of your other pieces are mission style and you buy a queen Anne piece it will stick out like a sore thumb and won’t flow or add to your story.
• Make sure your vehicle is large enough to fit whatever you come across.

 

 

Painted Cabinet

 

Remember,  decorating isn’t a sprint. It takes time to create and curate just the right space for you and your family. This includes buying second hand furniture or any decor for that matter.  You need to shop often to find the right pieces and it may take a while to build your collection.

Where to find used furniture to paint:

• Craigslist-
• Facebook Marketplace
• Garbage or curbside
• Flea markets
• Garage/yard sales
• Thrift Stores
• Letgo
• Auctions – just make sure you have time to look over the piece and go over the steps listed above before you start bidding and make sure you have a set dollar amount you are willing to spend or you can go way overboard!

Remember, be careful when meeting anyone you don’t know – go to a public place.  For tips on shopping garage sales and flea markets click here.

Don’t forget to look around your own home or in your basement or attic. Do you have a piece that’s just dull and tired and needs new life? Something that was given to you that you’ll never use it the current state but could be really cool if you gave it a makeover?

 

 

Piano Bench Makeover

Creating your own style.

Painted furniture is a great way to make your space your own. It gives you the opportunity to add personality with the endless color, paint types (milk, chalk) and paint technique options as well as stenciling and other treatments. Plus, older pieces have unique features that newer ones may not such as the shape, little compartments, hidden drawers or unique pieces of hardware that only add to the character of your space.

 

 

 

So, you are you ready to pick out a piece and give it a makeover? Next up, how to paint it!  If you have any comments on how you buy furniture or questions on painting, drop them in the comments below. 🙂

Happy DIY’ing!

Col

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