This has to be the most frequently asked question when it comes to actually carrying out Ikea hacks.
I get it, you are all excited to try out an Ikea hack you’ve found. The tutorial says to paint the Billy bookcase yellow for a stunning, standout effect. You paint the bookcase, let it dry and then…. the paint starts peeling off!
Don’t panic! We are here to help with a step-by-step tutorial on how to paint Ikea furniture the RIGHT way!
We’ve come up with three separate methods that take into account how much time and money you want to spend on your Ikea hack as well as how good a finish and how long lasting you want it to be.
This article is part of a collection of Essential Ikea Hacks Knowledge that is designed to help you carry out any Ikea hack in the right way, first time.
Why is Painting Ikea Furniture So Tricky?
Due to the, shall we say, cost effective nature of Ikea furniture the majority of pieces are made from a laminated chipboard. This is perfect for creating easy to construct, budget friendly furniture but not so good for painting!
The laminate is basically a plastic coating and so, when it comes to painting it you need to keep this in mind.
Simply slapping on some latex paint will result in streaks and bubbles as the paint struggles to stick to the laminate. You need to prepare the surface properly first in order to change it into something much more paint-friendly!
Choose Your Level!
There are several ways of going about painting Ikea furniture. We’ve broken them down into three levels of difficulty/effort so that you can choose how thorough you’d like to be.
The quick method will give you a decent finish and will last reasonably well, but isn’t a long term solution.
The middle ground method is what most people will choose as it gives a good finish and will last long enough for any purpose.
The bulletproof method introduces those little extra steps that will give you a professional finish and will last pretty much forever!
By the way, you may see some people recommending oil based paint for this purpose, which is perfectly acceptable but we like to stay away from the harmful vapors you get from these paints and so our methods are based on w
Let’s get cracking!
The Quick Method
As we mentioned, this is not meant to be a long lasting solution but will leave you with a good final product. Perhaps the important information here is: No Sanding Required!
Materials Required:
- Zinsser B.I.N. Primer or Zinsser Bullseye 1.2.3. Primer
- Mini Roller, Tray and Foam Sleeve
- Water Based/Latex Paint for Wood & Metal (colour of your choice!)
- Interior Quick Drying Varnish or Polyurethane Varnish
Steps:
- Give the furniture surfaces a clean with a damp cloth
- Apply the primer with the roller (you can normally squeeze it into corners to get everywhere, but a brush might be needed for awkward bits).
- Allow to dry for 2 hours (time to clean off the roller and brush).
- Apply 2 coats of the latex paint with the roller, making sure to roll in the same direction to avoid lines (allow 2 hours between coats).
- Allow to dry for 24 hours (to ensure it’s fully hardened).
- Apply one coat of the varnish and allow 2 hours to dry before using your newly painted, perfectly hacked Ikea furniture!
The Middle Ground Method
This method will give you a good, long lasting finish and will be good enough for any project unless it will experience a LOT of use and abuse (in which case I’d recommend the Bulletproof Method!). It is similar to the Quick Method, but involves sanding!
Materials Required:
- 240 Grit (Medium/Fine) sandpaper sheets
- Zinsser B.I.N. Primer or Zinsser Bullseye 1.2.3. Primer
- Mini Roller, Tray and Foam Sleeve
- Water Based/Latex Paint for Wood & Metal (colour of your choice!)
- Interior Quick Drying Varnish or Polyurethane Varnish
Steps:
- Prepare all the surfaces by lightly sanding with the sandpaper. You don’t want to sand through the laminate, just scratch the surface.
- Clean the dust off thoroughly with a damp cloth.
- Follow steps 2-6 from ‘The Quick Method’.
- If you don’t mind the sanding, you could lightly sand between each coat and clean thoroughly with a damp cloth each time. This will give a smoother finish.
The Bulletproof Method
Finally, if you want a super-smooth and super-strong finish this method is for you. It might take a little longer and involve a couple of extra ingredients but it will look as if it was factory painted and will last virtually forever!
Materials Required:
- 240 Grit (Medium/Fine) sandpaper sheets
- Spray-On Adhesion Promoter
- Zinsser B.I.N. Primer or Zinsser Bullseye 1.2.3. Primer
- Mini Roller, Tray and Foam Sleeve
- Water Based/Latex Paint for Wood & Metal (colour of your choice!)
- Floetrol Paint Thinning Additive
- Interior Quick Drying Varnish or Polyurethane Varnish
Steps:
- Prepare all the surfaces by lightly sanding with the sandpaper. You don’t want to sand through the laminate, just scratch the surface.
- Clean off the dust thoroughly with a damp cloth
- Spray on a light coat of the adhesion promoter and wait until it is tacky to the touch.
- Apply the primer with the roller (you can normally squeeze it into corners to get everywhere, but a brush might be needed for awkward bits).
- Allow to dry for 2 hours (time to clean off the roller and brush).
- Add the Floetrol thinner to your paint at a ratio of 3 tbsp/gallon or 1 tbsp/litre. This makes the wet paint flow better and will help eliminate any brush or roller strokes that would otherwise show.
- Apply 2 coats of the latex paint with the roller, making sure to roll in the same direction to avoid lines (allow 2 hours between coats).
- Allow to dry for 24 hours (to ensure it’s fully hardened).
- Apply one coat of the varnish and allow 2 hours to dry before using your newly painted, perfectly hacked Ikea furniture!
Bonus Expert Level!
I have a relatively inexpensive paint sprayer which gives a stunning finish to any painted surface. You must use the Floetrol thinner in a paint sprayer to get a fine spray, but I think it is really worth it if you are after a perfect finish and you are painting a lot of furniture.
The sprayer I use is the Bosch PFS 55 but unfortunately this is no longer available. If I were getting a new one I would go for the Tacklife SGP15AC.
So there you have it, three different methods, three levels of difficulty, three slightly different results!
Whichever method you choose, you will get a really good finish but as the sayings go; “you get what you pay for” and “you get out what you put in”.
At least you can now choose the best way of doing it for the relative amount of money and time you want to put into it!
Happy Hacking!