Tuesday, May 26, 2015

Black Painted Furniture

It seems that there are lots of people are crushing on black painted furniture. I thought I'd share some more tips on painting with black and also some examples.  I have painted several pieces black or Graphite lately and everyone who comes to the house has commented how much they love them. Painted black furniture is pretty much the opposite to why I started painting furniture. Our house was quite dark before we renovated and I wanted white bright furniture to lighten up our space. Almost every piece of furniture at home was white (and still is). I do think though that a piece of black furniture can anchor a room and add sophistication.  I do have a couple of pieces that are black in our lounge room now and I like the elegance they bring.

My Paris Map Cupboard
This was made using an image transfer technique  - I will be putting together a class soon on how to do this. It's such a great technique to learn. Let me know if you are interested.


My marble top Pot Cupboard
This piece never sold which surprised me as the marble on the top is so old and absolutely beautiful. We love this piece so I am more than happy for it to sit in this spot next to the fire.



Here are some other black and ASCP graphite pieces I have painted.







As well as my tips found in this blog post I wrote a while ago on Painting Black Like a Pro, I also think a good tip is to never use a white primer. If I am not using self priming paint as my top coat, I will do a coat of ASCP Graphite first and then use my acrylic black paint. This saves many coats of black paint which equates to time and money and results in a way better finish.

Also remember that the way light shines on black will mean that the higher gloss paint you use, the more the imperfections will show. Black is a difficult colour to paint with so one of the best things you can do is to sand your piece smooth before you start painting. Your finish will only be as good as what you start with.


If you are waxing ASCP Graphite so not use white fabric to apply or buff your wax. You do not want white fluff in your wax over the black surface. Either use steel wool or a black sanding pad or even black fabric. The 3M Sanding Sponges are fantastic to use. You can order them online or buy at a hardware shop. You may also find that the ASCP wax is a little draggy on graphite - I will often use a wax that is mixed with orange oil such as Howard Feed n Wax Carnauba Beeswax and Orange Oil


ASCP Graphite Javi Chair


Distressed timber and Black looks fabulous like the chair above. The warmth of the timber is beautiful against the black. When distressing use a fine sandpaper or sanding pad as you don't want scratches on your paint - you want it to seem as though the paint has worn off naturally over time from every day use.



ASCP Graphite Serpentine Drawers



Do you have black furniture in your house? What are your best tips for painting with black? Anything I've missed?

Fiona xx

2 comments:

  1. loving it all Fiona, my favourite is the black display cabinet, not far behind is the chair. is black the new white??!
    thanks for sharing

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. Thanks Cathy - that display cabinet was so delicate to paint. the mirror was very old and therefore very thin. I just loved it though. Thanks for the lovely comments xx

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