Difficulty: Beginner
For those of you who don’t know this about me, Frugal is my name and garbage picking is my game. The saying is so true that one man’s trash is another man’s treasure. Some people throw out some pretty good stuff.
I’m all for de-cluttering, in fact I should do a bit more of it at my house, but why just throw things to the curb? Make a donation to Goodwill or try selling as is or fixed. To me that seems less wasteful, but to each his own and at least I’m saving a few things from the landfill.
Awhile back I saw a twin head board and foot board on the curb in front of a neighbor’s house. I was on my way to run some errands and told myself that if it was still there when I was headed back home that I would pick it up. Well as luck would have it they were still there on the way back, so I put them in the back of my mini-van and headed home.
Of course when my husband Mike got home and heard of my spoils he was not exactly excited. You see I had already garbage picked another head board and foot board about 6 months earlier and I think that he was worried that I was starting a collection. This “new” head board and foot board was better. It was more feminine and visually appealing, but lacked side rails, so I hadn’t yet figured out how it would function as a bed. No need to worry, Mike could figure that out.
This head board and foot board sat for about 3 months in our basement before I actually decided to get it painted for our daughter. I wanted to do chippy white paint, because it’s neutral and timeless and more my style. As any three year old little girl will tell you, pink is the best color and Miss M wanted pink. My chippy white was out the window and I needed to find a shade of pink that I liked, because I knew any pink would be acceptable to Miss M.
The color I chose is bubble gum pink. That was literally the name on the paint can. It came in a glossy finish and I prefer more of a matte finish, so I bought a can of matte spray coating to apply after the paint. As you’ll see in these pictures I didn’t use the matte spray, because I got lazy and decided that I just wanted the project to be over. I convinced myself that I was ok with the glossy finish, because it would be easier to clean.
Are you ready to try a similar project? Gather your supplies and follow along.
Supplies
Solid wood head board and foot board (stay away from particle board and laminate)
Several cans of spray paint in color of choice
Spray paint trigger
Sand paper (100 grit is a good choice, not too coarse and not too fine)
Palm sander if possible
Citrus Strip or Krud Kutter if a very glossy finish is on original stain or paint
Spray sealer optional
First off I wanted to sand the wood. The bed frame had seen better days and the finish was fairly worn, but I wanted to rough up the finish a bit to help the spray paint to stick. I used my mom’s palm sander, because we don’t have one. My kids wanted to get in on the action, so I let them do some sanding too. I wasn’t concerned that they would screw it up, so I let them go for it.
I quickly and haphazardly went over the spindles by hand, because you can’t use a palm sander on those and then wiped down all of the surfaces with a microfiber cloth. You can also use a tack cloth to wipe off any saw dust. Next I laid down contractor bags to use as drop cloths and laid the head board and foot board down on them. I didn’t have a good way to prop them up, since there were no side rails, so I couldn’t paint them upright.
Time to shake it like a Polaroid picture. To ensure a nice even coat you need to shake the spray paint and then shake it some more. Shake for several minutes. My kids helped with the shaking too. Once the spray paint is thoroughly mixed attach your trigger. You can do this without a trigger, but trust me you won’t want to. Your poor pointer finger will be sore for days, making other activities that require the use of that finger much more difficult. I speak from experience. After you have attached the trigger you can start spraying. The best way to get even coverage is to spray from about 10 inches away in a sweeping motion. Start spraying off the wood and stop spraying off the wood. Starting and stopping off of the project will help prevent unsightly drips and splatters. Spray a thin even coat making sure to get all sides and in any crevices and then wait the time recommended on the can between coats.
The new color and the darkness of the original color will determine how many coats of paint are needed. If you are laying pieces flat to paint you will need to wait longer than the recommended time between coats. Wait a few hours to overnight then flip.This will help you to avoid peeling fresh paint when lying down to paint the reverse side. Repeat these steps until you have enough coats of paint to create an even finish. If you are concerned about wear and tear on your paint job you can finish your project with a clear spray sealer in any finish. Once the sealer is dry you can assemble your bed and use it to sleep that night.
It’s amazing what a little bit of spray paint and elbow grease can do to make a curbside castoff a treasured piece of furniture.