How to Paint Wood Chairs DIY (No Sanding Needed)

I love refinishing furniture--especially furniture I found on the street, destined for the trash.

These lovely wooden chairs were spotted on my morning workout, and my friend and I carried them back to my house for updating.

Learn how easy it is to paint wood chairs with no sanding or intense preparation needed.

These fabulous spindle chair set was a great find on the side of the road, ready for a willing thrifter to pick them up.

Old chairs or a small piece of furniture is the perfect project for a first time DIY'er. 

The best part is making them yours with the best paint, a recovered chair seat and a tiny bit of imagination!

Here's the wooden chair pair in all their original glory.

These were obviously painted black and already reupholstered in black with plastic.

I love working with wood furniture thought because the strength and structure is there.

BUY FABRIC FIRST

First thing, I decided to make the painted chair pair match, but not be exactly the same.

Next step, I shopped for the duckcloth canvas new fabric first and picked out a pattern I like.

Then I bought the paint I needed in blue and red to match the flowers in the fabric print.

Supplies Needed for Painting Wooden Chairs:

affiliate links:

• Plaid Chalk Paint 
• Furniture in need of new life
• Chalk Paint Brush
• Clear Wax
• Light Grit Sandpaper (optional)
• Canvas/Duckcloth (if reupholstering)
• Staple Gun (if reupholstering)

No coats of primer, palm sander, sanding dust or spray shelter needed.

Check out the video tutorial too!

Step 1: Clean Chairs

First step is to give the chairs or furniture a good cleaning. These chairs were in good condition and I didn't need to fix any of the hardware or wood components. That makes painting chairs a breeze.

I noticed some chipped black paint on the top of the chair above the chair spindles and decided to just gently buff them smoother with sand paper.

This step is totally optional and did not need to happen to still make a great set of dining chairs.

**YOU CAN SKIP THIS STEP:

I just gently sanded the top of the chair to smooth out big chips in the finish.

This was not necessary, because of the beauty of chalk paint, but I thought it would help it have a smooth finish across the top...you can see the white paint exposed beneath the black paint.

So, skip this step if not needed or a concern.

Then use a damp cloth (I just used a baby wipe) and clean of the dust and debris from the dining chairs.

Because this is already a painted chair, it cleans off really easily and does not take a long time at all--seriously, prep was about 5 minutes total for both chairs!

Step 2: Remove Seat

Turn over the chair and see how the seat is secured to the frame of the chair.

The best way to remove the seat is with a long screwdriver.

It can be a good idea to make a video of this process so it's easy to put back together at the end.

Now these 2 chairs are ready for the paint.

I've refinished furniture a bunch of times and have use a paint sprayer, spray primer, spray painting with a drop cloth and a different type of paint.

I have to say, that my favorite way to refinish is chalk paint.

It dries with a smooth surface, not a really chalky finish paint, like the ones with added plaster.

Chalk paint brushes on but doesn't leave brush strokes behind.

Best results are always with a second coat of paint.

Step 3: Chalk Paint

For the red chair I am using FolkArt Home Decor Chalk Paint in Imperial, ultra matte acrylic paint.

And a chalk paint brush...the right brush can make a difference and chalk paint brushes give professional results.

For the blue chair I am using Waverly Inspiration Chalk acrylic paint in Ocean.

Paint colors are my favorite and I wanted to bring out 2 different colors in the fabric I picked.

It's amazing how different the fabric looks on each chair because of the color it's highlighting. 

Step 4: Paint Wood Chairs

Begin with the work area before the first coat of paint...I put the chair on a piece of paper drop cloth right on top of my desk. 

Then I don't have to lean over while painting and it's off the floor--and less likely to get touched while drying.

I pour some on a paper plate to use as a palette, since shoving the paint brush in the bottle would damage the bristles.

This is not like spray paint, which needs lots of light coats of paint...the chalk paint is a thick paint and does not take much paint for full coverage.

I love chalk paint--look at how easily one coat of paint covers up the black paint that was already there.

**Remember no coat of primer needed!

It does not take much time to get one coat of paint all over the chair. 

I place the chair on my table on a paper drop cloth and paint the legs, seat and then chair spindles last.

Then let the first coat of paint dry completely for 4 hours.

Then paint the second coat of paint.

I always always always recommend a second coat of paint for everything...there's always little places that were missed in the first coat and it makes the paint a little bolder in color because of the coverage.

Let the red chair dry and get started on the blue chair.

The blue paint was a little thicker but easy to paint. 

As the paint dries, the brush stroke lines just vanish, leaving a smooth and durable finish.

Again, let the first coat of chalk paint dry for 4 hours and then paint a second coat of paint over the furniture.

The paint job is just about finished--if you have clear wax, do a quick coat with a microfiber cloth after the paint dries.

This is an easy way to finish it off without using a top coat of something caustic.

The wax is easy to clean and protects the chair. If you don't finish it off with wax, that's fine too--I didn't use a finish wax on my chairs.

Oh look, I have some little helpers!

These little ladies love craft time.

They hop up on my desk every day around noon (they know when it's craft time) and wait for me to do a project with them.

They were really interested in the new furniture, thankfully it was already dry, when they hopped up to help with the painting process!

Lila is my little black familiar (4 months) and Linda (5 months) is the Siamese snowshoe.

Step 5: Upholstery

If your chair has padded upholstered seats, now is the perfect time to reupholster them.

Simply cut off the fabric that was there before, don't worry about pulling out all the staples.

Then cut your new fabric to the size of the seat, with a 4 inch overhang on each side.

Place the fabric with the bright color side down on the table, then place the padded part of the seat on the fabric, lining up the pattern if necessary.

Then pull the fabric up over the back of the seat (which is the underside of the seat) and hold it tight.

Start on the corners of the seat, pull up the fabric and staple in place.

Repeat the process on each corner, then move the the centers of each side, pulling firmly and evenly on each side.

Then staple all the fabric down.

I'm using 1/4" staples, they hold the fabric and don't pierce through the seat.

The last step for the chairs is to screw the seats back onto the wood chair frame.

If you recorded a video taking it apart, now is the time to watch it so it goes back together seamlessly.

The finished painted chair is lovely!

Chalk paint gives such good results...it's so fast, this makes an upcycle project so easy, fun and doable!

There are so many options for painted kitchen chairs. 

These are the perfect pair of tea table chairs for the breakfast nook or dining table.

I love the fabric I found, but you can pick your own style and look with some simple fabric!

No need for lots of paints, or paint overspray...chalk paint goes on thick, smooth and durable.

If you have never refinished furniture before, this is the best way to start.

Also, chalk paint works great on laminate furniture too--so that fake stuff can still look great without a lot of prep work.

Now the question is, which chair will I sit in?

I love them both...and even though blue is my favorite color--I'm leaning toward the red one!

That's it!

I hope this post helps you feel confident to repaint those chairs you found, have or thrift!

There's so many fun furniture pieces to give new life to!

I love having slightly mis-matched chairs that still match--they are the perfect pair!

Best part, finding them on the side of the road for free!

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