Fast Fix Friday: How to Snazz Up A Boring Old Piece of Furniture

Adding texture (and a little paint) to an old piece of furniture could be a fun way to breath new life into it and maybe even make you fall in love with it all over again.  The next time you feel like redecorating don't head out to the nearest furniture store to buy new stuff.  Instead, give this method a try.

I'll show you how I added a couple of roses to this vintage drawer before I turned it into a pet bed.  But you could use this same method to dress up a plain picture frame or worn a table...or anything you can imagine.  Okay, here's the bed:

You'll need just a couple of supplies:

1.  Water Putty - See this post for mixing instructions
2.  Stencil of your choice
3.  Stencil adhesive
4.  Something to spread the putty with - a putty knife works great but so does a spent gift card

You'll want to start with a prepared surface, so make sure you've sanded it as if you were painting it.  Add the stencil adhesive to the back side of the stencil and let it dry for 10 minutes of so.  It will be tacky when "dry."

Once the adhesive is dry apply the stencil to the piece you're decorating and fill it with the putty.  You want to make sure you have a nice thick layer of putty.  Don't worry too much about smoothing it perfectly as you'll sand it before finishing.

 Let it dry completely, an hour should be plenty of time.  Then simply sand, prime and paint.  I like use two contrasting colors that will make the texture pop.

The paint will "pool up" around the edges of the putty accentuating your design. So, whatcha think?  What will you refinish?