Today, a distressed piece of furniture can be brand-new, just considered chic or stylish! It's our way of making it seem like we've painstakingly taken care of Grandma's favorite bureau ... when we've really just bought the piece at a local furniture store. Or we've just painted an unfinished piece of furniture or picture frame or anything else wood to look like it's been around for years. Surprisingly, the process is pretty simple. Here's what you'll need.
Materials:
object to be distressed (wooden frame, piece of furniture, etc.)
latex satin paint for the basecoat
latex satin paint or a wood stain for the topcoat
painting tools
candle
medium-grade steel wool
sandpaper
tack cloth
optional: polyurethane to finish
Steps:
1. The plan
The first step is to determine what you'd like the finished piece to look like. If below the distressed areas you'd like to see an old paint color, as if the piece has been painted many times over, you'll need to paint two colors. If you want the rubbed-off areas to reveal bare wood, the technique requires only a topcoat.
1. Getting started
Begin by lightly sanding the object you want to distress. If the object already has a finish (previously painted or varnished), sand all surfaces well. After the sanding, tack the piece off with a tack cloth.
3. A colorful basecoat
If you've decided to have bare wood exposed in the distressed areas, select a paint color that will look appropriate in your room. Then, decide if you would like to add a stain to it afterwards, which will mute or age the color you've selected. Or to keep the integrity of your color choice, you may just want to paint clear polyurethane over the finished project. In any case, your first step is to paint the entire piece in the color you've selected.
For those of you who want color exposed in the distressed areas, consider a brighter color for the basecoat so it shows up as it peeks through the topcoat of paint.
4. Distressing
For bare-wood folks, when the basecoat is dry, start sanding off areas that would naturally end up distressed. You know, places where hands would have held it, or corners that could easily get nicked.
For those wanting color to show, start rubbing the candle wax on the areas you'd like to see color show through. Don't forget to do the sides and back; you want the entire piece finished.
5. Finish it off or topcoat
Bare-wood folks, be sure to stop before you go too crazy with the sanding, then tack off the entire piece. Now decide if you want to add that aged look with a stain (you could even use one of those stain and polyurethane combination products and finish the piece in one coat) or just use a polyurethane stain in a finish of your choice to protect all your hard work.
If you've chosen the color route, now it's time to paint over the basecoat and the wax. Cover everything well, and wait until the paint dries.
6. For the colorful people only
Now is the time to reveal the color underneath using your steel wool. Just rub it over the areas you've waxed. (The steel wool won't harm the rest of the paint enough to worry about; remember, the piece is meant to be distressed, so use it to find the waxed areas) You'll want to dust or tack off the piece once you're through, then we do recommend protecting your project with a water-based polyurethane that won't yellow over time.
Distressing is a very satisfying project that can work on something as small as a picture frame, to a huge entertainment system. Whichever size you choose, Matt and I are sure you'll learn a little, enjoy a little, and get a lot of compliments!
(Distributed by Scripps Howard News Service, www.shns.com.)
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