DON’T TOSS IT – TRANSFORM IT… REFINISHING OLD FURNITURE IS A FUN WAY TO REFRESH A TIRED PIECE, AND IT’S EASIER THAN YOU THINK. HERE’S HOW TO REFINISH YOUR WOOD FURNITURE IN 5 EASY STEPS!

Hi creative #sifamily, I’m so happy you’re here! Today, I’m sharing how to refinish your wood furniture in 5 easy steps! Refinishing wood furniture is all about giving an old piece new life. Whether you’re stripping away layers of old paint, stain, shellac, varnish, or wax, it’s a fun and creative way to restyle, repair, or refresh furniture so it works beautifully in your home. It’s amazing what a little TLC can do—not only does it enhance the look, but it can bring new purpose to something that might’ve been tossed aside. It’s also a super budget-friendly way to decorate, build a successful furniture-flipping business (like me!), or breathe new life into family treasures that are full of memories.

Before I get into this nightstand makeover, here’s a quick breakdown of the 5 steps:

5 Steps in Refinishing Wood Furniture

1. Cleaning – Remove dirt, oils, and grime.

2. Stripping or Sanding – Use a chemical stripper, carbide scraper, or sandpaper to remove the old finish. Once the old finish is removed, smooth the wood with a higher grit sandpaper.

3. Repairing – Fix any cracks, dents, or loose joints.

4. Staining/Painting or Both – Apply an updated wood stain tone to enhance grain or paint in a modern and/or classic color for a fresh new look.

5. Sealing – Protect the wood with a clear topcoat like polyacrylic, hemp oil, or wax.

So let’s get started on this nightstand set and I can’t wait to hear what you think of the NEW look!

*As an Amazon Associate, I earn from qualifying purchases. There are affiliate links in this post to other companies/products I use and love as well.  You will never be charged extra when you purchase through these affiliate links. If you purchase from my links – A BIG thank you for supporting me and the #siblog! To see my full disclaimer, click here.

Bonus, it’s Furniture Fixer Upper Day! On the fourth Thursday of every month, I join four of my super-talented friends, and we share our before-and-after furniture restyles. The link to their makeovers is included at the end of this post, and I hope you join me in popping over to see what they’ve created!

Here’s the nightstand set I started with. Pretty interesting, right? I love the little wooden drawers. They remind me of the sewing table drawers on old Singer Machines.

It’s always interesting to see what is in the drawers of these old pieces. Lucky penny!

Here’s a peek at the inside. These nightstands were made up of chipboard, solid wood, and wood veneer.

THIS POST IS SPONSORED/CONTAINS AFFILIATE LINKS TO PRODUCTS I USE.  YOU CAN SEE MY FULL DISCLOSURE HERE.

WHAT YOU’LL NEED

Nightstand Set  – SALVAGED
White Lightning Cleaner
Bosch Palm Sander (25% OFF as of writing!)
Sanding Sponge
Green Painters Tape (35% OFF as of writing!)
Bonding Boss Primer (if not using a paint in primer paint)
Umber SILK All-In-One Mineral Paint
Charred Hickory Gel Stain
Shop Towels
Paint Brush
Clear Coat Satin
Gator Hide Topcoat

WOOD NIGHTSTANDS MAKEOVER

Here’s how it all came together…

1. CLEANING

I cleaned these nightstands with this heavy-duty furniture cleaner . These dovetail drawers are beautiful and impressive. If you’re using a soap, TSP substitute, or even an all-natural vinegar and water solution, a quick wipe down with a clean damp rag will remove any cleaning residue.

2. STRIPPING AND SANDING

After giving it a good cleaning and rinse, I brought the nightstands into my sanding room to strip off the existing orange-stain finish. I could have used a chemical stripper but I didn’t want to deal with the smell or the mess. A good palm sander with a 120-grit sandpaper works wonders to strip off old finishes. I use my dust-free sanding method, so there’s minimal dust to clean up as well. If the 120 grit sandpaper isn’t aggressive enough, I sometimes go down to an 80 grit but that’s usually not necessary.

 SCUFF SAND… JUST ENOUGH!

I sanded the entire finish off the areas that I was going to stain. I scuff-sanded the areas I was going to paint. A light scuff sand is often all you need to help the paint grip so I don’t waste time trying to sand to bare wood.

👉 Tip: Always sand in the direction of the wood grain and spindles to avoid scratches.

To wipe off all dust, I brought it back into my paint room and wiped it down with this tack cloth which comes in packs. If you don’t have any tack cloths, a slightly damp towel or lint-free cloth works well.

3. REPAIRING

I was lucky with these nightstands and no repairs were needed. They are sturdy and will last for another 50 years, I’m sure. But if there were any repairs like fixing any cracks, scratches, drawers or loose joints, I would do this before moving onto the next step.

4. STAINING WOOD

To stain wood I like using gel stains rather than traditional ‘watery’ stains. I find them MUCH easier to apply and they are cleaner to work with as well. Gel stains come in oil-based and water-based.  When using oil-based gel stains good ventilation is required because they do have an odor. Also oil based products are needed for clean up – mineral spirits or paint thinners. Water based gel stains have zero odor and clean up with soap and water. I find if they are topcoated properly, they can have a rich dimensional look as I’ll share below.

I used this Voodoo Gel Stain in Charred Hickory.  It was my first time using it and it’s an awesome stain color. Applying this gel stain is simple. You can use a paint brush, sponge, applicator pad or lint free cloth. Wipe on. Wipe off.

If the stain is not dark enough, I wait until the first layer dries, then add a second coat.

Here’s the comparison of the sanded raw wood vs the stained wood. I’m LOVING this stain color!!

PRIMER

(Optional, but Recommended If You’re Not Using An All-In-One Paint)

Depending on your paint and the wood you’re working with, you might need/want to prime. I highly recommend using an All-In-One Paint so you don’t have to prime – it’s a HUGE time saver. I didn’t apply a primer to the areas I painted because I used SILK-All-In-One Mineral Paint, where the primer AND topcoat are included in the formula.

PAINTING IN UMBER

Now for the fun part—painting! I used a quality brush and masked off the areas I wanted to paint with this painter’s tape. Once my areas were sectioned off, I used Umber SILK All-In-One Mineral Paint – which is my paint color of the month hehe. I’ve used it on my last few projects. This DIY Scrap Wood Garden Table here and this Curb-Shopped Console Table here.  I’m loving this dark neutral brown!

To highlight the small details, I applied some Umber using a small artist’s brush.

5. PROTECT WITH TOPCOAT

To protect this stain finish, I applied three coats of Gator Hide using a paintbrush. You can also use a sponge or applicator pad. To add extra depth to this stain finish, I tinted the Gator Hide with 10% Charred Hickory Voodoo Gel Stain. This helps reduce brush marks and gives the water-based stain a more oil-based looking finish.

Here are a few of my other go-to sealing options when refinishing wood furniture:

• Clear wax – Gorgeous matte finish, great for chalk paint, but not the best for heavy-use pieces unless you’re okay with reapplying occasionally.

• Polycrylic – Water-based, dries clear, and available in matte, satin, or gloss. Great for light-colored paints as it won’t amber like an oil-based topcoat will over time. Also, the matte or satin sheens are perfect for hiding imperfections on dark paint colors.

• Polyurethane – More durable than wax, but can yellow over time on light paints. Best used over dark colors or natural wood.

DETAILS -ADDING HARDWARE

For the last step, I added simple hardware knobs. I bought these brushed brass knobs on Amazon and I think they are simple, classic and finish these wood drawers off beautifully.

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