How to Paint Laminate Furniture, The Right Way!

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I love IKEA furniture. I probably have at least 1 piece in each room of my home. You can’t beat the price, and most of the time the quality is great. What’s even better is being able to customize the furniture to suit my decor style. But painting laminate furniture can be tricky, that is until you follow this simple trick!

If you’ve painted furniture before, then you know laminate furniture is not like painting wood furniture. With wood you can typically give it a light sanding and paint right away. Since laminate or most IKEA furniture has a high gloss smooth finish you’ll need to start with a primer.

Not just any primer will do, it needs to be Zinsser BIN Shellac-Based Primer because it is a shellac based primer and a water-based or oil-based primer won’t hold.

Ready to paint your laminate furniture? Here’s what you’ll need.

Materials Needed:

• Laminate Craft Table: TORNVIKEN Kitchen Island
• Laminate Stackable Shelf
• Zinsser BIN Shellac-Based Primer
• Small foam roller & tray
• Sandpaper Block
• Tack Cloth or Rag
• Wagner Studio Spray Tent
• Wagner Flexio 3000 Sprayer
• Wagner Spray Cup Liner
• High Quality Paint

Here’s How to Paint Laminate Furniture,
The Right Way!

As I mentioned before the trick to painting laminate is with the Zinsser BIN Shellac-Based Primer. Otherwise, painting laminate is not difficult at all, it just involves the one extra step. Here’s how to do it:

Step 1: Prime

Priming with Zinsser BIN Shellac-Based Primer is so important to create a base for the paint to stick to. Anytime I paint furniture I’ll use my sprayer, that includes primer, paint, and sealer’s. But, to make cleanup much easier I recommend not using Zinsser BIN Shellac-Based Primer in your Sprayer. As it starts to dry it becomes extremely tacky and I find it difficult to clean out of the sprayer. So I suggest to use a cheap foam roller and paint tray that you can throw away after.

Step 2: Prep

While I let my primer dry I setup my Wagner Studio Spray Tent in my garage. I typically paint in my backyard, but we actually had rainy weather for once in California! But having the spray tent makes painting indoors easy.

Then, after the primer dry’s you’ll need to lightly sand each piece. Then follow is up by using a tack cloth to wipe away the dust.

Step 3: Paint

Next, prep the Wagner Flexio 3000 Sprayer with your paint. I used a high gloss paint in one of my favorite colors “SKY GLASS” from Dunn-Edwards. It’s actually the same paint I used on my Shiplap island in my kitchen.

I also highly recommend using a Wagner Spray Cup Liner. I wish I used these sooner, they made cleanup a breeze!

Once your Wagner Flexio 3000 Sprayer is prepped, you can start painting the laminate furniture. It’s best to give it 2 coats and let dry overnight.

Step 4: Seal (Optional)

The next step is optional. Seal the laminate with a Poly sealer.

For me, it depends on each project whether or not I seal it. With anything using Chalk paint I’ll add a wax finish. Then any other piece of furniture using a flat paint I use a sealer. But, if I use a gloss paint or the area I’m painting won’t be used much I might not seal it. In this case, I’m painting only the sides and base so I’m not as worried about it. Plus, the paint I’m using is a high quality gloss paint that can handle a lot of wear and tear.

Step 5: Assemble

Next, after everything is dry it’s time to assemble or put your furniture back together.

For my craft table I purchased a new TORNVIKEN Kitchen Island from IKEA. I loved the took and functionality of this island and thought it would make for a great craft table, so if you’re like me and know you’re going to paint the piece then its best to do it before assembly. Especially in my case since I wanted to keep the butcher block look of the top and shelf’s intact.

Here’s the after of my newly painted laminate craft table! I also added a Laminate Stackable Shelf for extra storage which I also painted. To make the space feel more cozy I added a shag rug, a new bar stool, and storage for my supplies.

Shop Supplies Needed to Paint Laminate Furniture:

Remember, painting laminate furniture doesn’t have to be hard, just don’t make the mistake and skip the priming step! Make sure to head on over to Wagner’s Blog here to learn more on how to use the Wagner Flexio 3000 Sprayer.

Plus, make sure to check back for more updates on my craft space. Enjoy!