DIY Furniture Makeover in Pottery Barn Finish - How to Paint Furniture to Look Like Wood (Overview)

Learn how to create a beautiful Pottery Barn finish on any piece of furniture with this step-by-step furniture makeover tutorial. I'll show you my take for the Pottery Barn Sausalito dupe, including how to use decorative glaze to make painted furniture look like high-end wood. This method for refinishing furniture works on both solid wood and laminate, and it's the perfect DIY furniture flip for your next project. For an in-depth, comprehensive tutorial using a different base paint, please see our next video here:    • DIY Furniture Makeover in Pottery Barn Fin...   These are the steps I used: 1. SANDING (OPTIONAL) - I have done this finish on both sanded pieces and those not sanded. It works perfectly on both however, if you do have the chance to sand the piece or at least scuff it up a bit, I encourage that for better adhesion. I’ve used anything from 40 to 120 grit - and none at all! 2. CLEANING - Be sure to thoroughly clean your furniture after sanding. Cleaning is important even if you do not sand to remove oils and buildup. 3. BONDING PRIMER - I used one coat of Sherwin Williams Extreme Bond Primer. Doesn’t have to be perfect - just one coat to ensure bonding. 4. BASE PAINT - I did one coat of base paint. This is the base that the glaze will go on. I used BEHR Premium Even Better Beige Satin Enamel. 5. GLAZE - After the base coat is dry, this step will begin to transform your furniture into that unique wood finish. I used Rust-Oleum Java Brown Glaze for this along with chip brushes and a Linzer 5 inch deck brush. The deck brush was critical for this technique to work correctly. I tried doing it with other brushes and it did not work at all so I definitely recommend getting this brush. I worked in sections where I applied some glaze with a chip brush and then worked the glaze with the deck brush until I achieved the look I wanted. Start by dragging the deck brush vertically or horizontally (pick one and stick to it). Then, if you need to get into small spaces, I would kind of dab the deck brush into those spaces followed by the dragging again. Keep dragging the deck brush until you get the glaze to the desired look. The more you drag it, the lighter the look you’ll achieve. You can also use rags to wipe off excess from the deck brush as you go. (If you are doing this on real wood, I suggest dragging the deck brush with the grain.) 6. DRYBRUSHING - After glaze is dry (this will depend on where you live and humidity levels - the can says a minimum of 8 hours), I added some more dimension with drybrushing. I used the same base paint color to do this and sometimes I added in some Sherwin Williams Agreeable Gray and SW Intellectual Gray. You really can use whatever you want but most of the time, I just use the base paint (BEHR Even Better Beige). I used a chip brush and paper plate to apply this technique along with rags. You want to barely dip the brush into the paint and then dap off almost all of it onto the plate. You are left with a tiny amount on the brush which you then, as lightly as you can, create small strokes onto the furniture. If you apply too much, quickly wipe off with a rag. 7. TOP COAT - The final step is to apply a top coat. (Make sure all paint is dry first.) I used 3 coats of Varathane Water-Based Ultimate Polyurethane in a Matte finish and applied with a Purdy paint brush. I prefer the Purdy brand but use whatever you like. I don’t recommend using chip brushes or foam brushes as the finish will not be as nice. My preference is a matte finish but you can use satin or whatever finish you prefer. If you use an oil based poly, it will amber or darken over time. I am not affiliated with any of the products I used in this video. I may earn a small commission from amazon links. Feel free to ask any questions you may have and we’ll do our best to help! Thanks so much for watching! Useful Links for this Video Sherwin Williams ‪@sherwin-williams‬https://www.sherwin-williams.com BEHR Premium Even Better Beige Satin Enamel - https://www.homedepot.com/p/BEHR-PREM... Rust-Oleum Java Brown Glaze - https://www.homedepot.com/p/Rust-Oleu... Linzer 5 inch Deck Brush - https://amzn.to/4lEkgFc Chip Brushes - https://amzn.to/4nQA5tE Rags - https://amzn.to/46fV4zR Varathane Water-Based Ultimate Polyurethane (Matte) - https://amzn.to/3INhfn8 Purdy Paint Brushes - https://amzn.to/3IrdQdQ Cabinet Knobs - https://amzn.to/3Gxlh2x Cabinet Pulls - https://amzn.to/45b3R4Y #potterybarndupes #refinishedfurniture #furnituremakeover