“Don’t Paint That!” and Other Mutterings from Those That Want to “Save” Old Furniture…
“Don’t Paint That!”
and Other Mutterings from Those That Want to “Save” Old Furniture…
If you’ve ever sought
advice about a paint color choice on an online furniture painting forum—or even
just posted a photo of your latest furniture painting project on social media—you
might have gotten the dreaded comments… “Don’t paint that! You’ll hide its
original beauty!”; or “My gosh, you ruined that great wood furniture by
slapping paint on it!”; or, “That was an antique and now you’ve decreased its
value!” And then there is the “Oh…painted
furniture is just a fad…you’re wasting your time because it is just
going to go out of style.”
I’d like to
give those that make such comments—who are often fellow members of FURNITURE PAINTING
FORUMS—the benefit of the doubt that their heart is in the right place
with their missives. [But, that juxtaposition itself makes you wonder about
their motives!] It also begs the
question of whether they have a point with these protestations? So, let’s break down
and consider all of these assertions:
Are you decreasing the value of a “high-end” furniture piece with paint, or are you devaluing something that meets the definition of a true antique?
Is the furniture painting trend going to the wayside, meaning your restyled piece will soon be out of vogue?
And are there legitimate situations when you absolutely should not paint furniture?
Let us
explore…
“Original Beauty” Versus Complementing Your
Current Décor.
You can argue that furniture is a form of art and the original creator had a vision
for that piece that shouldn't be altered.
I mean, you wouldn’t change the outfit that Da Vinci's Mona Lisa was wearing to match current fashion trends, right? Well...Wikipedia describes the Mona Lisa as “an archetypal masterpiece of the Italian
Renaissance,” and "the best known, the most visited, the most written
about, the most sung about, the most parodied work of art in the
world." I suppose if you have a one-of-a kind furniture piece from a
famous furniture artisan (even one not quite of Mona Lisa’s stature),
you might consider leaving it unpainted. But,
furniture pieces of this nature are probably in private collections not soon
to be parted with by their owners, unless they have been handed down.
Much, is
determined, then, by the condition of the piece and one’s own perception of
beauty. The old adage that “beauty is in
the eye of the beholder,” certainly applies to furniture. You may have a furniture
piece in your possession that is highly valued by some, but that you think is unattractive or
completely out of character with your own taste. In that case, is it really valued by you? Or maybe it is valued by you, but not due of its aesthetics (or perhaps in spite of them), if you inherited a family
heirloom with which you don’t wish to part, but doesn’t match your décor. I’ve painted many commissioned family
heirlooms to update their look for the modern home, so that the (now adult)
grandchildren of the original owners can fully enjoy them, in memory of their elders.
Then there are those
“collector” pieces that are damaged in some way. In my workshop sits a once beautiful Mersman
Harp Oval Gueridon Accent Table that in its original unaltered state could
fetch $500, now. But, half of one of the
pedestal legs is broken off and it is all scratched up on top—so, it is only worth
about $20 in its current state. Furniture
purists might say…“fix the leg, strip the finish and reapply stain instead of
painting it.” But, in that case, it
still would be altered from its original factory finish, and you may see the
attempted leg fix, so would restoring it really reinstate that value?
“Appraised Value”
Versus “True Market Value”, and What If It Is an Antique?
That brings me to
the valuation of furniture generally, and the fact that it is highly subjective. When one says that a furniture piece will decrease
in value if it is painted, that presumes that someone would actually purchase the
unaltered “collectable” at a certain appraised value, or that the piece is a
high quality antique. But, neither is
always the case. Even if a professional
deems a furniture piece to be of high value, there is no guarantee that someone
will buy it. Using my Mersman Harp Table
as an example, I found seven exact unaltered copies of this table with a quick
search on eBay, Etsy and Chairish, ranging in market price from $125-$500; and these
tables did not appear to be moving, having been listed for months, even though
Mersman pieces are considered high-end collectible furniture. I don’t think this is a unique example, and I
wonder if transforming one of those tables with paint with a tasteful design would
give it a greater chance of being sold?
As for true
antiques, which are defined by the U.S. Custom Service (for purposes of
importation) as something 100 years of age or older, value also is dependent on
condition. By the “Antiques Roadshow”
standard, your antique would need to be in perfect, almost original condition
to hold its value. That means it likely would
have been cloistered in a dark temperature-controlled room, away from UV light,
humidity and airflow that would warp it, or dull and deteriorate its finish; it
is not scratched or worn; and its joinery would be solid and not
weakened by decades of use. There are
probably not many furniture pieces that meet that strict criteria of a valuable
antique. Instead, old quality solid wood
pieces that might be saved and refreshed by reinforcement and painting are deteriorating
in drafty cold or sweltering attics, ending up on the side of the road, or heading
to the landfill.
That prompts
me to say a few words about sustainability.
Saving out-of-style unwanted furniture pieces by repainting and
restyling them means not only taking up less space in the landfill, but
minimizing the demand for newer, more cheaply built MDF or particle board
furniture--which is often more expensive than the restyled good stuff. Second
hand furniture is also incredibly accessible and reasonably cost now. Just go to Facebook Marketplace or online
yard sale sites, Offer Up, LetGo, just to name a few, and you can find great
solid furniture for a fraction of the original acquisition cost. You also can find gems that have already been
restyled by a furniture artisan at consignment shops or vintage markets. [Check out my article on sources for pre-owned and vintage furniture]. If you want a real deal, though, you often just
need to drive around your neighborhood the day before trash pick-up, and find
perfectly good (or minorly damaged) furniture on the side of the road that you
can paint yourself.
Is Furniture Painting
a Fad that Will Soon Pass?
You’ve heard of the world’s oldest
profession? No…not that one. I’m talking about furniture painters. They say that painted furnishings can be
found in the earliest civilizations, such as decoratively gilded furnishings in
the life—and afterlife—of Ancient Egyptians.
In Ancient Greece and Rome the furnishings of the wealthy were often adorned
in ivory, tortoise
shell, glass, inlay, metal fittings, bronze, copper, silver and gold leaf. Centuries later,
after Marco Polo travelled the Silk Road, Europeans of the Renaissance began creating
imitations of Chinese lacquered furnishings.[i]
But, most relevant to this is discussion is the
history of painted furniture in American homes throughout the last four
centuries. While I won’t recount every
period of American history in detail (because that would make this article a
book, and probably bore you to tears), I will say that there is ample evidence
that as early the turn of the 18th century, painted furniture, often
with European floral and botanical designs, appeared in New England homes.[ii] In fact, in 2014, Skinner Auctions wrote of a
circa 1750 New Hampshire blue-painted pine corner cupboard which had passed
many hands over the centuries and was valued at between $20K-$30K on the
auction block.[iii] Cynthia W.V. Schaffner and
Susan Klein, authors of “American Painted Furniture” refer to the 1790s to the
1880s, as “the heyday of this spectacular art form.”[iv] The civil war-era until the 1920s saw
furniture of the Renaissance Revival, Neo-Greek, Arts & Crafts and Art
Nouveau styles, all of which occasionally combined dark woods (and sometimes
oak) with some ornamentation, including paint, gilding, ebonizing, lacquer or
inlay of abalone shells.[v]
As we get
closer to times more familiar to us from the 1920s through the 1970s, from
which some furniture pieces still exist, we see everything from Art Deco to
Mid-Century Modern to Scandinavian (not of the IKEA-type), with painted
elements. I remember growing up with my
white painted little girl French Provincial bedroom set in the 1970s; but, I
will admit to a bit of dearth of painted furnishings in the 1980’s when uniform
light wood living room suites, or modern furniture incorporating metal came on
the scene--only to be replaced by the Shabby Chic and Farmhouse painted
furniture trends from 1990 until today—likely as a huge backlash against the
lack of style of the decade just before!
All kidding aside, the point of this recounting
is to say—no—painted furniture is not a fad.
It won’t go out of style. It just
might not remain YOUR style, years after you’ve painted it. So, what does one do in that case? Well, if you want to keep the furniture
piece, just remove the paint. Especially
if you are using chalk or mineral-based paints, stripping furniture to bare
wood is an easy (albeit potentially time consuming) task. Assuming there is no damage to the wood that
was covered by the paint in the first place, these pieces can be restored to
all their bare-wood glory to be sealed, stained or pickled…or whatever you
fancy.
What about examples of when you really should not paint?
So, that
does bring me to my final point about when you should give second
thought to painting a wood furniture piece.
There are quite a few exotic wood species or types that are so
unique and beautiful, that it very well might be a shame to cover them. One such type is “burled wood,” the uniquely
patterned, swirled grain found in tree “burls” which are deformed out growths
found on certain trees. Burls can be rare and difficult to harvest without damaging the tree. When they are harvested, the burls are
cut in such a way as to preserve this unique pattern in the form of a veneer or
inlay. Other exotic woods from Africa or
the Amazon have stunning patterns that you just won’t find in the typical wood
used to make furniture in North America.
One compromise, if you really wish to paint such a piece, is to just
paint the frame, but let large surfaces, like the drawers, remain in the original
exotic wood.
In sum,
the beauty, value and utility of furniture—painted or not—is truly a subjective
measure. And, if you own a furniture
piece, it is yours to do with as you please. Paint it or don’t—with no guilt or
trepidation. I hope this
article will make you feel more confident in whatever path you choose.
Enjoy!
Enjoy!
[ii] Lipinski, Ed, “Paint
Early American Furniture With Care”, New York Times, February 16, 1997
[iii] Skinner,
Inc. Blog, American Painted Furniture: A Journey
from 1750 to 2014, Posted
on July 22, 2014
[iv] Schaffner, Cynthia W.V. and
Klein, Susan “American Painted Furniture”, December 16, 1977
[v] Antique Trader, “A Primer on Furniture Styles”, November 20, 2018
