How to Paint Upholstery!

Hello there DIY enthusiasts! Heather from Thicketworks here to show you how to paint upholstery, the easy way!

Like you, I’ve seen all these great examples of people painting upholstered pieces with Chalk Type Paint, and have been eager to try it myself. With Heirloom Traditions FAB! it’s possible to create a paint-ready surface on just about any fabric. It prevents the paint from cracking, and opens up a whole new arena for expressing our love of DIY decor projects!

Don’t know about you, but I avoid sewing if I can help it. This project gave me all the satisfaction of re-covering my seat cushion without having to tear the existing one apart, make a pattern from it, and get all that welting in a tangle!

This post is sponsored by the creative folks over at Heirloom Traditions.

I love my little outdoor chairs, but let’s face it: after 10+ years the seat cushions have become not just dated, but defaced…

Oops…tell-tale water stains:

I took a look at the commercially available replacement cushions. Wow – let’s just say I’m not ready to make that kind of investment…However, with a short list of supplies, I think we can work some update-magic.

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To perform this operation, you’ll need the following:

• One lucky seat cushion
• Heirloom Traditions Fab! Painted Fabric Primer & Sealer
• Heirloom Traditions Chalk Type Paint in Espresso
• Heirloom Traditions Chalk Type Paint in Mocha
• A medium sized paintbrush
• A fine tipped artist paint brush
• A stencil brush
• A stencil
• Low tack tape

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Now, on with the experiment!

1) The first step is to coat the fabric with a thorough layer of FAB! Super easy to do – just brush it on and spread it evenly:

2) Once the FAB! Has dried, brush on a coat of Heirloom Traditions Chalk Type Paint in Espresso. I really like the richness of this color:

One coat is all it took – it dried in about an hour on a warm autumn day.

3) Grab your favorite stencil and lightly tape it where you want to create your focal motif. (I designed and cut mine using my Sizzix eclips electronic cutter and Grafix Clear Craft Plastic).

4) Using a contrasting paint color, and an almost dry brush, pounce the paint through the stencil. Heirloom Traditions Chalk Type Paint in Mocha created just the understated look I was going for:

5) If you like the look of contrasting welting, either tape off the surrounding surface, then paint the welting, OR, be brave and free-hand it, using a fine tipped artist brush. I tried both methods, and both worked great. Just don’t have that 4th cup of coffee if you want to keep a steady hand!

Again, just one coat of the Mocha was sufficient to cover the darker color – there is a generous amount of pigment in these paints!

6) Once the paint has dried, just go over the entire surface with a top-coat of FAB! To seal and protect your ‘new’ cushion.

The result is really striking, and has the feel of flexible vinyl. Such an improvement over the stained and dated version!

Now, if you decide to do this for outdoor cushions, it’s important to keep them out of the rain (but you do that anyway, right?)

Not only did I avoid the expense of buying new cushions – these are one-of-a-kind, and just the style I wanted!

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*Full Disclosure: Heirloom Traditions supplied their products to be used in this project, and they sponsored this post – however, I supplied the elbow grease, furniture, design concept, and opinions! All of which reflect my own point of view, regardless of affiliation… 

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For more information on Heirloom Traditions Products, please visit www.heirloomtraditionspaint.com

Thanks for joining me for this fun fabric painting project…Try it out – it’s so satisfying to use what you have, and make it fabulous!

Any time you’re feeling crafty, stop by Thicketworks to say ‘Hi’, and delve into more creative mayhem techniques! You’re always welcome there…

Take Care,

Heather