Does people painting MCM furniture make you cringe?
Trust me I had my reasons to paint this one! For starters, the table top was covered in Formica that was a totally different color than the rest of it. I tried removing it but… let’s just say it needed to stay on. I’d also been looking at different ways to make my flips more than just repair, prep, paint, repeat and creating more unique designs with the help of painters tape. So, after looking around for some inspiration and finding some AMAZING Mid-Century Modern motifs, I knew I had my vision!
This table was painted using five different colors - Fresh Air, Antique Bronze, Blue Diamond, Largo Teal, and Southern Belle - all by Benjamin Moore. I wanted a mix of light and dark but for the colors to be in the same family. To do this, I chose my dark yellow, green, and indigo first. Then, staying in the same color column as the dark green I chose, for example, I moved one row of paint swatches higher and chose the lightest color on that strip. This insured that I’m stuck with the same hue of green, just a lighter version of it.
I also tried Benjamin Moore’s Pearl finish for the first time and was pleasantly surprised at its quality. This sheen is meant be comparable to a satin finish and is ideal for walls in high-traffic areas.
How to get crisp lines. Every time.
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Step 1:
Choose your colors and paint your surface completely with the base color, or the color you intend to preserve with tape/decals, first. Paint as many coats as you need until you are absolutely sure you don’t need to touch up any areas. Once the surface is completely dry, map out your motif using painter’s tape or place your vinyl decals.
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Step 2:
Before painting your next color, paint over top all the painter’s tape or decal seams with the color you originally painted the surface. This activates the tape/decal, creating a seal, so your next color doesn’t bleed underneath it. THIS IS THE MOST IMPORTANT STEP!
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Step 3:
Once dry, paint your surface with your next color. Paint as many coats as you need until you are sure you don’t need to touch up any areas. While your final coat is still wet, slowly remove the painter’s tape/decal- make sure to hold the removed tape/decal as you go so it does not accidently touch the wet surface!
Linked Supplies
THIN painter’s tape - Highly recommend this stuff! Due to how intricate this motif was, I decided to try this thinner, automotive, painters tape and it saved me tons of time not having to cut thinner strips of my usual painter’s tape. I used the 3rd thinnest tape in the pack which seemed to be the best of both worlds- large enough that I didn’t accidentally go past it but was still thin enough to be super helpful.
Paint and Top Coat:
Paint Color - Fresh Air, Antique Bronze, Blue Diamond, Largo Teal, and Southern Belle - all by Benjamin Moore, 1 Quart each - Pearl finish
BB Frösch as always! Lately I’ve been buying the larger jugs of it but it you only need enough for 1 quart of paint you can find that here.
Top Coat - Varathane Clear Satin Water-Based Interior Polyurethane