Top coat for painted furniture

SadieO
SadieO Posts: 462 Forumite
Part of the Furniture 100 Posts Name Dropper
I've got a table and chairs plus a desk that I want to paint. They are currently varnished wood. (I know I'll need to get the glossy varnish off first). Is there such a thing as a top coat to make the surfaces more hard-wearing once I've painted them (forgive me, I'm basing this on my experience painting my fingernails, which is more extensive than my experience painting furniture!) 
I have some extra tough interior varnish from furniture clinic that I got for something else - could this be used over paint or is it just for use over wood stain? And/or is furniture paint hard-wearing enough on is own to withstand minor scuffs etc if used on a table top? I was thinking of using Dulux Satinwood Metal and Wood paint, if that is any good? Thanks!

Comments

  • Mutton_Geoff
    Mutton_Geoff Posts: 3,999 Forumite
    Part of the Furniture 1,000 Posts Name Dropper Photogenic
    SadieO said:
    I've got a table and chairs plus a desk that I want to paint. They are currently varnished wood. (I know I'll need to get the glossy varnish off first). Is there such a thing as a top coat to make the surfaces more hard-wearing once I've painted them (forgive me, I'm basing this on my experience painting my fingernails, which is more extensive than my experience painting furniture!) 
    I have some extra tough interior varnish from furniture clinic that I got for something else - could this be used over paint or is it just for use over wood stain? And/or is furniture paint hard-wearing enough on is own to withstand minor scuffs etc if used on a table top? I was thinking of using Dulux Satinwood Metal and Wood paint, if that is any good? Thanks!
    You don't need to strip the old varnish, just key it (light sanding).
     
    Have a look at Dulux Diamond Satinwood. I repainted varnished wood kitchen doors with it with good hard wearing results.

    https://www.duluxdecoratorcentre.co.uk/products/paint/dulux-trade-diamond-satinwood
    Signature on holiday for two weeks
  • ashe
    ashe Posts: 1,574 Forumite
    Part of the Furniture 1,000 Posts Name Dropper Photogenic
    edited 2 February 2023 at 4:59PM
    We just painted our balustrade and spindles

    as said above sand to give a keying surface 

    I would then perossnlly prime it with some Zinsser

    Then paint couple of coats with your chosen paint 

    we then used this and it's given it a great coating:

    Littlefair's Water Based Extra... https://www.amazon.co.uk/dp/B072FBJQ11?ref=ppx_pop_mob_ap_share

    at first i used a ronseal product and it was awful, sanded it back again and used this, loads better 



  • You can use varnish to protect a painted finish. I have done this with some shelving I made for a bathroom. Painted white and then just used interior grade varnish as you suggest. Still looks good six months on, and wipe clean.
  • SadieO
    SadieO Posts: 462 Forumite
    Part of the Furniture 100 Posts Name Dropper
    ashe said:
    We just painted our balustrade and spindles

    as said above sand to give a keying surface 

    I would then perossnlly prime it with some Zinsser

    Then paint couple of coats with your chosen paint 

    we then used this and it's given it a great coating:

    Littlefair's Water Based Extra... https://www.amazon.co.uk/dp/B072FBJQ11?ref=ppx_pop_mob_ap_share

    at first i used a ronseal product and it was awful, sanded it back again and used this, loads better 



    Looks great! We've got a solid bannister at the moment that is also on my to-do list. I'm changing it to one with spindles to make the hall/landing feel more open as it's really blocky. I was thinking of doing it black, it looks so stylish! 
  • ashe
    ashe Posts: 1,574 Forumite
    Part of the Furniture 1,000 Posts Name Dropper Photogenic
    SadieO said:
    ashe said:
    We just painted our balustrade and spindles

    as said above sand to give a keying surface 

    I would then perossnlly prime it with some Zinsser

    Then paint couple of coats with your chosen paint 

    we then used this and it's given it a great coating:

    Littlefair's Water Based Extra... https://www.amazon.co.uk/dp/B072FBJQ11?ref=ppx_pop_mob_ap_share

    at first i used a ronseal product and it was awful, sanded it back again and used this, loads better 



    Looks great! We've got a solid bannister at the moment that is also on my to-do list. I'm changing it to one with spindles to make the hall/landing feel more open as it's really blocky. I was thinking of doing it black, it looks so stylish! 
    It looked awful before as it was a red stain but probably cheaply applied and it marked really easily, so am glad it's come out well!
Meet your Ambassadors

🚀 Getting Started

Hi new member!

Our Getting Started Guide will help you get the most out of the Forum

Categories

  • All Categories
  • 350K Banking & Borrowing
  • 252.7K Reduce Debt & Boost Income
  • 453.1K Spending & Discounts
  • 243K Work, Benefits & Business
  • 619.9K Mortgages, Homes & Bills
  • 176.4K Life & Family
  • 255.9K Travel & Transport
  • 1.5M Hobbies & Leisure
  • 16.1K Discuss & Feedback
  • 15.1K Coronavirus Support Boards

Is this how you want to be seen?

We see you are using a default avatar. It takes only a few seconds to pick a picture.