Since learning that it is possible to paint the upholstery I’ve had it in my head that I was going to find a chair and do it. There are different ways to paint fabric including actual fabric spray paint or Tulip fabric paint. I chose to use a latex paint/water/fabric medium mixture seen on Hyphenated Interiors and various other blogs.  I scored a chair for $10 at Goodwill that was perfectly suited to be painted.  In photos it doesn’t look too bad, even the color isn’t hideous, but I needed to match the pillows in my living room.  There were some marks on the seat that only paint would have covered so I promise I didn’t ruin a good chair!

I knew, because I’m lazy and hate doing a ton of coats, that I would need to pick a chair that was light in color. In total I did 2 full coats and went back to cover a few missed spots I noticed after the second coat dried. It took longer than I expected and was more effort too. Luckily I chose a chair with less fabric to paint.

After one coat it was still pretty soft once I sanded the paint, but the coverage wasn’t there yet.

The material is a velour and, after painting, feels and looks more like a microsuede. The sheen the original fabric had was lost during painting which adds to that microsuede look. It isn’t nearly as soft as the original fabric but I wouldn’t describe it as rough or crunchy either.  Also, to take care of the scratches I rubbed a walnut over them, then washed the whole chair with Murphy’s Oil Soap, which made the wood look almost new.

I painted in all of the nooks and crannies but one and this should give you an idea of the texture difference.

My intention for this chair was to fill a corner in my front living room, a spot that wouldn’t often see an actual visitor. I figured that, if nothing else, the chair would look nice there. To tie the chair in more with my “mid century modern” decor I picked up an “as-is” lamp that I’ve been eying from Ikea for half off! I went there thinking of buying it full price, I just got lucky that day!

The total cost of the chair after buying 2 bottles of fabric medium (1.99 each at Michaels) and a quart of latex paint ($13.00 Glidden brand from Home Depot) was $28.00.  The materials cost more than the chair itself!  Had I not been trying to match the look of my couch pillows and had used paint already laying around the cost would have only been $14.00.