Whitewashing can give furniture a clean vintage look.
Whitewashing is one way to give an old, outdated piece of furniture a new look. Usually found on wood and brick it is possible to apply this finish to iron. Jason Alex, a paint specialist at Home Depot, says "the process is exactly the same as with wood, but instead you would alter the materials to be metal specific". The variations in base materials will also alter the finished product, "with the whitewash technique on wood you are wanting to see a hint of the wood grain underneath the stain, know that with iron what you will see instead of the grain is the iron", says Alex. Does this Spark an idea?
Instructions
1. Lay drop cloth in a well ventilated work area. Remove all bed coverings from bed and move the bed onto the drop cloth.
2. Place the cotton mask and goggles on your face to limit your exposure to the metal sand. Lightly sand the surface to be painted with fine grit metal sand paper. This will open up the surface and give the stain something to grab onto. If you are sanding the surface to remove other paint beforehand a heavier metal sand paper will produce faster results. Working from the bottom to the top of the bed will limit the amount of metal sand you need to work through.
3. Use a clean, damp lint free rag to wipe the surface down and remove any metal dust particles. Allow the bed to dry completely before applying the stain.
4. Use a 1-inch paint brush to paint the bed with the whitewash stain, make sure to get in the cracks and crevasses. You may wish to wipe some the the stain off after a minute or two to give an added effect of age. If applying more than one coat of paint allow each coat to dry thoroughly before applying another.
5. Allow surface to dry for at least 48 hours before remaking the bed with linens.
Tags: metal sand, before applying, drop cloth, metal sand paper, sand paper, Whitewashing give, with whitewash
