If you’re thinking about refreshing your dining area, how about painting a dining table white? White is a classic color that will add a stylish touch as well as brighten up your space! Not to mention, white painted furniture works with almost any interior design style. Whether you’re going for a farmhouse or modern look, a white dining table will complement it perfectly.
So let’s get ready to give your old dining table a fresh look by painting it white! In this post, you’re going to learn how to do a successful paint job and get yourself a beautiful white dining table for your home.
Your old rustic dining table could use a little update, and painting it might be the perfect fix! A coat of white paint can turn your rustic dining set into a charming farmhouse style piece. This budget friendly DIY project will give your dining area a fresh new look without having to spend a lot!
But why white paint? White adds brightness and freshness to any space, making it feel more inviting and spacious. Plus, it’s a versatile color that pairs well with any decor style. So it works very well for a dining piece that you can easily dress up or down depending on the occasion.
So let’s dive in and see how this dining table set went from rustic to farmhouse with some white chalk paint and dark wood stain. We’ll go through the step by step process to create a beautiful white painted furniture look.
Supplies Used for Painting a Dining Table White
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Prepare Dining Table for Painting
A dining table most likely sees a lot of daily use – from dried food to oils and spills, so it’s important to clean it thoroughly before painting. Wipe the table clean by spraying a degreaser like Krud Kutter onto the surface and wiping it off with a rag. Our post on how to clean furniture before painting will guide you through this process in detail.
There may also be large scratches and dings, so you’ll want to fill them in with wood filler. Allow the wood filler to dry completely and then sand it down until it’s smooth. Here are the best wood fillers you can use for your projects!
Then give the entire surface a good scuff sanding with fine grit sandpaper to create a rough surface for the primer and paint to adhere to.
Prepare Dining Table Top
Now let’s focus on the top of the dining table. We sanded the surface with the Dewalt orbital sander, starting with 150 grit sanding discs and then we switched to finer 220 grit sanding discs for a smoother finish. Make sure to clean up all dust from sanding with a vacuum and a tack cloth afterward for a clean table to work on.
Before moving on to staining the top, apply a pre stain wood conditioner. This will help the stain to absorb evenly and prevent any blotching or streaks on the surface. Simply wipe it onto the table with a clean cloth and let it sit for 5-15 minutes before wiping off any excess.
Stain Dining Table Top
With the dining table top pre-conditioned for stain, it’s time to add some color. For that farmhouse look, use dark walnut wood stain to give a beautiful contrast against the rest of the table that will be painted white. You can check out my list of the best wood stains for refinishing furniture and explore what type of wood stain is best suited for different pieces of furniture.
Apply the stain on the top with a rag or a brush, while following the natural wood grain. Do this so that the stain is even and there are no streaks left behind. Allow the stain to sit for some time before wiping off any excess with a clean rag. For more tips and tricks, check out how to stain wood furniture here.
You can repeat the same process and apply another coat if you want a darker finish. The final coat should dry for at least 48 hours. During this time, get the rags you used for staining and lay them flat outside to dry. Oil based stains can cause fires if not disposed of properly, so make sure to dry them out completely before doing so.
Seal the dry stained top with oil based Minwax Polyurethane to lock in the stain and protect it from daily use. Apply at least 3 coats for maximum protection and durability.
Prepare Rest of Dining Table
Now that the top of your dining table is taken care of, it’s time to prepare the rest of it for painting! This includes the bottom and the chairs. Tape off the stained table top and the bench top with pre taped plastic and painters tape to protect them from unnecessary paint.
And to help the white paint adhere better, prime the rest of the dining table with 2 coats of BIN Shellac Primer. This will not only create a smooth surface for the paint to go on, but it will also prevent any tannin bleed from the wood.
Painting a Dining Table White
We’ve come to the main event – painting the dining table white! You can use any white furniture paint, but Sherwin Williams Emerald Urethane Trim Enamel paint is a great choice for its durability and self leveling quality. It’s also actually one of the best enamel paint for furniture options!
You can also make your own chalk paint – get Behr Latex Paint in Pure White and follow our homemade chalk paint recipe where we mix it with calcium carbonate powder. While it’s a DIY paint, the quality is just as good as store bought chalk paint. Plus, it’s more cost effective!
Once you have your chosen paint ready, load it into an HVLP paint sprayer like the Vonforn sprayer. But you’ll want to thin thick paints like chalk paint, so here’s how to thin paint for a sprayer to guide you with this step.
Spray 2-3 coats of white paint on the dining table, making sure to overlap your spray pattern slightly and keep the sprayer at a consistent distance from the surface for an even coat. Allow each coat to dry completely before applying the next one!
Sealing White Painted Dining Table
Do a bit of distressing on your white painted piece to give it some more charm. Lightly sand away at the edges and corners of your dining table with 220 grit sandpaper, and you’ll see some wood peeking through. You can also choose to leave it without any distressing for a more modern look.
After allowing the white paint to dry completely for at least 24 hours, seal your white painted dining table with a topcoat. If using mineral, chalk, or acrylic paint, go for waterbased polyurethane. Spray on 3 coats of topcoat and let each one dry completely before applying the next coat then let the last coat dry for at least 24 hours.
Here’s our sealing painted furniture post to learn more about the different types of sealants that you can use and how to choose the right one for your project.
With the topcoat dry, carefully remove the tape and plastic covering on the stained table top and bench. And just like that, your dining table transformation is complete!
More Before And After Makeovers
Click any of these “before” photos below to view the “after” of that makeover.
More Painting Furniture makeovers
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