Refinishing Vintage Furniture

April 2023

Many people love the look of natural wood. When it comes to refinishing older furniture, they would prefer to restore a piece to its former, natural wood glory - not a bad choice. I, on the other hand, love the look of painted furniture, whether it be an enameled gloss finish such as the Modern Mint Green (Rust-Oleum Painters Touch Ultra Cover Gloss) nightstand I refinished, or a chalk paint finish, as in the Winchester Green (Kilz Complete Coat Satin) dresser I picked up from CraigsList already refinished (photos below). The question, then, is: when to paint and when not to paint?

Experts in the antique and vintage furniture fields are divided on this subject. The first and a key point pros make about painting an old piece is this: Miriam Silver Verga of Mimi & Hill echoes this sentiment: "When you paint an antique, you are deciding that its value is to you alone, because painting something vintage changes its long term price.”  "If it's a high-quality antique you want to resell later, painting diminishes the value," notes Modern Antiquarian founder Margaret Schwartz.

In addition to quality, you may also want to consider the materials used—are they rare or difficult to refinish? "I cringe when I see exotic woods like mahogany painted or bleached," says historian Hampton DeVille. Rachel Cannon agrees: "If it’s a thrifted item that is constructed of a common wood like oak or pine, with rudimentary joinery, you’re probably safe to paint it," she says. "However, if it’s made of exotic woods like cherry, mahogany, or satinwood, probably not.”

So it boils down to this: If it's a piece without much value on the secondhand market or one where the existing finish is in poor condition, a paint job may actually increase value. If you want a piece to hold its value, a restoration or refinish is a better investment.