Progress Made After 2 Days and 7 Hours of Work!
This update comes to me by way of my niece who already started this project. She was attempting to remove the paint with sandpaper without the use of electric tools which proved harder and more time consuming than she though. I will be using electric tools and starting the project on 8/19/2019, updating as I progress with the project if you would like to follow along. So without taking more of your time the following is needed.
Supplies Needed:
Sand Paper - start out 120 (removal) 220 (smoothing)
Screwdriver - flathead to pri off top decorative piece when sanding
Drill - to remove hardware
Protective mask when sanding and painting
Paint Thinner and Paint Brush - Any you choose but follow manufacturers directions (I chose the above because it is what I had laying around. Make sure you pick thinner that is safe for wood)
Side Note: I am using paint thinner to remove all of the paint because I am going to stain the wood after it has been sanded and you don't want to see any old paint on there.
Paint scraper - Smaller or more pointed to get in between cracks
Wire Brush - A must for getting between cracks
Steel Wool - for hard to remove paint
Step 1: Remove hardware and pieces that may be removable
The second picture above shows how I popped the piece off. It was coming unglued and only attached by dowels on each side. This will make it easier to strip paint and we will reattach later.
Step 2: Using the paintbrush apply thinner according to what the bottle recommends.
Step 3: On this particular bottle of paint stripper I am supposed to wait 30 minutes before scraping with your scrapper....so I waited 30 minutes and scraped. This is the time I used a wire brush to scrape out paint from the more detailed areas of the furniture (see below pics). You can also use steel wool for really caked on paint!
After 2 days of work I have completed 3 steps to my project and I am pleased with the results so far. Please check back soon for more updates and to see how the project looks when it is finished!