How I PAINTED my $100 Craigslist couches to look BRAND NEW!!! ⋆ Jeweled Interiors (2024)

WELCOME TO JEWELED INTERIORS! I am so glad you stopped in. I hope you enjoy your time here and at other ORC sites.

If we haven’t met yet, my name is Jewel and I have a passsion for making the world a prettier place, one room or party at a time. I am a firm believer that high-end looks can be acheived with a little ingenuity and creativity…no small fortune required. It’s a good thing too, because in August we just moved into our 12TH HOUSE! Believe it or not, our family of six only has 8.5 months left to make this rental house a home before we make our next big military move. That’s not a typo friends. 8.5 months.

I’ve been scouring craigslist for (well, a decade really…but specifically for the last 8 months) trying to find pieces that represent my eclectically chic style for this fabulously fun One Room Challenge. Boy have I hit the JACKPOT! Yep, it’s time to put a little “Jewel Polish” on a pair of curved vintage couches!

I am infamous for destroying sofas: three to be exact. Let’s just say that fabric paint, Ritz Dye, and wood stain didn’t work for me. THIS technique, however, is my go-to, no-fail, DIY magic show. There are other blog posts out there about painting fabric sofas, but this one is specifically designed for painting leather and leather-like pieces of furniture. It is important to note that this technique works best when your selected piece lacks nail head or button-tufted details. While it can still be done, your finished product may not look so convincingly brand-new.

Finally, I receive no money for this post. No ads, sponsorships, or affiliated links. I just really believe in what I’m about to tell you. With that, let the fun begin!

Supply list:

1. Leather or leather-like furniture
2. Drop cloths, rubber gloves, and ventilation mask
3. Large foam brushes (4-6 per sofa)
4. For leather in poor condition: Sherwin Williams Extreme Bond Primer (optionally, you can have it tinted)
5. Paint color of your choice intensified 150-200% (Your paint store will know what this means) but it compensates for adding Plaster of Paris
6. Plaster of Paris
7. Minwax Paste Finishing Wax (natural colored)
8. Old, soft, disposable rags
9. Toothpick

Once your furniture piece has been thoroughly “keyed” remember to wipe it down with a damp cloth and wait for it dry.

Also, tape off any areas that you don’t want painted (AKA-the legs).

Sure enough, this primer works like a champ! I can’t tell you how beautifully it smoothed over the rough patches. Now, did I prime every inch of leather? Absolutely not! I only reinforced the damaged and “high traffic areas.”

To “prime” the areas in good condition I simply adjusted my chalk paint recipe. Keep in mind that the more Plaster of Paris, the more adhesive the paint becomes.

LEATHER FURNITURE CHALK PAINT RECIPE

1/2 cup latex paint (I measure with disposable applesauce cups)

3 tablespoons Plater of Paris

In other words, roughly

2-2.5 Parts Latex Paint to 1 Part Plaster of Paris

add water as needed

Break up any Plaster of Paris clumps before combining and then mix the stuffin’s out the concoction. The last thing you want is clumps on your sofa. If it is feeling too thick or grainy then add water. The second and/or third coats can be a little runnier.

Chalk Paint Pointers

1. The recipe is more of a suggestion rather than a rule. If you want your paint concoction to function as a primer then keep it thick with Plaster of Paris. Subsequent coats go on a little smoother with a little less Plaster of Paris in the ratio.
2. Like painting wood furniture, you ideally want to paint the same direction with each stroke. You can see above where I broke this rule. It is noticeable.
3. While you could use a traditional bristle brush, I prefer a foam brush. This allows me to rub and smooth vs simply paint. As an added bonus, I get to throw those bad-boys away when I’m done. I hate to wash brushes.
4. The trick to fooling your guests into thinking you’ve purchased brand new sofas is to keep extra paint OUT of the seams, folds, and tufting. I recommend that you use a toothpick, or at very least your fingernail, to scrape the seams after each coat of primer or paint.
5. It is better to do two or three light coats than one super-heavy coat. I promise!
6. Lightly sand between coats with the finest sandpaper you can find.
7. The number of coats depends on the original color of the sofa, the color you are choosing to paint it, and whether or not you tinted your primer. This particular project took 2-3 coats after the primer. Each coat went pretty quickly…maybe 45 mins per sofa.
8. Like any paint project, remember to cover your bowl of paint in Saran Wrap between coats. I have had paint last up to at least a week that way.

If you do end-up with wax in your seams you can try this hair dryer trick. Put the dryer on medium or high heat. Using an old toothbrush and your finger nail try to brush and scrape the white areas.

While this does work, I am not certain that it is the best thing for your furniture. I would recommend attempting to wipe the wax out BEFORE it dries in the first place. Use this as a last resort.

I hope you enjoyed Week 3 of my One Room Challenge transformation. Feel free to “Pin” to your heart’s content by hovering over the image. Want more DIY tips to make your room “oh-so-polished” on “oh-so-little ca$h”? Feel free to follow me on Facebook, Pinterest, or Instagram. Did you miss last week’s post? Click here for the room game plan.

Huge thanks and high fives to Linda from Calling it Home! Each Spring and Fall she orchestrates this friendly one room design challenge. Don’t forget to head over to her page to check out the great ideas from other bloggers.