How to Refinish Wood Furniture in 5 Easy Steps
Learn how to refinish wood furniture in 5 steps, and revitalize and refurbish any piece of wood furniture.
Do you have a piece of wood furniture that you would love to restore?
Maybe it has some chips and the stain is faded?
We have had these kitchen bar stools for almost 6 years now!
These barstools have survived two houses, and they clearly needed a little refinishing love.
This 5 step process is what I use for refinishing all wood furniture!
For more DIY project ideas in the kitchen be sure to check out:
- How to Make an Easy Essential Oil Diffuser
- The Best Way to Clean Copper
- How to Design a Built-In Cutting Board
- 10 Mistakes to Avoid When Renovating a Kitchen
- How to Add Lighting Under Kitchen Cabinets
How to Refinish Wood Furniture in 5 Easy Steps
You Will Need:
- Orbital hand sander
- 60 grit sanding disc
- 120 grit sanding disc
- Tack Cloth
- Minwax Espresso Stain
- Paintbrush <—- The Wooster Shortcut is my FAVORITE
- 220 fine-grit sandpaper sheets
How to Refinish Wood Furniture in 5 Easy Steps
1. Remove hardware from the wood.
How to Refinish Wood Furniture in 5 Easy Steps
2. Sand the wood.
Initially use a larger grit sandpaper like a 60 grit or a 100 grit. Lightly sand with a finer grit like 220 for a smooth unfinished surface.
How to Refinish Wood Furniture in 5 Easy Steps
3. Clean the wood.
Clean off the newly sanded wood with a brush and follow that up with a tack cloth.
How to Refinish Wood Furniture in 5 Easy Steps
4. Stain the wood.
On this wood I used Minwax Espresso Stain. Rub in with a dry cloth. Allow to dry according to the instructions on the can.
How to Refinish Wood Furniture in 5 Easy Steps
5. Finish the wood.
Apply 2-3 coats of polyurethane allowing to dry fully in between coats according to the instructions on the can. Sand in between with a 220 grit sandpaper and wipe down prior to reapplying the poly.
How to Refinish Wood Furniture in 5 Easy Steps
after
How to Refinish Wood Furniture in 5 Easy Steps
before and after
For more DIY project ideas in the kitchen be sure to check out:
- How to Make an Easy Essential Oil Diffuser
- The Best Way to Clean Copper
- How to Design a Built-In Cutting Board
- 10 Mistakes to Avoid When Renovating a Kitchen
- How to Add Lighting Under Kitchen Cabinets
Pin any of the images below and shop this post
How to Refinish Wood Furniture in 5 Steps
Equipment
- Orbital Hand Sander
- Power Drill (Maybe)
Ingredients
- 60 grit sanding disc
- 100 grit sanding disc
- 1 tack cloth
- 1 paint brush
- 1 can stain
- 1 can polyurethane (satin finish)
- 1 sheet 220 grit sandpaper
Instructions
- 1. REMOVE HARDWARE FROM THE WOOD.
- 2. SAND THE WOOD.Initially use a larger grit sandpaper like a 60 grit or a 100 grit. Lightly sand with a finer grit like 220 for a smooth unfinished surface.
- 3. CLEAN THE WOOD.Clean off the newly sanded wood with a brush and follow that up with a tack cloth.
- 4. STAIN THE WOOD.Rub in with a dry cloth. Allow to dry according to the instructions on the can.
- 5. FINISH THE WOOD.Apply 2-3 coats of polyurethane allowing to dry fully in between coats according to the instructions on the can. Sand in between with a 220 grit sandpaper and wipe down prior to reapplying the poly.
This is just the post I was looking for! I recently had my cabinets updated by a cabinet refinisher. I was so impressed with how the cabinets turned out that I’ve been looking for other wood items around the house that can be refinished. I picked up a stunning coffee table at the thrift store that I plan on refinishing using your steps! I’m hoping it turns out as good as yours!
Awww that’s amazing!! I would love to hear how it went!!