The Painted Recliner

This tired red microfiber recliner was orphaned to me. At first, I didn’t know what I would do with it, aside from donation or the curb, but then I remembered seeing something online about painting upholstery. I did some research and found several people who have tried it with success. So that’s what I did!

Isn’t she a beaut? I was over the red color and wanted to do something light and fresh. I settled on a pale lavender. I used a flat latex interior paint, fabric medium and water. The mixing ratio was 1:1:2. It’s very runny, so cover the surrounding area with something, if you don’t want paint on the floor. For this project I used about a quart of paint and almost four bottles (32oz.) of fabric medium. I used a regular small paint brush and 220 grit sandpaper. Yes, you need to lightly sand your fabric after each coat of paint has dried completely. It sounds really strange, but it works. The sanding keeps the fabric feeling soft and flexible.

Just give the chair a quick vacuum and once your paint mixture is blended well, you can start painting!

Here are the first, second and third coats. I will admit, after the third coat I nearly called it quits. I didn’t think it was ever going to start covering that red microfiber.

Since I had already told several people that I was going to paint this upholstered recliner, I had to finish it. Sometimes peer pressure and judgement are awesome motivators! The fourth, fifth and sixth/seventh coats were starting to show some promise. You can see in the third picture below, parts of the chair had six coats and parts of it had seven. I got excited and forgot to take a picture before starting the seventh coat, you understand.

By now the arthritis in my hands was inflamed and I was experiencing some mild cramping in my legs and hips, but the end was too close to stop now! The eighth coat would be the final coat. After the final coat, I used a hot blow dryer on low to heat set the entire recliner. Then I used a clear cream wax over the entire chair and buffed it out. The cream wax made it feel even smoother and softer. It also gave it a soft sheen.

Now, the chair no longer looks or feels like microfiber. If you were to only use three or four coats of paint, it would feel similar to outdoor cushions. But because I had to use eight coats for coverage, it feels like some type of pleather. It’s smooth, cool and soft to the touch. It’s flexible and very comfortable. I really am pleasantly surprised with the results!