Paint Stripes On Furniture In 30 Minutes Or Less

How To Customize Furniture With Stripes.

When you paint stripes on furniture it takes the piece to a whole new level. Stripes on walls, furniture, décor, you name it…..makes a statement. Find something around your house that needs perking up. All you need is painters tape, a small amount of paint, and a little bit of time. I’m going to walk you through the process.

I ordered this bookcase from Target online and crossed my fingers that it wood look just like the photo. I was very happy when I opened the box and got a look at the finish. It did look like the photo and the rustic finish is so pretty.

But you guys know me. I wanted to customize the bookcase in some way. White stripes was the answer.

I put the bookcase together except for the back. In the photo above I just have the back leaning against the case. Believe me, it’s much easier to paint those pretty stripes before the back goes on the bookcase.

I first taped off each side of the back because I didn’t want the stripes to butt up against the sides of the bookcase. I measured the distance between the two pieces of tape and decided I could get four stripes on the back if they were approximately 2 1/4 inches wide. This made them a bit over 3 1/2 inches apart.

As you guys can see I did my normal thing and didn’t worry about exact measurements. The only thing I knew for sure was that the stripes had to be nice and straight. And I accomplished that. No one wants stripes that are 2 inches wide at the top and 3 inches wide at the bottom….not that that would ever happen to me. Listen to the voice of experience…..measure and re-measure those stripes.

The photo above shows how the back looked when I finished taping for the stripes. The way the tape looks you might think I would have narrow and wide stripes with 7 stripes total. No, I only painted the wide spaces so there were four stripes.

The paint for the project is Delta Ceramcoat and the color is White. The paint is smooth and  creamy and perfect for painting stripes.

I used a wide craft brush to paint the stripes. The painting took no time at all, maybe 10 minutes.

The finish on the bookcase was just a bit resistant to the paint. I painted over a few of the areas a couple of times trying to get a solid stripe look before I noticed how much I liked bits of the rustic finish showing through.

I removed the painters tape immediately after I finished painting the stripes. Little bits of paint may come up with the painters tape if you wait for the paint to dry. You don’t want that. See how nice and crisp those paint lines are.

In the photo above you can see the areas I didn’t cover completely with paint. Gives the white stripes a perfectly imperfect look. Very fitting for the rustic bookcase.

The process of taping off the stripes and painting the stripes took less than 30 minutes. I waited a couple of hours for the paint to dry completely then screwed the back to the bookcase.

Time to put the bookcase in place and style it up. It fits perfectly below the window in our guest bedroom. You always need a reading lamp in the bedroom and the bookcase is just the right height. The white stripes are nice and straight and the piece turned out exactly like I envisioned. Not always the case.

The guest bedroom is decorated in navy blue with touches of red. The colors give the room a nautical feel and I decided to play that up by adding seashells and beachy looking things to the bookcase. Come Winter time I’ll decorate it a bit differently.

Those stripes sure dress up the bookcase and make it one of a kind. I bought the bookcase with plans to put it in the orange and turquoise bedroom but the rustic finish didn’t go with the vibe in that bedroom.

I always include magazines, plants, and candles somewhere in our guest bedroom. They make the room warm and inviting. Next I go through my junk treasures to find fun items to fill the empty spaces.

If you need more stripe inspiration check out this red and white chest of drawers I painted a few years ago…..Pure Red Hi-Gloss Paint and White Stripe Chest

I have to admit to patting myself on the back and doing the happy dance. Are you ready to paint some stripes? Find something that needs a little lift, grab the painters tape, and Delta Ceramcoat at Target and go to work. You can paint wood, terra cotta, plaster, and paper mache with the paint and it’s water based so clean up is easy.

This is a sponsored post written by me on behalf of Plaid. All opinions are entirely my own. This post contains affiliate links.

As always thanks for being here and have a great day, Kathy

Kathy Owen

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Author: Kathy Owen
Kathy Owen is the founder of the home decor blog Petticoat Junktion where she shares tutorials on painting furniture and upcycling thrifty finds into unique home décor. Her DIY projects have been featured on the Home Depot Blog, Plaid Crafts, Behr Designer Series, and in numerous magazines. Kathy’s newest website is HappyHomeDIY.com