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Home » How to Paint Damaged MDF Furniture

How to Paint Damaged MDF Furniture

By Kathy Owen

Paint MDF Furniture And Hide The Bubbles

You can paint MDF Furniture even if it has poofs and bubbles? The poofs, bubbles, and raised areas means it must have gotten wet at one time or another. Did you know you can make those bubbles disappear or hide them? The procedure is pretty simple. I can walk you through it step by step.

You should sand any bubbled areas, prime with a good primer, and paint with latex paint. Add a stencil design if needed to help mask the damaged areas. The complete process is shown in detail below.

how to paint mdf furniture

How To Paint MDF Furniture

You would never guess by looking at the top of this chest of drawers that it had a bunch of poofy spots where the fake wood (MDF) got wet. I made them disappear. I’ve always used stencils for decorative accents. Well, they can be used to cover-up furniture flaws too. But first we have to take care of the damaged areas.

damaged mdf furniture

This is the not-so-pretty before picture of the chest. I purchased this piece at My Favorite Junk Shop. The chest had something sitting on top if it and I didn’t notice the damage until we were loading it into the truck.

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The top of the chest is made of MDF. What that means is….it’s not real wood. Definition from Wikipedia….Medium-density fibreboard (MDF) is an engineered wood product made by breaking down hardwood or softwood residuals into wood fibres, often in a defibrator, combining it with wax and a resin binder, and forming panels by applying high temperature and pressure.[1] MDF is generally denser than plywood.

All I know is that f it gets wet it bubbles up like this chest did. I don’t normally buy mdf furniture, this was a slip-up on my part. So I went about finding a way to paint the chest so the bubbled up part didn’t show.

How to paint mdf furniture….

Step 1. Sanding

This step is a must and you don’t need any power tools, just a piece of sandpaper.

painting damaged mdf furniture

I decided to sand down the bubbled areas and try using a light coat of primer before painting it. I did the sanding by hand. I was afraid to get out the power sander and take off too much stuff.

The best thing to do is just sand the affected area and no more. I didn’t want to enlarge the areas fearing it would add to the poof when I brushed the primer on. Sand the bad areas until they are flush with the rest of the chest top.

prine mdf furniture

Step 2 Primer

Primer is great for what ails furniture. I have a great video on my favorite primer and how to use it here.

I applied a very light coat of Glidden Gripper primer in Grey. I was afraid to saturate the top too much because it might poof up again. I held my breath while waiting for the primer to dry. But……it looked good. No poofing from the primer. I even added a second light coat of primer.

how to paint mdf furniture

Step 3. Latex Paint

A lot of furniture painters rely on specialty furniture paints but you can get great results with latex paint and it’s cheaper.

After the primer was dry I put on a coat of the pink paint. I could still see some slightly raised bubbled areas. The bubbles were only noticeable from a certain angle when the light hit them just right. I probably could have sanded them a bit more than I did before using the primer. Too late now. I didn’t like those bubbles…..so on to trying to hide the mdf damage.

Step 4. Add A Stenciled Design

Stencils are inexpensive and can be used on any home decor including furniture.

Next up was a cute little circle dot stencil. I’ve discovered stenciling a design on furniture can cover up some big flaws. I selected the circle dot stencil because of the random pattern.

how to stencil damaged furniture

I taped my stencil in place and painted the design with a stencil brush. Remember the secret to stenciling is using a very dry brush. Dip that brush in your paint then wipe most of the paint off with a paper towel. (click the pink words for the in-depth stenciling tutorial)

how to paint mdf furniture

I went a little nuts and did a lot of overlayed circles. I thought it turned out pretty darn cute! You can’t even see those little furniture bubbles. But seriously. I probably could have used my sander and smoothed out all those bubbles then primed, but I didn’t. I was afraid it would be overkill. Maybe next time.

how to paint mdf furniture

This pink paint is a special mix by me. I had a little light pink paint in a can and I poured it into a can of darker pink and this is the color I came up with.

I also spray painted the hardware pulls white and replaced the top drawer knobs with some porcelain ones I had on hand. I think I got them at the Habitat Restore.

The little chest of drawers is stylish now. You would never know the top was damaged before. The chest of drawers would be perfect in a nursery. Make Mom and little girl smile.

You should really see my video on how to “faux distress” problem furniture like this piece. It’s a doozy….

How To Paint Problem Furniture

how to paint mdf furniture 2

What do you think? Even inexpensive furniture with damaged surfaces can be made beautiful. Do you have any poofy mdf furniture or a piece with major damages? Maybe you could try this technique.

Try this process for distressing mdf furniture…. How To Distress Fake Wood Furniture And MDF Furniture

Visit the Petticoat Junktion Amazon Page for a list of my favorite DIY paints, supplies, and tools.

Thanks for being here and have a great day, Kathy

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Kathy Owen, Petticoat Junktion
Kathy Owen

Kathy Owen is the creative guru, content creator, photographer, and worker bee behind the popular Home Décor DIY Blog Petticoat Junktion. She focuses on reinventing found treasures and decorating her home Get all the nitty gritty on Kathy here.

https://petticoatjunktion.com

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Comments

  1. Barbara Warner says

    July 3, 2018 at 7:50 pm

    Kathy,
    This retro dresser turned out beautifully! I love the pink and the “lacy” top. Your stencils turned out so well. Mine usually “bleed.” You get an A+ on this!

    • Kathy Owen says

      July 3, 2018 at 8:55 pm

      Thanks Barbara! Be sure your stencil brush is very dry. Dip your brush in the paint then wipe almost all of the paint off on a paper towel. The brush should be almost dry!

  2. Naomi S says

    July 3, 2018 at 6:51 pm

    It’s good to know you can actually work with that MDF stuff, even if it’s already bubbled up. Thanks for a great tutorial, Kathy.

    • Kathy Owen says

      July 3, 2018 at 8:58 pm

      Yes Naomi, a lot of damaged pieces can be made pretty.

  3. Nancy Carroll says

    July 3, 2018 at 9:20 am

    The chest is gorgeous. You did an excellent job of camouflaging the damage!

    • Kathy Owen says

      July 3, 2018 at 8:57 pm

      Thanks Nancy.

  4. Stormee says

    July 3, 2018 at 5:44 am

    If you sealed the top/all of it with several coats of indoor/outdoor varnish would that prevent any future bubbles?

    • Kathy Owen says

      July 3, 2018 at 5:46 am

      It probably would but there won’t be any future bubbles if it doesn’t get wet. Thanks for the comment Stormee!

  5. Raigen says

    September 18, 2015 at 8:35 am

    I just purchased a pretty white dresser for my daughters room. The top has some bubbles. It’s a nice dresser from Stanley furniture. I’m going to attempt to sand and color match the white top. Wish me luck!

  6. Christy @ Our Southern Home says

    November 18, 2013 at 7:09 pm

    Love your bag of tricks!!!

    • Kathy Owen says

      November 18, 2013 at 7:45 pm

      Thanks Christy!

  7. Dria says

    November 16, 2013 at 8:24 pm

    Wow what a difference!! Love the after it’s so pretty 🙂

  8. Therese @ Fresh Idea Studio says

    November 16, 2013 at 8:49 am

    I have painted MDF before and you’re right it’s a little different but so do-able Kathy! Thanks for sharing your tips!
    Cheers

  9. [email protected] says

    November 16, 2013 at 5:10 am

    I’ve stayed away from MDF until now. Thanks for these helpful tips!

  10. Cindy says

    November 15, 2013 at 4:09 pm

    Never would have known, you are so clever! Turned out beautifully! Thanks so much for sharing at AMAZE ME MONDAY!
    Blessings,
    Cindy

  11. Kelli @ Peerless Fence says

    November 15, 2013 at 9:25 am

    This is so lovely! I have never thought about putting overlayered stencils on top of a dresser before. It looks amazing and incredibly simple!

  12. Nancy @ Artsy Chicks Rule says

    November 15, 2013 at 8:17 am

    Love the pink! And the overlayed stencils are perfect….love that hide a little of the problem area. No more problem! 😉 Really, turned out fabulous, as usual!

    Pinning!
    Nancy

  13. Alli Cox says

    November 14, 2013 at 5:10 pm

    Love it… I’ve always been too afraid to buy a piece of MDF furniture.
    Looks awesome.
    What exactly does the gripper do vs. regular primer?

  14. laura j says

    November 14, 2013 at 3:09 pm

    what I’m wondering is, will the bubbles return when the new owner puts something on the top?

    • Kathy Owen says

      November 14, 2013 at 3:48 pm

      The bubbles shouldn’t return at all unless something wet sits on it for a lengthy period of time.

  15. Andrea says

    November 14, 2013 at 9:57 am

    That is good to know about the bubbled top. I think we’ve gotten rid of everything that might have an mdf top, because it feels like plastic laminate. But I love the way everything comes out sooooo different!
    And that pretty pink lamp on top!! I love that lamp!

    • Kathy Owen says

      November 14, 2013 at 10:30 am

      Hi Andrea, You asked about the lamp in the last post and I think I bought it at an antique/flea market shop a couple of years ago!

  16. Maggi says

    November 14, 2013 at 7:10 am

    Great job handling a challenge! I love that stencil and the way you used it. Where is it from?

    • Kathy Owen says

      November 14, 2013 at 10:30 am

      Hi Maggi, Its from Hobby Lobby. I love Hobby Lobby!

Hey Guys, I'm Kathy, I know you have some outdated home decor that needs a new look or a piece of furniture that needs painting. Do I have some ideas just for you! MORE

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