Silver Paint Makeover - In Case You Are Tired Of Plain Old White

Is it just me, or is anyone else out there tired of seeing just plain old white furniture in designer magazines these days. Sometimes it seems like I am looking at the same photos this month as last month. Oh, look! Another page of something painted white! It can make a guy like me a little crazy.

I know that some of you ladies really love the white stuff and to each her own, but here is a way to add a little more bling and eye candy to a white themed room.

I started off this project by spraying the entire outside of the piece with silver spray paint. Don't be bashful and don't worry about even coverage. One of the hardest things I had to learn with faux finishes, is that imperfect, is sometimes perfect.

After the silver was applied I dusted on a white top coat until I was satisfied with the amount of silver I wanted showing through.

I then did some distressing with a sandpaper block to give it some character. When distressing something like this I pay close attention to where natural wear patterns would normally be. What I shoot for is a finished product that looks naturally aged from time and use.

After the distressing comes a soft white glaze over the top of everything. I vary the amount of glaze in spots so that the silver is popping out here and there. The more white glaze you use, the more gray your silver will become. By varying your amounts of glaze here and there, you can really get some color depth.

When I was done I wanted just a little more pop and bling, so I used a very dry brush with some silver gilding paint and applied it to the carvings, and around the edges of the doors.

What I ended up with was a cabinet finish that reacts differently, depending on the available light. Sometimes it looks white with strong streaks of gray and a little silver. Other times it appears white with very soft hues of blue, and silver highlights. It still fits well into a white themed room, but now it becomes a little more of a showstopper.


I think alot about "color dimension" when doing a faux finish. As a general rule of thumb, I don't feel that I don't get great dimension or depth in a faux finish until I have used at least 3 colors. In this case, it was 4.I used a silver base coat, white, a white glaze, and silver highlights.

One or two colors never is enough for me. I always want that extra " over the top" wow factor! Using a 3rd or 4th color will often get the job done.

Try something a little different on your next piece of white furniture and let me know how it goes.

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