When you have a beautiful piece of furniture or a surface you want to paint, it can be time-consuming to figure out which tools to use or how best to apply the primer, paint, or sealer. That’s why Amy Howard At Home has spent years developing tools that give even the newest DIYers the ability to rescue furniture they love.

In this week’s Finish Friday, Amy and her husband Gene show some of their favorite tools for painting furniture — and share some great tips about when to use them.

Top 5 Tools for Your Furniture Painting Projects

1. Microfiber brushes. When you’re needing to apply a very steady, consistent coat of paint, Amy recommends microfiber brushes. Using One Step Paint makes it easy to finish projects quickly and without priming or sealing — but you’ll need the right brush. So make sure you use a microfiber brush like our 1.5” Nylon Tapered Brush to lay down the first coat of One Step Paint.
2. Glazing brushes. Using our Glazed Over product, you can pull off a striated, brushed look on cabinets or other furniture. Natural bristle brushes that are rounded allow for great glazing coverage while also leaving room for finishes that show character. The long handle on our 2” Round Tapered Brush allows for a lighter hand and the hog hair bristles make for easy cleaning.
3. Wax brushes. Speaking of hog hair, our round hog hair brush is perfect for use with our Light Antique Wax. With the right application, you can buff and shine your piece to perfection — without overloading it with oily coatings that never seem to dry. The Amy Howard At Home 1.5” chip brushes are also great for applying Dark Wax.
4. Chip brushes for milk paint. The Amy Howard At Home chip brushes, with all natural bristles, are twice the thickness of an average chip brush. These are perfect for the Toscana Milk Paint, as the thicker bristles hold the water-based paint beautifully. In the video, Amy reminds us to not use synthetic brushes for milk paint; mixing synthetic brushes with natural paint won’t give you the results you want! Instead, natural bristle brushes lay milk paint on a lot smoother, and they’re also great for our Legno Gesso.
5. Paint Sprayer. A paint sprayer is great and it can definitely make your project go faster — but, as Gene reminds us in the video, you will use a little bit more paint than you would by hand. When mixing paint for the paint sprayer, also make sure you have paint filter cones. This will remove any leftover clumps. Amy and Gene show you how to prepare the paint for your sprayer, as well as how to use it.

The Amy Howard At Home Handheld Paint Sprayer has a different gauge than other sprayers on the market, designed to allow you to spray thicker, oil-based paints or water-based, thinner paints. The entire paint sprayer comes in a set for one price and it’s easy to use for beginners who may otherwise feel hesitant to use this useful tool.

Other Tools to Add to Your DIY Cabinet

In this week’s video, Amy also covers a few other tools that are great to have in your DIY cabinet. These include:

• An artist’s brush for gilding or striping furniture
• Sponge brushes
• Metal spatulas
• Paint scrapers
• Microfiber Cloths

Of course, there are many more tools to add to your arsenal if you love refinishing and reviving old pieces. Amy and Gene have been furniture finishers for 30+ years and the products and tools they shared in this video are the results of all their experience and passion for rescuing and restoring. They know that having the right tools and knowing how to use them will make all the difference in your final project. In this video, Amy also announces the winner of the paint sprayer giveaway, so be sure to check that out!

Of course, Amy is always showing us how to use the Amy Howard At Home tools and paints each Friday at noon CST, so make sure to tune in live on Facebook. Amy will even answer your questions!