Rustic Oak Paint: A new look for oak cupboards and doors

6 min reading time

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You are probably familiar with rustic oak furniture from inherited or bought houses. For the most part, these are made of wood, coated with oak veneer.
They are characterised by a dark grain - because "rustic" in this context means that they are stained particularly dark. Thanks to their good durability and high quality, you can still find many kitchens and doors in this style. However, nowadays it rarely inspires, as this furniture is often heavy and massive.
Cupboard walls in particular no longer fit in with modern furnishings - but this quality work is too good to throw away. What can you do instead? Grab paint and a brush and give it a facelift without much effort!

Preparing to paint your oak furniture
Inspiration: How to spice up rustic oak furniture
Instructions for painting rustic oak furniture
FAQ: Frequently asked questions about painting oak furniture

Preparing to paint your oak furniture

Oak furniture has special properties, but painting it is not much more complicated.
Start by cleaning your furniture as usual, as the surface must be free of dust and grease to ensure good adhesion. Use To Clean for this; you can also use this cleaning agent after painting with a clear conscience. Regardless of whether your piece of furniture is painted or unpainted, you should use our To Bond & Block - MissPompadour Primer on oak before applying the first coat of paint.
This applies if you want to paint in light or medium colour shades - because oak secretes tannins, regardless of the age of the wood. These are found in the colour when painting and are easily recognisable as yellowing, especially in white tones. However, if you are painting very dark colours, the primer is not as relevant.

Do I have to sand down Oak Rustic?

Sanding before painting is not necessary as long as the old varnish is intact. Above all, you must be careful not to destroy the thin veneer layer when sanding.

Inspiration: How to spice up rustic oak furniture

With one colour you can totally change your furniture. A coat of white paint gives this often heavy and clunky furniture a new, light look.
Even with a coat of chic black or dark blue, you won't recognise your furniture. With solid cabinet walls, you can remove some or even all of the doors to create more transparency and "open up" the piece of furniture.
Rustic oak furniture is particularly suitable for creating a shabby style. Their wood shows many projections, pilaster strips and ornaments. You can sand these out wonderfully or emphasise them with antique wax.
Remember: vintage style doesn't always have to be white: a soft purple, a light beige, a greyish green and many other colour shades are suitable to make your furniture an eye-catcher!

When it comes to painting, let yourself be inspired by our customers who have already taken the plunge.

MissPompadour Black with Slate

Noble

- A typical oak chest of drawers - our customer thought it was too old-fashioned. The new look makes it really stylish!

MissPompadour Green with Olive

Frissch

- New colour, new handles - now this chest of drawers fits in perfectly with the eclectic style.

MissPompadour Green with Forest

Romantic

- The colour in combination with wooden elements is definitely worth seeing!

MissPompadour Grey with Warmth

Transformation

- One sanding, one varnish: this is how the old chest of drawers becomes a piece of furniture in country house style.

MissPompadour Blue with Midnight

Lightened

- A little sanding, the right colour and the buffet looks much fresher.

Are you looking for more inspiration and instructions for wooden furniture? In our magazine, you can find out how to paint other wooden furniture too.
Also room doors and ceilings made of wood in a rustic oak style that you can't or don't want to simply remove. Easily modernise them with paint and a brush. You can find out how to update wooden ceilings in our guide to painting wooden ceilings.

Painting oak furniture white

It is important to start with a primer, especially for light colour shades. Our To Bond & Block creates the perfect base for a coat of white paint.
Apply the first coat of paint after the primer has dried. This takes about 8 hours, but also depends on the external conditions. Then allow the varnish to dry thoroughly.
Follow this with the second coat to achieve a great result. If another coat is necessary, which is particularly the case with light colours, simply paint over it again

Depending on how you want your surface to look in the end, paint with either MissPompadour Eggshell Varnish or MissPompadour Matt Varnish.
Eggshell Varnish gives this piece of furniture a light, subtle sheen, while Matt Varnish gives you a sophisticated, powdery matt finish.

Pro tip: Choose a very slightly tinted white. If you use a pure white, it can quickly look too clear and garish. In addition, pure white generally requires more coats due to fewer pigments.
White with Melting or White with Character are perfect as a tinted variant. Both have lots of pigments and therefore provide good coverage. This saves you too many coats of paint. Both colours are available in different colour qualities, each of which is ideal for painting oak.

Brightening oak wood

We are often asked whether it is possible to lighten oak wood afterwards, which is rather difficult. One option is to wax with white-wax-polish. However, as the substrate always plays a decisive role in the final result when working with wood wax, the surface may end up looking rather grey. Simply try out your favourite technique on an inconspicuous area. This will give you a better idea of the result.

Instructions for painting rustic oak furniture

Step 1: Cleaning

Clean your workpiece carefully to remove grease and dust. Our MissPompadour To Clean is ideal for this.

Step 2: Priming

Prime the wood with our To Bond & Block primer. As the stainblock needs around 8 hours to dry, simply leave your piece of furniture to rest overnight.

Step 3: Colour

Paint your piece with your chosen furniture paint, let the paint dry well, between 4 and 6 hours, and then paint for the second time

Step 4: Sanding

If you want to achieve a vintage look, sand out the edges and pilaster strips - slightly protruding design elements - at the end.

FAQ: Frequently Asked Questions about Painting Rustic Oak

Can I paint oak wood?

You can paint oak like any other wood. As oak tends to release tannic acid even after years, which could change its colour, prime light shades with To Bond & Block.
Open-pored, untreated oak wood is particularly easy to treat with varnish. If you notice that the wood fibres are standing up, you can simply sand in between.

Can I paint Rustic Oak white?

With the varnishesn from MissPompadour you can even paint dark oak wood opaque with white paint.

What colour do I use for Rustic Oak?

The varnishes Eggshell Varnish and Matt Varnish are excellent for painting oak. Note that the more pigmented the paint, the better it covers.

Can I paint oak rustic furniture?

Yes, any colour shade from the collection is suitable. For very light shades, especially white shades, you need to pre-paint with the Stainblock To Bond & Block.

How do I make oak lighter?

You cannot achieve a lighter wood colour with paint. However, if you want to preserve the wood structure, you can work with white wax.
Be sure to try it out first on an inconspicuous area! The result cannot be predicted, as the substrate plays a major role with wax.