Painting Plastic Garden Furniture
8 min reading time
Is your plastic garden furniture past its prime and looking like wilted flowers? With varnishesn and outdoor paints that adhere well, you can conjure up a new look in no time. Painting plastic furniture is easy!
Table of contents
In this "How to" we focus on plastic garden furniture. For tips on how to paint wooden or metal garden furniture, see the tutorials Painting metal garden furniture and Painting and varnishing wooden garden furniture.
No, your plastic furniture deserves a second life. Whether you want to paint your table, deck chair or plastic garden bench, in just a few hours everything will look like new - and maybe even really classy.
Ideas for Painting Plastic Garden Furniture from the MissPompadour Painting Community
White, dark green or anthracite are the classic colours of plastic furniture for the garden. Somehow they almost always fit, but they often look... yes, exactly: boring!
You can paint plastic furniture just as you can paint wooden furniture - if you want, in many different colours. As Pippi Longstocking said: "I make the world widdewidde as I like it.... !"
Preparation: Choose the right colour for your plastic garden furniture
Transform Your Plastic Garden Furniture
Our paints work on most common plastics. You can even give garden furniture made from rattan-style plastic wickerwork a fresh new look.
Pro tip: You can also use our paints to perfectly match any wooden or metal parts of your garden furniture to the newly painted plastic pieces.
What effect do you want to achieve?
Matt colours are less suitable for painting plastic garden furniture.
- Matt effect: Matt colours have a naturally rougher surface, making them less robust and weather-resistant. They also have less adhesion compared to semi-gloss, glossy colours, or special outdoor paints. If you still want to achieve a matt effect, only use it on furniture that experiences less wear and tear and is protected from the weather.
- Silk matt/glossy effect: Silk matt colours and outdoor lacquers are the most hard-wearing and offer the highest level of protection. Our balcony & garden paint is ideal. It's UV and weather-resistant and particularly robust, ensuring it brings you joy for a long time! Easy Eggshell! is also suitable for outdoor use.
Painting plastic garden furniture the right way: Instructions from MissPompadour
Step 1: Cleaning
Clean your plastic furniture thoroughly before painting and remove all greasy residues completely. MissPompadour To Clean is perfect for this. Afterwards, simply wipe with water and allow the surface to dry thoroughly.
Step 2: Sanding – yes or no
You do not need to sand down a plastic garden bench or table before painting it. You should only do this if old paint is flaking off. You can lightly roughen very smooth plastic with fine-grit sandpaper or a sanding pad. This will help the primer adhere even better.
Step 3: Priming
For optimum adhesion, first apply a good covering coat of MissPompadour To Bond & Block as a primer using a very clean brush. Then leave the primer to dry for at least 3 hours.
Step 4: Painting
Now apply the coats of paint with a different brush – as many as you need until you’re happy with the result. Two coats are usually sufficient. After around two hours’ drying time, you can start the next coat using a paint roller or a brush. If you want to paint large surfaces, such as a plastic garden table, or hard-to-reach areas, you can use a paint sprayer.
Important: Follow the instructions for thinning the paint.
Pro tip: Choose a spot that’s as shaded as possible and sheltered from dust and wind for painting.
Step 5: Curing
Have you finished painting your plastic garden chairs? Then wait a little longer before sitting on them. The paint will only be fully cured and have reached its full strength after 14 days. Keep your furniture away from moisture whilst it is drying.
FAQ: Frequently Asked Questions about Painting Plastic Garden Furniture
Can I paint plastic garden furniture without sanding it?
Yes, you can. First, apply a coat of To Bond & Block so that the paint adheres properly. After that, painting over smooth plastic is no problem. You can easily roughen up very smooth surfaces. This will help the primer adhere even better.
Can I also use matt varnishes to paint plastic garden furniture?
Matt varnishes are less resistant and adhere less well. Silk matt varnishes are therefore ideal.
Can I also paint plastic garden furniture?
Yes, that is quite simple. Often you can even save on sanding. To Paint you proceed in a similar way as when painting metal garden furniture. You can find out exactly how it works in the instructions for painting plastic garden furniture.
Can I paint plastic flower pots?
You can also easily embellish plastic flower pots with paint to match your plastic garden furniture. Our outdoor varnishes are ideal for this.
Can I leave my painted plastic garden furniture outside?
Yes, you can. Pay attention to the weather, because the varnishes do not tolerate standing moisture. So place them tilted or under a canopy.
You'll need these accessories for painting plastic garden furniture
- Paint Roller: You can achieve an even coat of paint with our microfibre paint rollers.
- Sanding Fleece: To prepare very smooth plastic surfaces, you can roughen them before sanding. Use fine-grit sandpaper or the MissPompadour sanding fleece To Sand for this.
- Paint Tray: Pouring your paint into a paint tray makes application much easier. Our paint tray is designed to be held comfortably in your hand while you work, and its textured surface helps you remove excess paint from your roller. Special paint trays for brushes allow you to stand your brush upright. With their ergonomic handles, you can hold these trays easily when painting.
