10 Best Paints for Wood in 2022
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Looking at completely changing the way your home looks with a dash of paint? Then look no further than the article you’re reading now! Consider this article your one stop shop for everything paint related, more specifically, paint to use for wooden surfaces! Finding the right color is considered child’s play compared to finding the right brand of paint, trust us, we’ve spent a lot of time around the paint to know!
Now as it currently stands, there are hundreds if not thousands of paint options for you to choose from, all vary in price depending on what color you’re looking for as well as the price of the paint outright. Knowing where to look is key in finding paint that works for you and your own requirements (something that a lot of people struggle with).
In this article, we have found the best paint for wood available right now so that you don’t have to! It’s like we said, we’ve spent a lot and we mean a lot of time around paint of this kind, so we feel like it’s our civic duty to offer you guys a list of options out there that’s perfect for your wood painting needs! So without any further interruptions, let’s get into it!
Related; Paint for Plastic.
View the Best Paint for Wood, Below.
- Renaissance Chalk Furniture & Cabinet Paint
- General Finishes Driftwood Milk Paint
- Rust-Oleum 7775830 Spray Paint
- FolkArt 34999 Home Decor Chalk Paint
- Minwax 70012444 Wood Penetrating Stain
- Minwax 785004444 Paste Finishing Wax
- Miller SF1203 Wood Stain Scratch Fix Pen
- Rust-Oleum 302591 Chalked Spray Paint
- Rust-Oleum 1979502 Painters Touch Latex
- Rethunk Junk by Laura
1. Renaissance Chalk Furniture & Cabinet Paint
The first paint can in our list here comes to us from Renaissance, a known name in the world of decorating! This non-toxic paint is eco-friendly and allows for an immaculate finish. Most customers found this paint to be incredibly versatile having tried so many previous brands and never feeling fully satisfied with their purchase.
If you are looking at going for a more bohemian style to your cabinets/furniture, you’ll find that this paint does the trick very nicely! There’s a reason why so many customers have found this product to be incredibly satisfying to use around their home!
The perfect can of paint for anyone out there looking to add a vintage flair to their furniture!
Check Price on Amazon ➞2. General Finishes Driftwood Milk Paint
An extremely durable driftwood can of milk paint, the kind that offers premium styles in a range of different colors. One of the best things about this paint is that there is no topcoat required and a low luster sheen, making it the best kind of paint to use on wood specifically. We found this paint to be really good at adding some color back into furniture that might have dimmed a little over time!
There are 26 different colors for you to choose from with this milk paint, an eclectic mix of colors that will each add character to your home the moment it is applied onto the desired area! An old world paint for the modern era, who’d have thought it!
A great can of paint to own for anyone just looking to top up the colors on some of their wooden pieces of furniture!
Check Price on Amazon ➞3. Rust-Oleum 7775830 Spray Paint
Looking to prevent weather and corrosion effects on your furniture? Our next paint option here might be to your liking! Rust-Oleum has just the thing with their 7775830 spray paint, one of the easiest kinds of paint to apply to your furniture. The oil-based formula of this spray paint provides a durable and effective coating that will last years once applied.
The flat finish of this paint minimizes surface imperfections, making for a much more natural look without wear and tear! Once applied, this paint will dry within 2 to 4 hours and can cover up to 15 sq ft in a single spray! A very consistent product that has a variety of different applications!
One of the easiest paints to apply, one of the most consistent spray paints going right now too!
Check Price on Amazon ➞4. FolkArt 34999 Home Decor Chalk Paint
Get a somewhat cloudy finish with FolkArt’s home decor chalk paint! Breathing new life into your home is one of the main appeals of this particular can, trust us. A great product to own for furniture cabinets, decorative glass and metals — not limited to wood specifically! In terms of where this product is manufactured, this one’s made in the states.
Available in a various mix of colors, make sure to pick one that works for you and your own home specifically, and you’ll never look back! Although this paint comes in an 8oz bottle does not mean that you aren’t getting your money's worth, there’s plenty of paint here!
Chalk paint is incredibly effective at coating various surfaces, including wood, there was always going to be a product of this nature featured here.
Check Price on Amazon ➞5. Minwax 70012444 Wood Penetrating Stain
The first of many Minwax products to make the cut on our list here, one that’s available in 28 beautiful colors to choose from, so choose wisely. What this paint does specifically is it penetrates deep into the fibers of the wood to really bring out the colors of the wood and add a glossed finish!
Turn any wood surface into shine with this wood penetrating stain paint! The color options of this particular paint are stacked, giving you plenty of options to pick from, all colors can be used on most pieces of furniture (personal preference will play a big role here).
We’d recommend leaving the paint to dry over a couple of hours to see the full benefits of this paint outright! The effects of this paint are almost instantaneous, just to give you an idea on the level of quality you’ll be getting with this product.
Bring out all of those rich wood colors with this particular product, one that is definitely worth checking out if you’re going for a vintage look!
Check Price on Amazon ➞6. Minwax 785004444 Paste Finishing Wax
Yet another product from Minwax, this time in the form of their finishing wax paste! Since this is a paste, you can expect somewhat different results from your efforts. The rubber of this particular product will actually hold itself a lot longer to any surface you apply it on, meaning your wood is going to be safe for a lot longer before it begins to deteriorate due to environmental factors!
Not only will this paste hold the quality of the wood in place but it will also leave a lavish polished look to any wood surface! Like some of the other products here, this paste is not limited to wood surfaces either, allowing you to lather it just about anywhere and take advantage of its outstanding benefits.
This might be the best product to own for any of you out there looking to keep the quality of your wood at an all-time high, check it out!
Check Price on Amazon ➞7. Miller SF1203 Wood Stain Scratch Fix Pen
Yet another product that is a little off-the-beaten-path when it comes to keeping your wooden surfaces in tip-top shape. Available in four distinct colors, this pen is one of the easiest ways of eliminating any scratches/marks that you have on your wooden surfaces. Miller promises over 1,000 coats before this pen begins to lose its strength, which is pretty impressive is it not?
Just when you thought this one couldn’t get any better, you realize that it’s actually waterproof too which means that wax and polish won’t smudge anywhere this pen touches, which means you can polish as much as you like and not have to worry about undoing all your pen-work!
If you want to keep the quality of your wooden surfaces at a certain level of quality then you should own this pen, it’s fantastic and relatively cheap too!
Check Price on Amazon ➞8. Rust-Oleum 302591 Chalked Spray Paint
Another spray paint can that you can use on most interior surfaces that are not limited to wooden surfaces — customers have found this product to be incredibly consistent when it comes to spraying metal, ceramic and canvas surfaces with ease! One of the best things about this spray paint is that it can dry within 20 minutes which is definitely helpful!
This spray paint has low-odor too, meaning you can spray as much as you like without having to worry about leaving a permeating smell once you’re finished. Not only is the sheen consistent but has great adhesion — not to mention that it is incredibly easy to apply and has minimal prep involved!
Spray paint in any form is going to be relatively easy to use, what this one does differently is it dries quicker than most and doesn’t smell!
Check Price on Amazon ➞9. Rust-Oleum 1979502 Painters Touch Latex
Looking to add some shine to your surfaces in an instant, then this might be just the paint for you. This is a water-based form of acrylic paint, the kind that can be applied just about everywhere without fail. In our experience using this paint on wood was a lot more consistent than applying it on say metal or plaster. This is yet another Rust-Oleum product, the kind that will definitely stand the test of time.
Cover up to 120 sq ft with this touch latex paint, and it will dry within 30 minutes of it being applied, it is that fast, one of the fastest around right now to be completely honest. Like most of the other options in our list here, there are multiple colors to choose from here.
An all-around top quality can of paint that will definitely see you through many years of use without fail!
Check Price on Amazon ➞10. Rethunk Junk by Laura
The final option in our list here is yet another product that is a little out of the ordinary compared to some other paint options out right now, one of the best products out right now to apply onto cabinets and other forms of furniture you have at home.
This is a water-based paint which only adds to the appeal of this particular product! If you found that some of the other color options in our list weren’t to your liking, then some of the options from Rethunk Junk by Laura should provide a range of different off-kilter colors to check out!
Manufactured in the states, this is arguably one of the best products in our list here in terms of consistency and value for money, especially if you are looking for colors that are a little different. Did we mention that this paint is eco-friendly too?
The color options alone makes this one of the best cans of paint to own for off-kilter decorating!
Check Price on Amazon ➞Paint for Wood Buyer’s Guide
Welcome to the buyer’s guide, a section where we will be covering a few questions you might have following the conclusion of the list you’ve just read. There are various benefits to painting wooden furniture at home, the most obvious being the compliments you’ll receive from friends and family who see just how nice and warm your home feels. Some find painting incredibly therapeutic too, you might be one of these people, you just didn’t know it yet.
Identify the task at hand
The first thing anyone should do before they even think about purchasing any of the products we’ve listed above is to first identify the reasons why they are buying paint for wood in the first place. We would recommend writing it down if you are struggling with ideas. For example, if you are looking at simply getting rid of a few scratches on your wood table, you might find that a paint sprayer can, or scratch pen is what you need.
Don’t rush into things, meaning don’t buy the first product you see because it’s the most expensive or is the right color. Just because it looks the part does not then mean that quality is guaranteed. Always look for paint products that work for your own specifications, and you’ll run into no issues which is obviously the desired effect of anyone reading this right now. It is also worth noting you will need different paint for both interior paint jobs, and exterior paint jobs.
How to Paint Wood Furniture?
Painting your wooden furniture is incredibly easy and is actually quite relaxing once you get into the swing of things. How you go about painting your furniture will depend on two factors, the first being the size and shape of the furniture you want to paint and the second: what sort of product will you be using to paint the furniture in question.
If you are painting something such as a coffee table, you could probably pick it up and take it outside to then paint. You’ll find that doing this will make the process go a lot quicker and will actually increase the dry time if you’ve taken it outside to paint. Remember to always put down a cloth of some kind underneath so you aren’t getting paint everywhere.
Want to paint other materials on furniture? This paint for metal may come in useful.
The easiest way of painting your wooden furniture is to use a spray can of some kind. Using an airless paint sprayer can is as simple as pointing in the direction of your furniture and firing away. If you are looking at eliminating a few scratches then maybe you should try using a scratch pen of some kind (like the one featured above), they are very cheap and eliminate the need to paint the full thing once more!
Your standard paint cans will require a paintbrush of some kind. Those painting their cabinets will find that they are using paintbrushes and cans simply because of the size of the furniture and how much paint is required to complete the task. If that is your task, check out these paints for kitchen cabinet. Painting wood is incredibly easy, just try not to rush the job in front of you or risk having all your hard work disappear.
How to Remove Paint From Wood?
There are many ways of stripping paint from wood in a very calm and effective manner. Paint does not last forever which is a shame, but it’s just how things are. Some methods for removing paint are a lot more expensive than others, so make sure you know what you’re getting into before you even go about doing anything drastic.
Most paint removal options require a different tool of some kind. If you aren’t worried about potentially damaging your furniture, then one sure-fire way of eliminating paint would be to use a sander of some kind, the sort of product that will grind paint off quite quickly! Heat guns are great ways of softening the layers of paint on your walls so that you can just chip away the rest using another tool by hand!
Again, these options require tools, whereas using chemical strippers for examples are a lot easier and cheaper to use and only need to be applied for a couple of minutes in most cases to see some results.
Chemical strippers come in many forms, some are liquids, others gels and on the odd occasion: pastes. This is a much safer way of getting rid of paint without having to worry about damaging the wood underneath!
You should always be looking at the label or conducting your own research on this particular topic just to make sure you aren’t causing some serious damage to your furniture or your health. Think about it, you’re using chemicals to strip paint off a surface, there’s always going to be a level of risk involved.
How to Paint Wood Paneling?
The first thing you should do before you start painting wood paneling is to clean the area in question. Run a damp rag over the surface that you’re going to be painting, and you’ll be ready to go! The next step here should be to fill and sand the wood of the area to eliminate any holes or cracks to make for a smooth finish!
The next step will be to apply caulk to the gaps between the panels and trim that sits around the area in question. From here one should prime the wood with a sponge roller and then begin painting each section of the paneling piece by piece until completion!
Expert Tip
When leaving your paint to dry open all windows available in the room and try to refrain from going into the room in question. This will allow the paint to dry faster and keep you from smelling of strong paint — unless the paint is odor-free of course.
Did you know?
Spray cans are one of the most consistent ways of keeping your wooden surfaces topped up in terms of color. Spray paint is also very easy to use, all you need to do is point and spray (make sure to put down a mat of some kind so that the paint doesn’t go everywhere).