DIY Furniture Makeovers That Will Make You Love Those Old Pieces Again

If you’ve ever looked at a tired piece of furniture and wondered if it was worth saving, this post is for you. I’m sharing easy, DIY furniture makeovers that show just how much paint, a few tools, and a little confidence can transform what you already have into something beautiful.

If you’re like me, you have acquired some furniture over the years that you used to like but it’s not your style anymore.

Or maybe you never really liked that much to begin with.

Or you’ve had it for years, and you’re just tired of it.

It’s still in good condition and is really functional, so you hate to get rid of it. But it bothers you every time you walk by it.

Since one of my die-hard decorating principles is to only live with what you love, I believe it’s your live-in-a-home-you-love duty to do something about it!

Rather than throw it out and spend more money to buy something new, doing a makeover on these old furniture pieces is a great way to give them a new lease on life. And create something you love.

These are a few of my favorite ways to do old furniture makeovers.

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1 | Add Gold Trim To Old Chairs

One of the easiest ways to update old furniture is to paint it.

If you don’t mind the fabric on some old chairs, then painting the wood may be all you need to make them look better.

My mother updated some of her old chairs by painting them white (which always looks fresh!)

And then adding some gold paint to the decorative carving to make the details stand out.

2 | Gold Leaf a Bar

I used gold to makeover one of my old pieces of furniture, too.

With this cabinet update, I spray painted the inside gold and the outside with black lacquer.

Then added gold leaf to the front really changed the look.

Now it totally goes with my Eclectic Deco Glam decor!

To get the instructions, read about how to do this gold leaf bar makeover.

3 | Reupholster A Chair

If you have a chair with fabric that you don’t like, re-upholstering it might be the way to go.

Christy from Confessions of a Serial DIYer transformed a really ugly old chair into a black and white French Provincial beauty.

You can hardly tell its the same piece of furniture!

Check out her post to get the step-by-step instructions.

4 | Upholster an Armoire

Speaking of upholstery…it’s not just for chairs and sofas. I even used it on an armoire.

In my dining area, I have an old TV armoire that provides a ton of storage.

It’s a great place to store the cushions for my patio furniture that’s right outside the door. And I have a lot of patio furniture so I really need that storage!

But the old armoire just didn’t go with my decor. So I decided it needed a furniture makeover.

Painting it black and using some sparkly upholstery tacks to hang some fabric on the doors definitely upgraded its appearance.

I made sure it would fit in with my room decor by using the same fabric on the armoire as my dining room backdrop.

Read our tutorial to find out how to upholster an armoire.

5 | Paint Your Upholstery

Reupholstering can be a lot of work and not everyone wants to put in that much effort to update a chair.

Another option that takes a lot less work, is painting your upholstery with chalk paint!

I have never been brave enough to actually try this, but Nancy at Artsy Chicks Rule did. And the results are stunning! 

She even talks about how well it held up if you read the comments, so be sure to head over to her site to find out all the details.

6 | Paint your piano

Of course, you can use paint on pretty much any kind of wood furniture, too.

And it doesn’t have to be white.

Like when I decided to refresh my old piano.

I really like having it in the living room, but it looked really dated.

I think the new pink and gold color scheme is so much better!

7 | Wallpaper cabinet doors

If you prefer something with a little more pattern, wallpaper is a great way to update furniture with flat surfaces (like bookshelves and cabinet doors).

For these doors, I used blue leopard print peel and stick wallpaper.

And replaced the plain knobs with glass ones. Which definitely increases the glam factor!

8 | Upgrade An Old Wood Table With Urban Metal Paint

Using metallic paint to cover an ugly piece of furniture is one of my favorite furniture makeovers.

This table used to be one of those dark mahogany laminate pieces that were very popular in the 90’s…not so much now…

Painting it with a metallic sheen is an easy way to make it look more modern.

This technique combines a couple of different metallic colors to really add depth to the finish.

Read the urban metal table tutorial for all the details.

9 | Wrap Shelves In Aluminum

While the last furniture makeover might not have been transforming your table into a metal one, this one actually does.

If you have some plain wood boards or old melamine shelves and want to totally change their look, wrap them in aluminum flashing.

It is an inexpensive way to make them look totally different.

Because the aluminum is water resistant and doesn’t rust, I decided to use them in my bathroom.

Of course, because I like everything to be little extra, I added some sparkly upholstery tacks around the edge on this version of the project.

To get out how, read the metal shelf tutorial.

10 | Upcycle A Shelf To A Filing Cabinet

This DIY furniture makeover does the opposite…turns an old shelf into something more useful.

I had half of an old closet organizer shelf hanging around in the garage for the longest time.

When I was redoing my den and needed a place for my files that looked good with the new decor, I finally put that shelf to good use, by converting them to an industrial glam filing cabinet.

It was a really inexpensive way to add some function to my office.

For all the details, read my industrial glam filing cabinet tutorial.

11 | give filing cabinets a glam makeover

If you already have some filing cabinets that are functional but not very pretty, it’s easy to give them glam makeover with a little bit of paint.

I painted my old wood laminate ones with white, semi-gloss paint.

Then did the tops in blush pink and the insides in hot pink.

Adding black pinstripes on the drawer fronts was the finishing touch.

12 | Paint A Pattern

Lori from Vintage Charm Restored really outdid herself with this princess-inspired dresser makeover for her daughter.

She painted an old chest with a diamond pattern, zebra stripes and some gold trim.

And then added some glam knobs for the finishing touch.

I love it!  

13 | Use paint and metallic wax

This white and gold table started out as a functionality but not very pretty side table in my mother’s den.

When she updated the decor, she used some paint, metallic wax and nail head trim to update the table, too.

And now it’s beautiful!

Find the DIY side table tutorial here.

14 | Add Some Accessories

When I was re-decorating my bedroom, I wanted to do something with my old bedside tables (more of that mahogany laminate).

Painting was a given.

But to make them a little more interesting, I also spray painted some short angle irons and screwed them onto the edges of the drawers.

It’s amazing how a small thing like that totally changes the look of the furniture!

Read the nightstand makeover tutorial for all the details.

15 | Cover With Contact Paper

For those of you who don’t like to paint.

Or just want to have a surface that looks like stone.

Applying self-adhesive contact paper is a super simple project for flat surfaces (it doesn’t work so well if you have to go around curves).

To upgrade a little computer table in my office, I spray painted the legs gold and used some marble contact paper to make it look much better than the original cart.

It only takes a couple of hours to do.

See the faux marble cart tutorial HERE.

16 | Add mirrors

Nothing says glam like mirrored furniture.

And it’s really not that hard to DIY.

When my mother updated her nightstand, she painted the whole thing silver.

Then glued mirror pieces on to the front of the door and the top.

Swapping out the knobs for crystal ones resulted in a total upgrade!

There you have it….my favorite furniture makeovers. Hopefully you’ve found some inspiration to do your own!

Other DIY Home Projects You Might Like

• How to paint metal outdoor furniture
• DIY ceiling medallion
• DIY home decor projects you can do in a weekend
• Home decor Cricut project ideas

Have comments or questions about our old furniture makeovers? Tell us in the section below.