DIY Network

Furniture Doodles Doodle on the furniture—really! From "B. Original" episode DBOR-305

Turn old furniture into new art.

For Michele Beschen, some rules are made to be broken – especially the rules that get in the way of creativity. With this project, the B. Original host busts open a rule most of us learned as toddlers: Don’t draw on the furniture.

Michele Beschen shows how scribbling with colored pencils, embellishing with rubber stamps and even tracing cool bits of molding can turn an outdated piece into an art piece. Scroll down for her how-to, and get ready to scribble.

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Furniture Doodles

Materials:

old piece of furniture
flat or satin paint for a base coat
deglosser and a rag
fine steel wool
sandpaper
colored pencils and oil pencils
pencil sharpener
rubber stamps and inks
high-gloss lacquer or polyurethane

	Figure A
	Figure B

• Take a look at the current finish on the piece. If the piece already is painted a color you like, prepare that finish for doodling: Knock down any glossy finish by wiping it with deglosser on an old rag, or by scrubbing with steel wool. If you use steel wool, make sure to remove all of the dust before doodling.

• If you don’t like the current finish, sand it to scuff up the finish and remove any loose paint. Remove the dust and paint the piece with a flat or satin base coat.

• Michele Beschen likes to add color to furniture with colored pencils (figure A). Use an artist-grade colored pencil – not the type found in the school-supply aisle – and start scribbling. You also could use oil pencils, which offer deeper hues and can be found at shops that sell woodworking supplies.

• Start scribbling. Don’t worry about filling in all areas completely; the pencil strokes are part of the design. Add different colors, and blend colors together (figure B).

• Keep a pencil sharpener handy. Scribbling on furniture burns through a lot of pencil color, and you’ll need to sharpen frequently.

• If the piece has any raised detailing, bring it to life with a charcoal pencil or black marker. This is more exact and far less messy than using paint, with no drying time.
  

  Figure C

  Figure D

  
  

  	Figure E
  	Figure F

• Get out some rubber stamps and add stamped images on top of the color scribbles (figure C). Another option is to stamp the piece first, then color it in with the pencils after it dries (figure D).

• Layer different levels of doodling, stamping and coloring to create an energetic look (figure E).

• Don’t forget the hardware: Knobs, pulls and other accents on the piece need the doodle treatment for the finished piece to work (figure F)

• Once you’ve scribbled, stamped and highlighted the whole piece, give it a coat or two of high-gloss lacquer or polyurethane.