How To Paint Wicker Furniture Quickly and Easily

Today, I’ll show you how to paint wicker furniture.  You can easily update wicker, rattan or woven furniture with a fresh coat of paint so it looks new again.  Follow these same steps for painting outdoor woven furniture too!  

I’ll cover what paints to use on wicker, how to get a perfect paint job and more!

This post was sponsored by HomeRight. Those of you who follow my blog know how much I love HomeRight products and how often I use them. Click here to see more HomeRight paint projects I’ve done!

What is the best way to paint wicker furniture?

You can paint wood wicker and woven resin furniture one of three ways:

• Use a paint brush – The least expensive method but not recommended!  Getting paint into all the nooks and crannies of wicker furniture would take forever and it’s hard to get an even coat.  Plus, you’ll ruin your good paint brush by pouncing it into the woven wicker to work the paint in.  
• Spray Paint –   This will work on small projects.  The downside is a good quality spray paint is expensive. Spray paint usually thin, can be hard to apply evenly, has limited colors and looks like spray paint. Which all affects the quality of how your painted furniture looks in the end.  
• Paint Sprayer – By far the best choice for painting any kind of wood or resin woven, indoor or outdoor furniture. A paint sprayer gives the most consistent smooth overall finish by far, can be used with a wide variety of paints and is the fastest for large projects.  

I used about 3 cups of paint when I painted this wicker chair. Using the paint sprayer I was able to get a factory type finish with no dark wood showing through anywhere. Oh, it’s a smooth finish as well, there isn’t one drip or brush mark!

How To Paint Wicker Furniture

Supplies to needed to paint wicker furniture, rattan or woven furniture: 

• HomeRight Finish Max Extra Paint Sprayer
• HomeRight Large Paint Shelter  – optional but protects furniture when painting outside
• drop cloths
• paint – this is what I used in Cartouche Green 
• white paint 
• clean painters rags
• Add optional detail over paint – old paint brush or chip brush   – These are a great deal
• painters tape
• Simple Green cleaner
• safety goggles
• Respirator breathing mask

I made a quick 3 minute video to show you how to paint wicker furniture so you could see my steps and how easy it was to use the Finish Max Extra paint sprayer.

Step 1. Repair and clean the wicker furniture before painting.

If you need to make any repairs to your woven or rattan furniture do it before moving on to the next step. 

Prepare your furniture and save time by cleaning and deglossing at the same time. Remove loose dust and dirt by vacuuming if needed.  You may need to use a brush and a hose to rinse if there’s a lot of dust build-up. 

Next, wipe your chair or item well with Simple Green and a clean cloth.  Simple Green will clean and degloss your surface at the same time.  Deglossing is a must when painting and gives the new paint a better surface to adhere to and prevent flaking. 

 Allow to dry thoroughly before moving on to the next step.

Step 2. Tape-off areas that you don’t want painted.

Use painters tape and plastic drop cloths to protect any areas that you don’t want painted. Garbage bags cut down to size work great for chairs and small furniture pieces! 

Step 3. Mix paint and prepare the paint sprayer

Now you’re ready to paint.  

Which paints are best for painting wicker furniture?

You can use chalk paint, mineral paint, milk paint, latex or even an oil base paint on wicker, rattan and woven furniture. 

If you’re using chalk, mineral or milk paint, it needs to be self sealing!  Self sealing paint means it does not need a wax or another type of clear topcoat to seal it to your furniture item.  It should list that it is self-sealing on the label.  If you’re not sure ask before investing in your paint.

I promise you…you don’t want to try to wax wicker furniture by hand!

If you are painting outdoor woven furniture use a high quality outdoor latex paint. It will last longer has UV blocking built in and be fade resistant.      

How to prepare the paint for the paint sprayer.

First, you’ll need to mix the paint to the proper consistency. I slowly added water until my paint was the consistency of thin pancake batter.  I used about three cups of paint to paint my wicker arm chair.

Tip: Add some water to the bottom of the paint container first before adding paint and the paint will mix better and quicker.  

My HomerRight Super Finish Max comes with four tips for different types of paint.  I used the green tip for this project.  Use a piece of cardboard to test the paint flow and spray pattern.  It’s easy to adjust the spray flow on the Finish Max Extra with the little dial that’s located on the handle. 

Step 4. Begin Painting from the underside or back. 

I like to start at the bottom on a piece so I can see how the paint sprayer is coating my piece before moving on to the more visible areas.  Paint with a slow and even back and forth motion.  Apply paint from different angles to get an even coat of paint into the nooks and crannies on your woven furniture.  

You’ll need to apply at least two coats of paint.  Wait for the first coat of paint to dry before applying another layer of paint.  Flush your paint sprayer with clear water in between coats so the paint doesn’t dry in the sprayer while you wait.   

Step 5.  Allow it to completely dry.

Allow the paint to dry to the touch before taking off painters tape and protective plastic.  As hard as it is, let the paint cure before using your freshly painted wicker furniture!  I usually wait for about 2 weeks to allow the paint to harden and cure myself.  Waiting makes a huge difference when it comes to how well the paint holds up.      

Add optional finishing detail.

This step is optional. Dry brush paint in a contrasting color on the wicker chair it adds dimension.

I share a great example of the dry brushing technique in my Bakers Rack makeover tutorial. Use a clean painters rag to wipe off excess paint. Dry-brushing paint on wicker furniture looks best when the layer of paint you’re adding is not perfectly even.

This step always adds a nice depth to a paint project.

What I love about using the Finish Max Extra was that it comes with different spray tips for different types of paint.  Clean-up was easy, I just ran water through the sprayer and rinsed the pieces.

I would have spent the same amount of time washing out a paint brush. 

My painted wicker looks great next to my  wall mounted TV cabinet.  I changed out the orange cushion for the neutral off-white and like it much better. 

All in all, I think it’s a big improvement. I’m loving this color so much better than the original dark wood! 

Pin this project for later and share with your friends on Facebook!

Do you have a piece of furniture that really needs a makeover?