I know what you're thinking: who would undertake the daunting task of painting furniture when ikea is alive and kicking? Well, if you're reading this Instructable, likes are you've overcome this internal debate!

Painting furniture can breath life back into a boring piece, as well as make a big impact without making a big dent in your wallet. The options and styles are as endless as you are unique.

In this tutorial, I revive an awkward green bedside table into a Art Deco beauty using primer and spray paint.

Just a couple of reminders before we get started:
Make sure you follow the directions on your paint canister. But some rules apply to all furniture painting/staining:
- ALWAYS paint in a well ventilated area (I moved my table outside for this reason)
- If you feel light headed or dazed because of the paint fumes, stop immediately.
- Always spray a small, inconspicuous area of your furniture piece to see how it reacts to the paint.

Step 1: Prepping

1- Clean the furniture piece with a damp cloth. For what you may think is a clean table, may in fact have tons of dust on it.

2- Remove any and all hardware. The last thing you want is to have hardware that is stuck on to your piece, glued on by the paint you apply. If you want to also paint your hardware, simply remove it and place on a drop cloth to prime and paint separately.

Step 2: Cover All Unwanted Areas From Overspray

Cover all the areas you do not want painted. My bed side table has mirror inlays that I did not want painted (obviously) so using painters tape and packing paper (newspaper works great) I carefully covered all the mirrored areas. This step could potentially take you longer than the actual paint job will. Make sure to do a neat and thorough job, as you'd greatly regret getting crooked paint lines afterwards.

Place your furniture piece on a drop cloth or newspaper to ensure that the area directly beneath and around does not get painted on.

Step 3: Priming

I chose not to sand my table, so I used primer to secure the eventual topcoat and reduce any paint chipping. Think of primer as a [non-sticky] glue that creates a great environment for any future coats of paint to live happily on.

Shake can vigorously before starting, and periodically throughout the paint job. This will make the flow consistent.

Always hold paint can at least 8 inches from furniture surface to reduce and prevent any paint pooling. Also, always keep your hand moving as you paint, creating even, lateral strokes.

Step 4: Painting

Allow primer to dry for 1-2 hours before applying your paint color.

Follow the same rules as with the primer:
Shake can vigorously before starting, and periodically throughout the paint job. This will make the flow consistent.
Always hold paint can at least 8 inches from furniture surface to reduce and prevent any paint pooling. Also, always keep your hand moving as you paint, creating even, lateral strokes.

I sprayed 3 coats of my paint color, waiting 3 hours between paint jobs. This allowed for the previous coat to thoroughly dry before spraying another layer on top.

Depending on your color choice, more or less coats of paint may be required, but 3 coats will usually be enough.

I suggest waiting at least 24 hours before placing anything on top of or against your freshly painted furniture. Although the surface may see dry, some of the undercoats may still be in the process of drying, and you risk denting and pressing the surface if it comes into contact with heavier items.