Wondering how to do remove old paint for furniture makeovers on pieces that have many old coats of paint?  Check out how I turned this old furniture piece into a beautiful hutch makeover for our dining room!  You could repeat this process for an old china hutch or different pieces of furniture to update and refresh your home on a budget!

One of easiest ways to bring new life into your dining room is to put in a little elbow grease for a beautiful hutch makeover or dining buffet refresh.

Updating furniture is one of the best ways to refresh your home on a budget and that is what we did with this antique apothecary furniture piece that we use as our dining room hutch.  Not only was the hutch makeover so satisfying, but now it is such a fun old hutch to decorate!

It all started with IG and a scroll-stopping picture from my good friends over at Baker & Co. Home.  I instantly knew that this gorgeous apothecary was just the substitute for the antique hutch for our dining room that I’d been waiting for over the past few years!

My only hesitation was the old, tan paint but the old piece of furniture was too good to not figure it out.  A few phone calls and a fun day trip later, we were the proud owners of this stunning furniture piece in need of a beautiful hutch makeover.

Growing up in my parents’ small town pharmacy in the Midwest has left me with a special affection for old apothecary and pharmacy goods.  When we found out that this piece came from a little town in Kansas, only about two hours from where I grew up, we knew it was meant to be!

Some google searches and a little digging leads us to believe that this cabinet was in the original pharmacy of Jas. A. Grant in Augusta, Kansas, in the early part of the 20th century.  It is very likely that this antique apothecary is around 115 years old!

Growing up in my parents’ small town pharmacy in the Midwest has left me with a special affection for old apothecary and pharmacy goods.  When we found out that this piece came from a little town in Kansas, only about two hours from where I grew up, we knew it was meant to be!  Some google searches and a little digging leads us to believe that this cabinet was in the original pharmacy of Jas. A. Grant in Augusta, Kansas, in the early part of the 20th century.  It is very likely that this apothecary is around 115 years old!

Weekend Project: Beautiful Hutch Makeover by Removing the Old Paint

But even the amazing history couldn’t change the tan paint that looked even more dingy against the bright whites in our home.  After a little research and a couple phone calls to friends who specialize in restoring old pieces, we rolled up our sleeves and got to work on a beautiful hutch makeover.

We knew there was a big risk that we would end up completely stripping all the paint, though we could see some flecks of what appeared to be bright white paint underneath.

Since many of the drawers already had exposed wood and loving good wood tones, I was completely fine with taking the risk that the entire hutch would end up stripped of paint.  I could already tell that even if it was all wood colored, it would be a stunning piece for our beautiful hutch makeover, especially with the European farmhouse vibes of the lighter wood tones.urned out

As it turned out, we were so happy that these easy steps for a vintage hutch makeover took off one layer of paint at a time, leaving us with an amazing finished product and a beautiful hutch makeover.

Robb and I definitely do NOT claim to be DIY experts.  However, we couldn’t have been more thrilled with how this beautiful hutch makeover turned out.  I love it even more than I thought I would!  When dealing with vintage and antique pieces, there is always some risk of what will be uncovered.  However, this painted china cabinet makeover paid off in spades!

Here’s how we did it:

How to Remove Old Paint for a Beautiful Hutch Makeover (or other Furniture!)

Materials:

• Oven cleaner (we used the Dollar Tree brand)
• Latex gloves to protect your skin
• Water
• Soft brush

Step One for a Beautiful Hutch Makeover:

The first step for this beautiful hutch makeover was to take the piece outside and give it a really good washing.  Often, these old, outdated hutch pieces can have many years of dirt on them (unless you’re taking it straight out of your home where you’ve been using it.  In that case, just wipe off any dust.)

Step Two for a Beautiful Hutch Makeover:

The second step for this beautiful hutch makeover was to cover the hutch top OR the section you’re starting from with oven cleaner.  It is a good idea to spray the hutch in sections rather than trying to spray the entire hutch at once.

If you’re using a much smaller piece of furniture, you can definitely go ahead spray the whole thing all at once.

Pro Tip: Allow the oven cleaner to stand for about ten minutes.

We experimented with one drawer before tackling the entire project.  If your piece doesn’t have drawers, consider using a side, corner, or back of the cabinet to get you started.

Even if you’ve worked with a lot of furniture refinishing, each piece is different.  A smaller part or section of your new project is a great place to test the product for the specific piece of furniture you’re working with.

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Step Three for a Beautiful Hutch Makeover:

For step three of the beautiful hutch makeover, we used the water hose and sprayed off the top coat of oven cleaner.  The first time, we used the jet spray setting.  This took off a significant more amount of paint.

Going forward, we used the shower spray setting.  Though it took us longer, it allowed us to save more of the original paint and didn’t strip it all the way down to the wood.

If you’re looking for an easy way to get several coats of paint stripped off quickly, go ahead with the stronger water spray.  Otherwise, you can give it a good sanding between coats of oven cleaner to help get each coat of paint fully stripped.

Step Four for a Beautiful Hutch Makeover:

After the first time, we could see the paint crackling and obvious white paint color underneath.  We got started on the rest of the drawers and cabinet casing, eventually repeating the process with the entire piece.

We repeated step two about 4 times.  Depending on how many coats of old paint your piece of furniture has, you’ll likely need to repeat step two multiple times as well.  

Again, this will depend on what type of paint your piece has, how many coats of paint are on it, and also the finish for your desired final product!

With each round of oven cleaner and spraying with water, we could see the layers of paint peel off to reveal a beautiful, original, first coat of paint underneath.  The chipping of the paint as we went just added to the character and charm.

If you like a really smooth finish for a painted piece, you could take the piece down to the raw wood with a palm sander and a higher grit sandpaper.  Then, you could add your new paint color to give your piece of furniture a fresh new look with a beautiful hutch makeover!.

However, I love a good, chippy patina so this process worked well for us!  The oven cleaner did a great job of removing the old paint in small layers, which allowed us to keep the original white paint!

The oven cleaner and water are also working together to give your piece a sparkly clean smell and finish.  If you’re doing this process on an old piece of furniture, it likely has a few layers of dirt to wash off as well!

Tips, Tricks, and Frequently Asked Questions for a Beautiful Hutch Makeover:

• This project is perfect on a sunny, breezy day.  The wood was able to dry quickly and thoroughly.  You never want to leave water standing on the wood and the more quickly it can dry, the better.
• Be patient and go slowly. If you’re trying to remove a layer of paint at a time, remember that patience is essential.  If you know you want to completely strip the paint, turn on that jet setting and go for it!  Otherwise, take your time and work through the layers of paint!
• As you watch the process, it would be concerning about all the water getting on the wood. By allowing our piece to dry in the sun and wind, we did not find any warping of the wood.  We were careful to not let water stand in it.
• After it was dry and we moved it inside, we did add wax to the drawers to help them glide more smoothly, but we didn’t have any warping at all. The wax is great for old drawers and helps them not be quite as sticky!
• If you are concerned about lead in the old paint, a matte finish, polyurethane spray is helpful!

After trying this DIY, I have a lot more confidence to take risks in the old pieces I purchase.  It is a great way to restore them without spending a massive amount of time or money.  The hardest part was moving this big piece in and out of the house!

How to Decorate a Dining Room Hutch after a Beautiful Hutch Makeover

While this paint removal technique can work on any old piece of furniture with multiple coats of paint and different colors, a dining room hutch is a frequent cause of frustration for many people.  How do I know this?  Well, how to decorate a dining room hutch is a question I’ve been asked over and over again.  In fact, I have an entire blog post dedicated to answering this popular question.

For many examples, tips, and ideas, visit THIS post: How to Beautifully Decorate a Dining Room Hutch.

Here are a few general tips to decorate vintage china cabinets or an old hutch in a dining room:

• Treat your dining room shelves as you would other decorative places in your home and have fun rotating decor for the seasons.
• Try styling vintage collections, sentimental objects, or everyday items in your dining room hutch.
• Decorate your hutch in a style that is cohesive with the rest of your home.
• Consider the height of the decorative items in your hutch and make sure you have a nice variety
• Include a variety of different textures in your antique hutch decor
• Pay careful attention to the balance of decorative items placed in the entire hutch.
• Keep a cohesive color scheme that connects to adjoining rooms, such as the living room
• Take a break and then come back to edit the decor in your old china cabinet!  Decorating with a fresh perspective is almost always very helpful!

To see detailed explanations and examples of the ideas above, click on over HERE!

How to Decorate a Dining Room Hutch for the Seasons

Just as I decorate my mantel for the seasons, I enjoy doing the same with my apothecary cabinet!  I love to switch my decor for a fresh look.  

While I might change the look of the entire piece, you can more easily decorate for the seasons by simply switching a few decorative items.  In other words, you don’t have to completely empty and redecorate your dining room hutch for every season!  I do simply because I enjoy it!

For example, when fall rolls around, I could simply switch the coral pieces for a couple of baby white pumpkins!  Where the cool, blue tones of the vintage bottles are for summer, I could replace with some vintage amber bottles for the warm, fall colors.

Pro Tip:  Consider small and simple seasonal touches that don’t require you to store boxes and boxes of decorations!

Here are a few simple ideas:

• Fall: Mini pumpkins, dried gourds, dried or preserved stems, hang a pretty wreath, small vintage-style art
• Christmas: Realistic pine branches, ornaments in a dish, stocking holders with decorative stockings
• Winter: Realistic pine branches, flameless candles, brass candlesticks
• Spring:  Decorative eggs, realistic flowers, cute little bunny figures
• Summer: Sea shells, coral, old bottles, small vintage-style art

​I hope this gives you confidence to try restoring custom pieces to fit your own home and decor style.  This is a great weekend project that can help give your dining area an entirely new look.  However, you’ll be saving so much money by not buying brand new furniture!

Thrift store finds are almost always my favorites so keep an eye at your local thrift store.  It could provide the perfect opportunity to have some fun removing old paint for your own beautiful hutch makeover!

For tips on how I do my vintage hunting, or “junking”, head over and read this fun post for a complete guide with my tips for vintage shopping and thrifting!

You may also enjoy these related blog posts for budget-friendly decorating:

• 75 Favorite Thrift Store Home Decor Finds (and how to style them)
• The Best 7 Thrifted Fall Home Decor Items to Shop For
• How to Organize a Dining Room in 3 Easy Steps
• 44 Easy Ideas to Decorate a Kitchen Table for Fall
• How to Decorate with 21 Easy Cozy Home Decor Ideas for Fall
• 9 Easy Tips to Mix New and Vintage Home Decor Pieces

I’d love for you to follow me on social media!  You can find my home decor inspiration on Instagram, Pinterest, and Facebook!  

Blessings,

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