MCM Furniture with a Pop of Color

Share:

Mid Century Modern design is timeless and classic. Sleek straight lines and minimalism make this type of furniture easily distinguishable and fun for projects that feature bold colours or geometric designs. Our favourite way to update MCM furniture is to pair deep, rich colours with natural wood and pops of bright tones to touch on all the elements. Follow this Midnight Blue MCM furniture with a pop of colour tutorial.

There are so many options and designs to choose from when painting MCM furniture that there really is no wrong choice! For this project, we are starting with a sturdy chest of drawers that has a great design but needs a bit of work to bring it back to life. 

Below is a list of supplies you’ll need to complete a similar project:

• Fusion TSP Alternative
• Wash bin with warm water & Sponge
• Orbital Sander + Various Grit Sandpaper
• Wood filler
• Fusion Mineral Paint Midnight Blue
• Fusion Mineral Paint English Rose / Rose Water / Peony
• Staalmeester One Round Brush
• Fusion Mineral Paint 2 inch Angled Brush
• Topcoat or Sealer of your Choice

PREP

When refinishing MCM furniture, you should always consider the prep. This style of furniture tends to have larger and wider surfaces,  so any dings, scratches, and dents can be evident through your finish. Prior to making any repairs, make sure you give it a good deep clean using a diluted solution of Fusion TSP alternative and warm water. It’s easier to wash large pieces like this with a bucket and a gritty sponge. 

Next you’ll want to focus on any repairs. As you can see by the original photo, this piece had some broken and outdated hardware. We used a traditional wood filler to fill in any deep gouges and dents as well as hardware holes we wouldn’t be using. 

After your wood filler has dried, use an orbital sander to sand smooth the filler, as well as scuff sand the rest of your piece. We wanted the original walnut finish to come through the on the drawers, so we sanded those to bare wood. 

PICK YOUR COLOURS

Pairing colours is going to be the most fun and interesting part of this furniture makeover. You can pick colours that tie into your home décor, or colours that you would never think to put together. For this makeover, we picked both a masculine and feminine colour that complements each other well. “Midnight Blue” is a deep, rich navy colour that can look almost black, while “English Rose” is a true, pastel pink. We have used retired English Rose but Peony or our new Rose Water will work well.

For this project we used Fusion Beeswax to give a satin lustre on both the painted and natural wood parts. 

THE RETRO LOOK

Once you start putting it all back together, you’ll see the classic MCM design come to life. From the outside this looks like a classic masculine tallboy, but once the doors to the chest are opened you see that fun pop of colour that changes the feel and aesthetic of your piece. 

The natural wood walnut drawers are a great grounding element for your piece and a wonderful way to pay homage to the original wood finish. 

 Geometric brass hardware is another way to modernize your furniture. The cute hexagon knobs made perfect knobs for the doors to this chest and pop against the navy. 

Finally, another way to add a fun pop to your furniture is by playing with drawer liner. The floral drawer liner we picked tied in both navy and pink colors but added another feminine element to the interior of this chest. It’s another great way to play with texture and design. 

Are you ready to tackle a similar project? What color “pops” will you choose for your MCM design?