Island Makeover & Tips for Painting Beadboard

When we built our house, for some reason or another, I chose black for the beadboard on our island.  Why?  I seriously have no idea.  It became clear about a minute after we moved in that it was just too dark for me, and that if I could just paint it a lighter, brighter color I would be much happier with the space.

So, as with most projects lately, I didn't really get the bug to get it done until I found out I was pregnant.  Then it became urgent! So, since I was very early in my pregnancy, I asked my husband if he would do all the painting so I wouldn't have to breath in the fumes.  It's hard for a guy to say 'no' to his newly pregnant wife :)

I chose the color Antique White from Behr.  It was just perfect.  Not too white, but not too yellowy or creamish. (both words by the way...in my world at least.)  Since I bought way too much of this paint, I've ended up using it for several more projects including my coffee table.

I chose not to pre-sand the beadboard because I didn't want to breath in all that dust either.  I decided to use Behr Premium Plus with Primer. That stuff is impressive.  It only took two coats, and the black was completely covered.

When it comes to painting beadboard, here are a few of the tricks we used.

1.  Work in small areas at a time, maybe up to about 5 of the little slats and beads.

2.  Start by painting with a brush directly down the beads.

3.  Go over the area where you painted the beads and the board in between with a 3-4 inch roller.

Start again with the next small section.

This will keep you from getting air bubbles in your beads, and it will give you a nice smooth finish across the entire surface.

After the painting was finished, we left it for a few weeks and I loved it.  I just felt like it needed a little something more, so I went back over all of it with a Van Dyke Brown Glaze (it's a water-based glaze I got from Wood Connection Furniture.  It's my go-to glaze of choice.)  This was the trick, it brought the whole kitchen together.  The antique white just needed a little something to blend in next to my dark cabinets.

The lighter brighter color really did help the whole space.