If the piece you are working on has all it's hardware, but you just don't love it, or it doesn't fit with the new look you old furniture is sporting, paint it!
The key to success in painting hardware is to put your paint on a flat surface, dip you brush in it, and then dab it back off, so that you are working with a fairly DRY brush.
For these knobs and backplates, I used CeCe Caldwell's Kansas Wheat and Simply White. In this photo, you see the hardware with the first coat in Wheat.
It helps to brush in a clockwise fashion. Don't dab down into the grooves, or try to get complete coverage with the paint. Let the brush naturally highlight the details. This gives you more
visual interest when you are done.
A simple way to let you knbos dry without touching the edges or having to set the knobs down and disrupt the paint on the edges is to put them on toothpicks and insert them into a foam block.
The last step is to wax your knobs lightly after they have dried. This will set the paint.
If the knobs have heavy use, some of the paint may wear eventually. This will only contribute to
the aged or antique look of your piece. However, you will be surprised how well
CeCe Caldwell's Chalk & Clay Paint adheres to bare metal!
Here is my little Knob Garden drying. Can't wait to put them on!
(If you are replacing hardware that has backplates with hardware that doesn't not,
see my post on replacing old hardware for tips.)
