BEFORE
Faced with dated brass bathroom faucets but don't want to get rid of them or replace them? Perhaps you should try spray painting your bathroom hardware!
DURING
It never occurred to me that it would be possible to spray paint a faucet and hardware, so when I saw this post on Addicted 2 Decorating, I actually squealed with delight. I love it when someone else goes through all the trial and error. This looks like an intense project so it's lucky for us that Kristi put together a little how-to on her blog.
The main work of this project is the sanding and taping of the hardware. Kristi sanded and sanded the hardware to prep it ... and then she sanded some more. Following the sanding, Kristi went back over everything with steel wool and then with a damp cloth. After the hardware was prepped, it was time to cover everything in tape and paper. Just as Kristi was very thorough in her sanding, she was exact with her taping.
Then it was finally time to paint! Well, it was finally time to prime, anyway. Kristi stresses the importance of using a good spray primer in her post and I believe her. Spray paint is only as good as the primer you apply. Once primed, Kristi applied 2 coats of Rust-Oleum spray paint.
AFTER
Goodbye dated brass and hello modern matte black! The finished hardware looks like a million bucks! To see the full how-to post on this project, visit Kirsti's blog: Addicted 2 Decorating.
(Images: Addicted 2 Decorating)
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Very cool! Glad they were were able to work with what they had!
I think it would have been better to remove the fixtures. You would have saved time, spent less $ on blue tape etc, and less mess in the bathroom. All in all, the faucet looks great!
This is way cool. i did not know you could spray paint sink fixtures.
@st8ygold, in what world does a installing a new faucet save money and time over a couple rounds of spray paint?
i really like this. can you imagine what colors you could use!
st8ygold isn't saying to replace them, s/he's saying they should be removed, then painted, then re-installed.
I assume the homeowner didn't know how to remove and re-install them. No biggie.
This paint won't scratch off?
It absolutely does scratch easily. I painted doorknobs with oil-rubbed bronze over brass plated hardware and everywhere that's been touched by my husband and kids is scratched up like crazy. I primed the pieces first, also, but it still scratches easily. I only touch knobs with my hands (no keys in my hands or rings on) so I guess I don't scratch them but everyone else in my family apparently does.
Ooopps! Thanks wrenz!
I meant that you should remove the fixtures etc. since it would be more cost effective.... It isn't that hard. Youtube should have some good DIY's on how to remove a faucet.
I also think over time the paint will come off. I've seen painted knobs & other metals, and the paint scratches off easily. However, Rustoleum does have some very good products.
Apparently you can also get them metal-plated in place without removing them. Have to get someone with a plating kit to do it, though.
Spray-painting is fine for the short-term though! Especially if you can't afford someone to come in and plate them or to replace everything. You'd need to use wickedly strong spray-paint, though. Something like automotive quality or appliance epoxy.
they look great!
I did the same thing in my own bathroom (I even followed this same tutorial). After I got started, I realized that our fixture wasn't even made of metal, it was cheap plastic. So I skipped the sanding and priming and just gave it a good coat of Rustoleum multi-surface paint (or whatever the type of paint is called that can be used on plastic). It's been about six months, and there is not a single scratch. I did the flusher on the toilet at the same time, and all the paint is almost gone. Definitely works better on the plastic faucet than the stainless steel flusher.