Paint perfect stripes!

This week’s makeover is a curb shopped cedar chest. It was dirty and in rough shape but it had good bones and we knew it could be quite the charmer. We decided on a Hudson’s Bay inspired look that seems so fitting around this time of year. Below we’ll show you how to paint perfect stripes. This technique for how to paint straight lines not only works for furniture, but really anything, including walls and canvases!

This post may contain affiliate links. See our Disclosure Policy for more details.

The Before – cedar chest

Below is the before picture. As you can see, this chest wasn’t very appealing as we found it. In fact, I offered it to my sister to refinish and even she declined. The next one’s for you Bridget!

We made some repairs, cleaned it, scuffed it up and gave it 3 good coats of Cottage Paint’s Cottage White Serenity mineral paint. You can read more about why we love mineral paint here.

The process – painting perfect stripes

Step 1 – measure

Decide where you want your stripes and how thick. Use a measuring tape at each end and a couple mid points to mark out where your will tape. We just use a pencil for making these markings.

Step 2 – tape

Use painter’s tape to tape along the outside lines of the stripes you want to paint. We usually use this brand.

Step 3 – paint base color

The trick to getting perfect lines is to paint your bottom main color along the inside edges of the tape. Painter’s tape isn’t perfect, and this paint layer will bleed a bit under the tape. But that’s okay because it’s the same color underneath! Painting along the tape line with your undercoat will seal the tape so your next coat, will NOT bleed under the tape.  

Pro Tip! If you are painting stripes on wood and do not have a painted finish underneath, use a clear sealer, like acrylic varnish, to seal along the inside tape edges.

Step 4 – paint stripe color

Paint your stripe color on the inside of your taped lines. Wait a couple hours and apply a second coat. 

We used Cottage Paint’s Crimson Red, Tamarind, Forest Shadow (with a little Peacock blue and Tamarind added) and a mix of Blue Blazer and Carbon to get this Hudson’s Bay inspired look.

Step 5 – dry and remove tape

Once your colour coats have dried well, slowly remove the painter’s tape. You should be left with perfectly straight lines and no paint bleed!

If, by chance, you have a slight bleed in some areas, use a small touch up brush to correct it with your base paint coat colour.

Step 6 – seal

No matter what paint you’ve used, we recommend you use a top coat to protect those crisp lines! We sealed our piece with a flat acrylic varnish like this. 

For the final touch, we replaced the hardware with matte black bin pulls and wooden knobs. 

The after – perfectly straight lines on this Canadiana chest

This is the first piece Stuart asked me if we had room to keep! This should tell you how pleased we both were with how it turned out. And painting straight lines doesn’t have to be tricky! The piece just makes you want to grab a blanket and get cozy. We hope these gorgeous stripes will bring joy for years to come!

What do you think of this makeover? Do you have any tips or tricks for how to paint perfect stripes? We’d love to hear from you in the comments below!