How to Emboss Furniture DIY

I completed this project a few months ago, and have loved it, so I thought it was blog worthy!  It also qualifies, since it is simple and quite easy to do.

Embossing can be done on any piece of furniture, or in this case, an existing built in buffet. 

This is what the cabinet looked like before I embossed it.  When building the house, I knew I wanted this piece to look like a piece of furniture, hence the Queen Anne legs and the hardware I chose for it.  

To get started, you need:  Painters tape, a stencil, putty knife (or knife I use for icing), and wall spackling paste.  

I found this stencil online at Royal Design Studio.  This Micah design fit my cabinet size, and I did modify on the drawers.  I taped off the center medallion so it would fit on either side of my drawer pull.  This one measures 4.7" X 21"  and is priced $25.

Wipe down your furniture piece with a wet rag.  When dry, center and secure your stencil to the cabinet or drawer.  Load your knife with spackling, and evenly glide it across the stencil.  If needed, you can go back and add more to areas that are uneven.  

I did a small section to show you...Now, I would go back over it with the knife, scraping excess spackling into stencil design, but off the surface of the stencil itself.  This helps keep the spackling even when you peel off stencil. 

Once you've filled in the stencil with spackling, carefully lift it off.  Clean off any excess spackling, and secure it to next section.  Let the spackling cure and dry for 24 hours.  I lightly sanded the edges that were sharp, or slightly uneven.  Next, I painted the stenciled sections the same color as the piece and let that dry for 24 hours.

Last step is to antique it.  This is my all time favorite go-to Antiquing gel.  It's a deep brown gel that I water down.  (Any acrylic dark brown paint will work as well, just water it down quite a bit)  My rag of choice, is the cloth diaper!  Still have some of those hanging around the house.  (14 years ago they were burp rags! Ha!!)  Anywho...dip the rag in the watery paint and wipe on piece.  Make sure to get it into the crevices, then wipe off excess until you like the look.  You can wipe on and wipe off as much or as little as you like.  

And, it doesn't have to be perfect.  If you notice, in my final pics, the antique finish is varied.  Once the antiquing process is done, just let it dry.  I have not put on a protective coat of poly.  It seems to be holding up fine without it, but certainly could if your piece needed extra protection.  

Would love to hear about the pieces you emboss!  Have fun!!

Find me at this link party French Country Cottage

Restore Interiors

Faded Charm Cottage

Miss Mustard Seed

Coastal Charm