Beautify furniture: Apply custom-made adhesive films yourself in 3 steps

The closet is too boring, the chest of drawers is worn out – no reason to sort out the trusty pieces of furniture. Tired of old furniture also means: finally time to let your creativity run wild.

If you want to design your living room in a new color concept, you don’t need to purchase new furniture. Why not skilfully showcase chest of drawers, tables, cupboards and other furniture with sophisticated adhesive films?

The advantages: You not only benefit from the uniqueness, but also from a cost-effective alternative to purchasing new ones. The Furniture foil is available to fit perfectly and self-adhesive in various designs and decors. Plain colors, wood look, stone look or patterns – there are no limits to the variety of combinations.

Before the decorative film is applied, the surface of the piece of furniture should be thoroughly cleaned. Important: do not use cleaning products containing silicone, because this impairs the adhesiveness of the films. The following also have no place on the ground:

• Fat residue
• Dust
• lint

So that the film can be optimally processed later, lay out the individual pieces beforehand. This not only saves time, but also ensures the correct order.

In terms of sustainability policy Such design ideas are becoming increasingly popular. If you have little manual skills, you should have the furniture film cut to fit in advance. Important: Stay calm and work one after the other. Follow our instructions for the best possible result.

3.1. Step 1: Prepare surface

In order to apply the furniture film dry, a bit of sensitivity is required. First the surface is prepared. It applies, Remove residues such as grease or lint. If hinges or handles are installed, these should also be temporarily dismantled for better film processing.

If there are scratches or depressions on the surface of the furniture to be covered, these should definitely be repaired before applying the film. The smoother the surface, the more beautiful the foil image will be in the end. Once the surface is prepared, you can get started.

3.2. Step 2: Align foil

Each adhesive film is provided with an additional backing paper that must be removed before application. Be careful, never remove the entire film at once: This would prevent the film from being applied as desired. Better: first remove approx. 10 cm of the protective film and place the piece of furniture film on the desired surface, align it, readjust it and press it lightly.

First, the backing paper on the back is peeled away from the furniture film, starting from one corner.
The released self-adhesive backing is then aligned on the surface to be foiled and the first piece of foil is pressed on with the included squeegee so that there are no bubbles. If the film is to be stuck around the edges, make sure to leave enough material overhanging.

The film is then placed further onto the surface and the backing paper is gradually removed. Step-by-step processing is particularly recommended for large-area foiling. Between the individual peel-off layers repeatedly run a squeegee along the surfaceto smooth out imperfections and air bubbles.

Danger: If this is only done at the end, unsightly inclusions are often left behind. If air bubbles are particularly stubborn, it is best to pierce them with a fine tip to allow the air to escape. The puncture marks may be visible on some films (especially on particularly dark, monochrome designs). It is therefore recommended to work gradually and precisely from the start so that the air bubbles do not form in the first place.

3.3. Step 3: Finally lay the film

In the next step, the backing paper is carefully removed from under the film and the furniture film is pressed on at the same time. If air wrinkles form, the furniture film is lifted up again and pressed again with the squeegee. The film can then be stretched using a certain amount of force and thus laid tightly and without bubbles, even around corners.

As soon as this is the case, press carefully and brush out any excess air bubbles. It is working either with your fingertips, or better with a squeegee. A soft, lint-free cloth also helps to optimally process large-area films in particular.

4.1. Avoid leaving residues on the film

Sometimes the films don’t stick properly, especially at the corners. The result: unsightly, protruding edges and creases. To avoid this, make sure your fingers are free of grease when processing the film.

The corners are particularly predestined because we touch them with our fingertips to apply the film. It is better to use glovesto avoid residues on the film.

4.2. Cut off the overhang, but do it correctly

The film size is not always determined optimally. Sometimes the surface design or the soft dimensions can cause some film to protrude. This unsightly result must of course be corrected, but correctly: To avoid unsightly and “eaten” cut edges, make sure you have a sharp cutter knife with which to shorten the furniture film precisely.

To avoid an odd edge, It is best to cut along the edge of the furniture. If it cannot be used as a guide, be sure to use a ruler or other straight object.

4.3. Better a little more than too little

Old Design furniture with a new look – thanks to the many film variants, there are no limits to your design imagination. There is a common beginner’s mistake when measuring the adhesive film: measuring to the millimeter. In order not to waste any of the valuable adhesive film, people often work too precisely. Anyone who cuts with millimeter precision often finds that some of the film appears to be missing after it has been attached to the furniture surface.

The material clings to the piece of furniture, meaning that a few millimeters can be lost. If there are even patterns on the piece of furniture in the old look, it is still More generosity when cutting the furniture film asked. It is better to measure a few centimeters more when adjusting the film and cut it off later.