How to Upgrade Metal Fixtures (without spray paint!)

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This living room renovation is sponsored by The Home Depot.

Goodbye, chrome! This simple hack will allow you to paint any metal surface in your home without having to deal with the mess and fumes of spray paint.

Living room light fixture after upgrading the finish with Rustoleum's high heat enamel paint. A simple hack for upgrading metal fixtures without using spray paint indoors! #chrome #brass #howtopaintmetal

First off, I can't believe I waited so long to try something this simple, because my living room literally looks transformed with $30 in materials!

If brushed nickel is your thing, I apologize in advance. I hate brushed nickel and the previous owners of our house put it everywhere.

I guess it's still slightly better than '90s brass.

Our Living Room Renovation

If you're new here, hello and welcome to the start of our living room renovation! Here's what the space looked like in the beginning.

Before living room renovation sponsored by The Home Depot. Going for a modern farmhouse look, I've updated all the outdated chrome metal fixtures with Rustoleum enamel paint. — Before

Pssst - If you'd like to see how the final reveal turned out, skip on over to this post!

One of the first things I did was paint the walls a bright, happy color (Benjamin Moore's Chantilly Lace) and update all the brushed nickel fixtures. It always bothered me, but I guess I assumed I was going to need to spray paint it, so I never touched it with anything else.

This renovation was the push I needed to change these finishes. After a little research and elbow grease, our fireplace has gone from this:

Living room fireplace before upgrading the chrome metal finish with Rustoleum's high heat enamel paint. A simple hack for upgrading metal fixtures without using spray paint indoors! #chrome #brass #howtopaintmetal — Before

To this!

Living room fireplace after upgrading the finish with Rustoleum's high heat enamel paint. A simple hack for upgrading metal fixtures without using spray paint indoors! #chrome #brass #howtopaintmetal — Now

Did I mention this cost about $30!? And I have enough leftover materials to basically refinish all the brushed nickel in my house.

Ready to get your project list together? Here's what you'll need.

Supplies

Wiping cloth
Painter's tape
Sanding sheets (220 grit is fine)
Paint brushes
Rustoleum metal primer
Rustoleum high heat enamel (for fireplace)
Rustoleum protective matte enamel (for lights, fans, etc)

*Note this list includes affiliates links, which means I will make a small commission should you purchase anything recommended here.

Steps

Step 1: Gently remove any dirt or dust from your surface. Our fan in particular was loaded with dust and needs to be cleaned every few months because it's a dirt magnet.

Step 2: Give your surface a light sanding using a high-grit sanding wedge. This will help open up the "pores" in your metal so your paint has something to adhere to.

Step 3: Tape off any unwanted areas and lay down painters' tarps to protect the area.

Prepping your surface for Rustoleum enamel paint! Goodbye chrome and ugly brass finishes.

Step 4: Prime your surface with the metal primer recommended earlier. Use light, even strokes for good coverage.

Step 5: Once the primer has dried (about 10-15 minutes max), paint your surface with the appropriate Rustoleum enamel product. I used the high heat finish for our fireplace and the basic enamel finish for the light fixture. I needed 2 coats for good coverage.

Note: these are oil-based paints, so they're a bit different than your run-of-the-mill latex paint.

they dry very fast (dry to the touch in about 1-2 minutes!)
use denatured alcohol to clean your brushes (dish soap won't cut it)
it has a little bit more of an odor than latex paint. I didn't need a mask, however, as the fumes were minimal.