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Furniture Finishers

Shape, finish, and refinish damaged, worn, or used furniture or new high-grade furniture to specified color or finish.

What you’d do

  • Brush, spray, or hand-rub finishing ingredients, such as paint, oil, stain, or wax, onto and into wood grain and apply lacquer or other sealers.
  • Fill and smooth cracks or depressions, remove marks and imperfections, and repair broken parts, using plastic or wood putty, glue, nails, or screws.
  • Smooth, shape, and touch up surfaces to prepare them for finishing, using sandpaper, pumice stones, steel wool, chisels, sanders, or grinders.
  • Remove accessories prior to finishing, and mask areas that should not be exposed to finishing processes or substances.
  • Remove old finishes and damaged or deteriorated parts, using hand tools, stripping tools, sandpaper, steel wool, abrasives, solvents, or dip baths.
  • Treat warped or stained surfaces to restore original contours and colors.
  • Select appropriate finishing ingredients such as paint, stain, lacquer, shellac, or varnish, depending on factors such as wood hardness and surface type.
  • Mix finish ingredients to obtain desired colors or shades.

Skills that matter

  • Active Listening
  • Critical Thinking
  • Monitoring
  • Judgment and Decision Making
  • Operations Monitoring
  • Speaking

How to get there

Little to some preparation: usually a high school diploma or GED, though some jobs do not need one

Also called

  • Finisher
  • Furniture Finisher
  • Lacquer Sprayer
  • Sprayer
  • Finish Repair Worker
  • Hand Sander

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