Painting varnished mdf (not remotely exciting)

[pickledparsnip]

Hello!

I want to buy some cheap Argos bookcases, but paint them to jazz them up. As I understand they are just varnished mdf. Is it possible to paint straight over the top? Would I need to sand them first?

DH (painter) says light sanding then paint with oil based paint

Brilliant, thank you so much!

Or you can get something called Zinsser B-I-N which means you don't have to sand and can just paint straight over.

When you do the painting go to Tesco or Asda (or anywhere similar) and buy a cheap mini roller set (~ £2.99) and use the foam roller to paint with - this way you don't get any brush strokes and get a really nice finish. Don't use the fluffy roller as it leaves bits behind and doesn't look so smooth.

Alternatively B+Q sell a universal spray on product that you can use. We've just painted an Ikea desk with some of this and it looks good.