Industrial chic furniture can be found in trendy homes throughout the country. While the clean lines and industrial appearance of these furnishings vary, many industrial chic pieces feature steel casters that allow the furnishings to easily be moved from one location to another.

If you are constructing some industrial chic furniture for your home, you may want to incorporate vintage casters into your design. Here are two simple tips you can use to make new casters (which are more affordable and easier to locate) look more vintage.

1. Creating a faux cast iron look.

If you want to incorporate the look of cast iron into your industrial chic furniture design, you can easily use permanent markers to transform your steel casters. Since cast iron has a blackened appearance, using a large black permanent marker is best.

Simply cover the surface of the shiny steel with the marker, and allow the marking to dry. You may need to repeat the process a few times to achieve the deep black you desire, especially if your marker is fairly translucent.

Once the black has dried, attach your new casters to your furniture piece, and enjoy the vintage feel of cast iron for a fraction of the cost.

2. Give the steel a nice patina with spray paint.

Aged metal can often be identified by its patina, or discoloration that begins to form over time. Adding a faux patina to your new steel casters with spray paint will give them the aged appearance you desire, while saving you the burden of searching for vintage casters that have been aged over time.

All you need are a few cans of spray paint (gold, bronze, and rust colors work best) and some patience. Use a piece of paper to shield the wheel, leaving only the brackets exposed. Apply light coats of bronze and gold spray paint until you have achieved an aged look that matches the furniture piece you are creating.

Finish the look by adding a dusting of rust-colored paint to really solidify the aged appearance. You can paint the shiny steel wheel of the caster a flat black, and you will have casters that look like they are from a bygone era.

Creating industrial chic furniture doesn't have to be expensive. If you are having trouble locating affordable vintage casters for your furniture items, try aging some new steel casters yourself. Permanent marker can mimic the look of cast iron, and spray paint can be used to create a vintage patina that will transform new casters into great industrial accents.

Contact a company like Garland's, Inc. for more help with casters.