BEFORE |
AFTER |
For this project I used Amy Howard At Home One Step Paint. It is a type of chalk paint that is sold at a nearby store. I had not previously heard of this brand, but it was 5 minutes away from my house so I went with it. I watched the tutorial video on their website and was ready to get to work.
What I loved about chalk paint is the fact that you don't have to strip, sand, or prime anything. You just wipe your furniture clean and start painting. My piece needed two coats for good coverage, but it dried really quickly so that wasn't a big deal. The paint was very drippy at first, so it was hard to make it look smooth. Then as I got to the bottom of the can I noticed it was very thick. I'm guessing I didn't get it mixed well at the beginning and next time I'll know the consistency I should look for.
After my second coat had dried, I held my breath as I started distressing it bit. I hated to mess up all of the painting I had just done, but I love the look for distressed furniture, so I started sanding the edges and natural areas that would be scuffed and scratched up a bit.
Next I added the light wax. They offer a light and dark option, but for this piece, I wanted it to stay pretty much the color of the paint so I went with the light (which seemed pretty clear to me). Because of the finish of the chalk paint, it is very dry or chalky looking and I had read that it would scratch very easily. Adding the wax is kind of like a top-coat. I wish I could remember where I read this, but somewhere online I read to think of the wax like lotion. When you put lotion on yourself your skin can only absorb a certain amount and the rest just sits on top of your skin and needs to be wiped off. This wax works in a similar way. The paint can only absorb a certain amount and the rest needs to be wiped off. I will say a little goes a long way as far as the wax is concerned. After the wax dries (in about 30 minutes) you just take a clean cloth and buff the piece a bit to give it a little shine. I'm not sure that there is a particular technique to this step, but I just used an old wash cloth and started rubbing it down. As you can see below, it gives it about the same sheen as a satin paint would.
Overall, I am really happy with the way the table turned out. It isn't perfect, by any means, but for my first real attempt at chalk painting furniture I'm pretty proud of myself. It looks really cute in Little Mama's room and she LOVES it so that is really all that matters to me.
I had read and heard a lot about Annie Sloan chalk paint before starting this, but honestly I was lazy and didn't want to drive about 25 minutes more to pick up a can so I went with the stuff close by. I don't know if a different brand of pant would have solved the imperfections I had, but I think next time I will try the Annie Sloan brand just to make up my mind about which I prefer.
I already have a list of other things I'd like to try to paint so I can't wait to get started on those. Let's just hope it doesn't take me 6 months to get them done, like this one did!
Follow us on Pinterest HERE.
Follow us on Instagram HERE.
It looks great! Good job!
ReplyDeleteI still want to see the dresser you did!!!
DeleteThis is a really good read for me. Must agree that you are one of the coolest blogger I ever saw. office cubicles for sale
ReplyDelete