Today I wanted to share my first attempt at refinishing furniture by making my own chalk paint. The great thing about chalk paint I heard is you don't have to sand or strip the projects before painting, saving lots of hard work. Sign me up for this short cut!
So I snatched up this old desk on Craigslist for $20 and went to work...literally-if you know me, you know I went to work right away and didn't want to stop until I had a finished project but it RAINED which was so frustrating! Anyway, it did eventually get done but here is where we started. UG - ly!
Keep in mind when selecting peices to re-finish that you want a solid wood piece -not veneer - that is still in functioning condition (i.e. drawers open easily etc.).
I started by mixin' up a batch of DIY chalkpaint...2 parts paint ( I went with Valspar in "Man Cave" greyish color) and 1 part Paris of Plaster. Mix REALLY well so you don't get chalky white blobs when you start plaint. It will be thick and almost looks like rising dough - very airy & fluffy. Then get started painting...
This chalkpaint is so thick that it covers well in 2 coats and dries to a chalky matte finish. I let mine dry over night and then went to work sanding using a combination of our electric palm sander and 120 grit regular sand paper for the more detailed areas.
The chalkpaint worked like a dream for the distressed, slightly chippy finish I was going for! It exposed the wood along the creases and on the leg details. For my piece, the wood originally was a light Oak stain and I wanted something darker so I coated the piece with a Mahogony stain to get the darker wood look.
Lastly, I wanted a slightly shiney finish so I decided to have the hubs seal with a layer of Shellac.
(I don't have the patients required for spray painting anything yet!)
Here is what she looks like...sans handles which are still being painted.
Overall, I loved the experience of working with the chalkpaint and look forward to re-doing more Craigslist finds!
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Katie
J2J
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