Refinishing furniture with Chalk Paint for First timers

There are a million Chalk Paint How to's on the interwebz, but I finally decided take a stab at it myself. I learn best by doing, so there was only so much I could read before I actually bit the bullet myself. My motivation? We have a few small furniture pieces we need on the 1st and 2nd floor, and I'm all about finding them on craigslist and refinishing. On Saturday night we stayed in, and I was completely determined to finish an old night stand that we are now using as a lamp stand on the 1st floor. 

 

Now, Annie Sloan paint isn't cheap, it runs at $39 smackaroos a can - which is supposed to cover two large furniture pieces - and if you wanna cover it with wax, that is another $30 bucks a can. Overall, it gives furniture a great shabby chic look, so I think it's very much worth it.  Especially when you compare it to buying NEW furniture. I mean geesh, we all know that can annihilate any bank account. 

 

So, as I know very little about this paint - I called up my sis-in-law Sara, and she gave me the skinny. She's the expert chalk painter in the fam, and here is what I learned. 
 

First find it - Annie Sloan Paint isn't sold everywhere. Go to their website and find out who sells it. I bought my two cans at Michella's in Old Town Spring. What I liked about this place was the samples they had. Sounds weird, but keep reading.  

Wax on / Wax off - Every chalk paint color can be fininished with clear wax, dark wax, or a combination of both. Or you can forgo wax all together - to really get the chalk look. Your waxing decision will make a big difference in the final look of your piece. These sample boards below really helped me decide: 

Now for materials - I've got all the usual suspects below. But most importantly - the dish rag and water (not pictured here) are the most important. And as soon as you open up a can an door into your paint container - seal that sucker right back up immediately. Exposure to air changes the consistency - which you don't want to happen to unused paint. 

Before we get started - here's my little night stand turned lamp table before - pretty ugly - I know. I liked this piece because it was small, and I figured would serve as good practice. I recommend everyone start out small, because even this small piece took me about eight hours (four on Saturday, 4 on Sunday). 

Now, I've sanded this piece, which isn't always necessary with chalk paint. But since this piece was dark, and my paint was light - I knew it was required. I also think any piece looks better if sanded. Obviously it is up to you. I have also heard about liquid sand paper to save time, but I didn't have any and will try that on my next project. 

 

Then I started painting. This was after the first coat. What's most important is I dipped my brush in water occasionally, then wiped off excess on the rag to help the paint go further. Some people dilute the paint outright, but I heard this brush in the water trick is easier from Sara. 

Here is the rag and water bucket toward the end of the project 

On Sunday I was finally finished. I'd say I put three coats everywhere. Places that weren't sanded well probably had four coats. Excuse my old, ugly hardware.

I plan to get something new in the future. 

this color is Arles - and has no wax finish

And that was my first go at chalk-paint furniture painting! I wish I was looking forward to repainting the six chairs in my dinning room. 

But I am not. (So much left to do in this room!!) 

Over and out!! -Tessy.