DIY Painting with Chalk Paint

I've been painting furniture for longer than I can remember. But until recently I have used traditional paint which meant sanding, priming, painting, sealing, glazing, and sealing again. I've used latex as well as oil paint. Chalk paint is the newest thing in the world of paint. Annie Sloan, the chalk paint guru, actually developed her chalk paint over 20 years ago. According to her website, chalk paint is very easy to use and can be used indoors or outdoors and on just about any surface, including wood and metal, even floors and upholstery.

Now Annie Sloan isn't the only chalk paint out there but certainly the most popular. You can even make your own. My daughter and I have. Just be sure to stir well. Here is our recipe:

1/4 cup of Plaster of Paris
1/4 cup of Water
1 Cup of Flat Paint (craft or acrylic paint is fine)

Here are some of our recent projects...

The Fireplace using homemade chalk paint

The Banister & Stairs using Homemade Chalk Paint

Table using Homemade Black Chalk Paint and Annie Sloan Old White

The first thing we did was to paint the table using our homemade black chalk paint. Several coats! Next we used Annie Sloan Old White. I love the way Annie Sloan paint goes on. It is completely water based and low VOC. If it gets to thick, you just add water. I think we put on three coats of the final coat but the joy of chalk paint is that it dries so quickly.

Next we sanded a bit for a distressed look. There was a reason for painting it black underneath! Finally you have to put a finish coat on top. Here is where I have a problem. I have always used polyurethane when finishing furniture. However, Annie Sloan recommends you use wax. For the table I used a Minwax product and had a hard time rubbing and buffing. In fact, it needs another coat. They told me at Chalk It Up in Norcross, where I bought my paint, that I should use Annie's wax because it was made to work with her paint. I thought the cost a bit high particularly since I already had the Minwax so I used the Minwax. Maybe I should have listened! So when I went back to Chalk It Up, I asked about polyurethane and was shown a line of polyurethanes that is designed to work with Annie Sloan Chalk Paint. It is called Clear Finish by Artisan Enhancements and has a nice satin finish. The nice thing about Clear Finish is that it is a water based, no VOC, all natural, non-yellowing acrylic varnish. So for our next project we will be using Clear Finish.

Speaking of our next project, here it is...