If you've traveled through the magical realm of Pinterest in the last year or so, I'm sure you've heard about the wonders of chalk paint (once or a THOUSAND times). Prior to this fall, I had never tried chalk paint, but was very curious to see if it lived up to all of its' glory. People have been preaching that it's SO EASY to use and goes on nice and smooth, not to mention how simple it is to distress. I decided to set out in search of this mystical creature only to find out you can't buy this stuff anywhere! It's like a unicorn... rare and hard to find! I checked every paint and hardware store around here and EVERY cashier just gave me blank stares. This is how the average conversation went:
Store Worker: Hello, can I help you find something?
Me: Uh, hi, yes I'm looking for chalk paint.
SW: Chalk paint?
Me: Yeah.
SW: Like chalkboard paint?
Me: No, it's different. It's chalk paint... like Annie Sloan or Cece Caldwell brand.
SW: Like the black paint you can write on?
Me: Noooooooo. That's chalkBOARD paint. I need CHALK PAINT.
SW:....... I don't know what that is. Are you going to write on it?
Me: #*&)$*&)(%*&)*&)*(&@)*&@*(!!!!!!!!!!
After much anguish, I went back to Pinterest in search of a recipe for chalk paint. I figured if you can't buy it you could probably make it, and boy was I right. I found an AWESOME DIY Chalk Paint recipe from Diane at In My Own Style. She has soooo many choices for making chalk paint, but I settled on this one:
The Plaster of Paris recipe worked great! I used it with Clark and Kensington's "Gypsy Carivan" (my spirit color) and spruced up an old desk that was given to me by a coworker.
{GyPsY CaRiVaN!!!!} |
I used the dry brush technique on the sides and drawer faces and stained the top English Chestnut. If you're not familiar with dry brushing, it's an easy way to distress without a lot of sanding. Basically you just get a little bit of paint on the brush (dip the tip of the bristles in the paint, up to about a half inch) and work it over the surface. You are creating thin coats that let the natural grain of the wood or surface show through. Make sure your first coat is on the thick side in order to prevent having to do many coats (time consuming)!!
VOILA!