Friday, March 25, 2011

Recipe for chalk paint- great for painting furniture


I read Miss Mustard Seeds #1 and #2 enthusiastic reviews for Annie Sloan's chalk paint (not the kind for chalkboards or sidewalks- the kind for furniture, walls and floors).  I impulse shopped a quart of duck egg (a blue green mix)- one of my very favorite paint colors- it came- and it is gorgeous!  I also ordered their dark brown wax- I really like that stuff, too.  I ordered from the Southern Insitutue of Faux Finishing and they had two day shipping at no extra charge- very nice! 

Often when I'm antiquing I just add a top coat of a dark wood stain or glaze.  Then wipe away the excess- leaving behind traces of brown.  I tried using this staining technique on some wood that I had painted with chalk paint and the paint sucked it up the glaze so fast I couldn't wipe off the excess- I had to start over and repaint the piece!- So- make sure you use a layer of clear wax before adding the dark brown wax.

I was so excited about chalk paint I wanted to get more- but it is about $35 a quart- pricey.

So, I did what all good crafter/ thrifters do and I looked on the web for a recipe.... and I found one that worked!

I know these recipes say they are for chalkboard paint- but the paint looked really good on the metal I painted.  These are the recipes I tested  here.  You do need to stir these mixtures very well.  I painted some samples and the results looked very similar to the expensive chalk paint.  This paint didn't store well- so just mix up what you need for the day.

To purchase my ingredients I went to habitat for humanity restore and bought Sherwin Williams latex paint for $1.50 a quart in some great colors!  I also used keracolor-U unsanded grout with polymer from Lowes.  The chalk paint is supposed to be thick (kind of like thick cake batter)- so if your recipe turns out too thin just add a bit more grout- if your recipe is too thick add some water. 

Here are the steps for a nice finish:


Clean your wood
Paint with chalk paint
Cover with a clear wax
Antique with a dark wax
Buff and & enjoy


I wonder if I can make my own dark brown wax by mixing paint with clear minwax?
I wonder if I can use wood stain to antique a piece if I just use clear wax over the chalk paint first?
I wonder what would happen if I painted my bathroom cabinets in this duck egg color ? 

3/2012- If your unsanded grout is lumpy you may even want to sift it before adding the other ingredients- this will eliminate white lumps and clumps in your finished project.
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12 comments:

Rissa said...

Is it the master bath that you want to paint in that color? I think it could be cool. It would definitely bring the bathroom to life.

J. Paige said...

Yes, that is what I was thinking of- but maybe I'll just let dad spray them a cream- his spray gun gives them a professional look... what to do????

Annalea said...

Thank you so much for posting this. I've been wondering if the pricey chalk paint was something I could whip up at home. I'm going to try it out as soon as I can get some non-sanded grout.

Which finish paint did you use? Do you think it matters?

And lastly, have you seen this kind of wax? I wonder if it's the same thing . . .

I think I'm going to try this out on a piece of furniture I'm building. :o)

J. Paige said...

The latex paint I tested had a satin finish- I'll have to try some other finishes to see how they turn out-

The wax AnnaLea found sounds like it would work! Miss Mustard Seed has a post with several waxes that she uses- and her furniture is gorgeous!

Don't forget to use a clear wax first- the chalk paint sucks up everything so fast it is hard to control how "antiqued" it looks- unless you put a clear coat of wax on first.

I'd love to see some finished projects!

Rhonda said...

Hi it's Rhonda from Blue Creek Home.
I am afraid that mixing latex paint with wax most likely will not work properly.
They suspend dyes in the carnuba and beeswax - I think it would be sort of like oil and water.
You might try some powdered Universal Tint colorant - it usually works with just about all bases.
I am definitely going to try your recipe for chalk paint before I order the pricey stuff.
Please let me know if and when you link up my blue chest post.
Thanks
Rhonda

The Midwest Cottage said...

So are you just using your color of paint instead of the black to make your chalk paint? Do you have any pictures of furniture you have painted with this mixture?

Pia @HiddenCharm.net said...

So funny- I did the exact same thing with those same ugly hobby lobby tiles on clearance! I spray painted a few and used twine to tie it to a hook for magnets and memos- the others with chalkboard paint. Now I am using some other hobby lobby clearance stuff i got today- cute little wood squares with rusty hooks and a blue ball. this time I'm using the annie sloan chalk paint and decided to google to see if anyone else was doing it- came across your blog. I'm going to try your recipe- I've spent waaay too much money on the chalk paints- over $700 at least! Please post more- I'd love to see your perfected recipe!
Thanks so much for sharing!!!!!

Kerry said...

You may not be able to mix latex paint with carnuba and beeswax, but you can mix chalk paints with Hannant's wax (don't know how the waxes differ).

Also, I haven't read the recipe you have linked to here, but I just read on another blog - equal parts latex paint and plaster of paris.

Grace said...

Briwax makes a clear and tinted ( comes in several wood colors..I like the Dk Brown for furniture)
You can also use the burnt umber / antiquing glaze they have at craft stores..in the small bottles .It's water based so easy to "redo " if you don't get it right the first time. Then can put a coat of clear wax on top of that & buff.
I did bite the bullet & buy a can of AS paint, just so I could see the consistency, how it covers, etc. Price is too prohibitive for me !!!

J. Paige said...

When choosing the latex paint I did not use black- just whatever color I wanted- I can find great colors in quart sized containers at my habitat for humanity store.

J. Paige said...

Thanks for all the great tips and ideas!

Pamela said...

to make your own brown wax,,add shoe polish of your choice to johnsons paste wax,,works just as good..I do it all the time. plus you can use burnt umber oil paints to mix with johnsons paste wax. I just did my front door with it.

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