Chalk Paint- A Very Beginner Guide
I have painted nearly every piece of furniture in my home with chalk paint. I know it's crazy but I'm pretty indecisive and thrifty and we move A LOT and well I can't be buying new furniture for every house, so what's a girl to do? duh! Paint all the things!!!!
Everyone is always asking me about chalk paint, what is it? why do you use it? where do you find it? What kind of brush do you use? do you really have not have to sand? So here I will answer all those questions!!
1) What the heck is chalk paint? Is it like chalkboard paint? I don't want to write on my furniture!!
Basically, Chalk paint is a matte paint that can be used on furniture and other items to create a chalky/matte appearance It's used for creating an aged appearance, and can be distressed very easily.
2) Why would you use it?
Most people are attracted to chalk paint because they whole "no prep required" promise. which is great sounding but in my experience there is a BIT of prep work you need to do. Do you need to sand? No, but if your piece has say scratches in the surface, bad water stains or old chipping paint, you will need to sand a little bit. Common sense here. I love chalk paint because as the most impatient creative person ever, it dries quickly and goes far (I said I was thrifty remember?)
3) Where do you find it?
Years ago there was only one and that was The wonderful Annie Sloan, now nearly every company sells their version. Lowes and home depot both have "chalky finish" type paints, folk art (sold at Joanns), I personally love the Waverly brand from walmart its less than $6 a jar, lasts a long time and is readily available. If I had to rank them I'd say Annie Sloan is my favorite. To find Annie Sloan you need to find a stockist who carries it. You can find that here.
4) Do I need a special brush?
Yes and no. They DO sell special chalk paint brushes like this one, however you do not need it. I was using chalk paint with a Purdy brush or blue hawk decently priced brush from Lowes forever.
Recently though I decided to get a real chalk paint brush and UM HELLOOO where has this been all my life?!!
Y'all, it's amazing. The paint goes on so much better, its quicker, better coverage. I bought one off amazon and its been great. It does shed a bit the first few uses but it gets better. So learn from me...just grab this brush it'll make your life so much easier!
5) What about waxing and buffing and all that stuff?
So one of the main reasons for using chalk paint is how easily you can distress it. But it DOES chip easily if you don't seal it. So you definitely need something on top to protect your gorgeous piece. You can use clear wax, which wont affect the color too much, dark wax..which will...make it darker like dark brown in spots for a more distressed look. You can also just use a clear coat of polycrylic which works great for high use surfaced such as a coffee table or kitchen table.
You also need to buff if you're using wax. I love using wax, it goes on smooth and once you buff it to a beautiful shine it just really brings your color to life!
If you want to buff quicker, get this awesome drill attachment!! It makes buffing a breeze!
So there you have it, that's the BASIC and I mean basic run down on chalk paint. If you want to see some Annie Sloan chalk painting project head over to this post check out this dresser transformation we did.
Happy Painting!
Sarah
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