Tonight I’ve got more from Katie and Sam’s place. If you have a piece of furniture sitting around your house that you have been itching to paint, but are too nervous to dive in…read this post. I’ve used lots of refinishing techniques before…but tonight I’m telling you about a product I just tried that is simple to use and left me with fab results.
I really wanted their home to have a “lived in” look to it, which was kind of tricky…because on many of the rooms we were starting from scratch and building something totally brand new. One thing that really helped give their rooms some character was refinishing and repurposing pieces that they already owned {like that rad grandfather clock} and selectively buying new or new-to-them pieces that looked like they’d been around a while.
Through the process of creating that lived-in look…I refinished a lot of pieces. This was super fun and a great learning experience. I didn’t tell them at the time…but I kind of guinea pigged with their items–trying new techniques and products to see if I could unearth a new product that I loved. And I did!
I could write an absolute love story about how much I adore Zinsser and Rust-oleum products. If you read my blog, you probably know I’m in love with these product lines. So when I was at Menard’s {my home away from home} for the zillionth time that week…and a new, pretty end cap featuring a new paint line from Rust-oleum caught my eye…I was immediately itching like a kid with pox for a project to try it out on.
The product feature was a display for Rust-oleum’s “Chalked” paint line. It’s pretty, chalky colors that go on with the tenacity of chalk paint and dry to a smooth, chalky finish {something that hides flaws much better than a high gloss coating.} Paint comes in brushable cans that can be tinted to lots of colors or sprays that come in limited colors.
When Sam told me that he wanted their fire place painted {because he, like lots of us hates clashing wood tones} I knew this was the perfect opportunity to try out that Chalked line. I loved it. It was so easy to use. It turned out great. If you are thinking of refinishing your first ever piece of furniture…I highly recommend starting with this line–it was that easy to use and the results were outstanding.
Here’s what I used. If you read the post on the grandfather clock–a lot of this will look familiar. Once you’ve got the basics you’ll be set to refinish lots of pieces!
- Zinsser’s deglosser. This strips away and dulls furniture’s existing finish so you can repaint without sanding or fully stripping a piece.
- Bull’s Eye 1-2-3 Primer. Although chalk paints claim to go on smoothly without primer or any kind of surface prep–I’ve always found that laying a base coat is a good idea. Your paint will go farther and the finish will adhere better.
- Spray paint nozzle. It costs like $2 and will change your life.
- Chalked in Chiffon Cream–When painting a piece of furniture “white” I always opt for a cream or off-white option. It hides dirt and feels less stark.
- Java Brown glaze–I had this left over from my cabinet redo several years ago. A little goes a looong way. You can also use wood stain if that’s more readily available to you.
- Chalked clear top coat–to seal in your finish and protect its longevity.
I tried something new tonight–putting the instructions right on the image. Do you like? I’m kind of torn.
At any rate…it’s just that simple. Follow all the instructions on all of the packages. Do this all in a well ventilated area–or outside on a not-windy day…it’s pretty smelly, and it’ll dry faster. I promise you. If you can follow instructions, you can do this.
The trickiest–most artistic–part is the glaze. But even that isn’t too hard. I think glazing pieces makes a huge difference. Look at the difference between the painting and glazing steps. The glaze defines all the cool detailing on the mantle. Suddenly, the ridges and grooves that were all but lost when it was naturally finished stand out like the star of the show.
If you are spray painting something with a glass front–like this–be sure to fully tape/paper it off so it doesn’t collect spray dust. Let ‘er dry and bring it inside.
Have you used Chalked? What did you think? Is there a product you’ve tried and loved? If so…I wanna hear about it! {And NO–Zinsser and Rust-oleum don’t give me any bribes for plugging their products. I just genuinely love them.}
Amy
