Annie Sloan Round 2

It's that time again. That time where I endorse Annie Sloan Chalk Paint like my life depended on it. If you remember last year, I blogged a post about an ugly coffee table I did and how easy it was. Just to recap, here are the reasons I love this paint:

• totally avoid sanding, de-glossing, priming, sealing etc
• I am able to paint in my house without dying of the stench
• how fast the paint dries
• the lustre look the wax gives

SO when my mother in-law was in town we decided to start tackling my kitchen table.

(I thought I got some good before pictures--guess not). 

We decided with the colors duck egg and off white. Last year, I just used the clear wax. But we thought we would add some dark wax to this project to give it a little more rustic look.

Tip: the clear wax can act as an eraser if the dark wax comes on too strong for you. Just add the clear wax on top of it until you like the shade. Below you can see the dark wax added to the right side. I had to lighten it up quite a bit after I took this picture.

Then after the wax dries for 24 hours you can start buffing it uppp. It takes about 30 days for it to completely "cure."

I am still working on the chairs but so glad we no longer need to have a living room picnic for dinner. For more tips and detailed tutorial, check out my post from last year.

Martha

We joke with Mom that her new sport is decorating. The house transforms with every holiday. I don't mean just the normal (almost cheesy) decorations you can buy. We're talking starting from scratch. She makes mostly everything have her own touch. She paints, glues, mode podges, and puts together three different things to make nothing come together into something brilliant. My favorite this past year has been, like I've said before, her table settings. Growing up, dinner as a family was a huge deal. We were always home from our friends house or after school activity by dinner time so we could always have it as a family. It makes it a lot more fun when you have a gorgeous table to sit at. I feel like I'm at Martha Stewart's home every time I come visit. Way to go Mama!

I have told myself that I am stealing every last one of those reindeer napkin holders.
Ps she just modge-podge tartan fabric onto chargers. They turned out amazing!

Annie Sloan

I was excited for my Mom to come visit because she usually gets me motivated to decorate or paint something. She makes things seem super easy too. So when I told her about a coffee table that was on it's way out the door to Goodwill, she brought up the idea of painting it. Well call me lazy but these were my issues:

-the long process (sanding, deglossing, priming, sealing blah blah)

-paint smelling up my house

-having to paint outside in the hot humidity

Then my Mom showed me Annie Sloan Chalk Paint. I was able to paint in my house and I couldn't believe how fast the process went!

Get your piece of furniture and make sure it is clean and ready to paint on. That is really all the prep you need to do so just start painting! It's a fast process because the chalk paint dries so quickly. I read many tips online saying that you don't want to use repetitive brush strokes. Instead use long fluid strokes. Try not to go back and forth over your same paint strokes {that took a little bit for me to get used to}.

Your first coat should be super light and you may even see the wood coming through. Once the first coat dries {I think mine took seriously fifteen minutes} go ahead and put on the second coat. The tip that I read online was to "kiss" the tips of the brush in a little water to help the second coat glide on smoothly.

After your second coat dries, that is when you want to distress your piece if you are wanting to. Once your piece is painted and distressed (or not) it is time for some waxing! A lot of people online used Annie Sloan's waxing brush for this step but some used a thin cloth or even a ripped t-shirt. Apply a small amount of wax onto the cloth (or brush) and then apply to the surface of the furniture. As you are applying it, you are also brushing it into the piece of furniture with a good amount of pressure.

Online they advise you to cover a two foot area, then take another cloth and lightly rub it down to remove any residual wax {extra wax does not make it dry the way you want it to}. Repeat this process over the whole table. Twenty-four hours after the waxing, take another cloth and buff it to bring out the smooth luster the wax can give it.

We are going with an ivory, red, and black color theme to my living room so I went with an ivory for my table (which actually looks more white in the photo). Still trying to find the perfect drawer knob for it. I am already in the process of doing the same thing to two of my new nightstands because of how easy and fast it is. The wax makes the table feel so smooth and clean! I am now addicted to Annie Sloan Chalk Paint.

Here are some of my other favorite Pintrest pieces of people using the chalk paint:

Lamps, mirrors, chairs

Kitchen cabinets

Headboard, walls, & nightstands 

homemade canvas

When I was in Utah, my sister in-law and I wanted to do a little crafternoon session. I saw a tutorial for a homemade canvas that I was really wanting to try. Margaret had some wood laying around in her garage so that was perfect (you can easily pick up wood from Home Depot or Lowes). She chose a skinnier piece of wood that was the exact measurement for her picture and I had a thicker piece that could stand up more like a picture block.

1. Paint your block the color that you want the background to be. 

(In Margaret's case, only the sides would show the color)

2. Once the paint drys, cover your wood with GLOSS-LUSTRE mod podge so the
wood has a shiny look to it.

3. Once you place your picture where you want it, cover the whole thing 

with mod podge evenly.

*if it's not even, you may see lines after it dries* 

the white color is normal when you first put the podge on

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We loved how they turned out and I am currently making a few more that I can hang on the walls!