Or: If at first you don't fricassee.... (a cautionary tale of chalk paint)
The first time I ever toured this building, I noticed a sideboard in the back that was being used for storage. After visiting a couple of times and slyly looking at the sideboard, I started to think, "That's about the right height for a checkout counter, right? I wonder how attached my landlord is to this..."
Being that my landlord is *amazing*, he was happy to leave the sideboard behind so that I could use it in the store. It was the perfect height for a counter and had shelves that I could see being very handy to store bags and office supplies in.
I normally am super hesitant about painting over wood, because I like wood...but a picture started to form in my mind, and the unpainted sideboard just didn't meet my vision. Plus, after moving the sideboard away from the wall, I discovered the back was basically an unfinished panel, so something would have to be done about that.
I didn't fancy sanding or priming, so I knew it would have to be chalk paint. I headed over to town treasure The Tattered Peacock and marched straight to the back where all the pretty, pretty paint is and picked out a lovely color called "Mint Julep."
Round 1: I totally know what I'm doing.
I grabbed some other chalk paint I had lying around the studio and a chip brush and got to work!
My first step was painting the sideboard all green. It made me instantly happy!
Then...and this is where we learn that I am not a chalk-paint-pro...I had the grand idea to try something that I vaguely remembered called the "dry brush technique." I didn't research or watch a video. I just broke out my other paint and thought, "I can do this!" 🙄
It went...okay. I tried to put minimal amounts of white paint on my brush and dab it off and then brush it over the sideboard in a carefree cottage chic manner...but it just seemed so streaky.
(And I'm not anti-streaky. It's just not what I was going for at this time...)
The white paint, which in my head was going to be an accent, was way more concentrated in parts than I had envisioned and completely overtook the green.
(I have since researched and if I were doing this again...I would do a coat of white first, and then dry brush the green over it.)
I told myself, "Maybe I'll grow to like it." I slept on it overnight, took a look the next morning, and still wasn't persuaded. I mulled it over, reviewed my business budget about 15 times, and then decided to just start all over again.
Round 2: Let's try that again.
Back to the Tattered Peacock! I grabbed another jar of Mint Julep and a small jar of Whitewash glaze.
This time I just did a quick, light coat of the Mint, mainly to cover any big streaks of the white paint. The previous attempt did now add some depth to the piece, which I thought worked nicely.
Next, I read the directions on how to apply the glaze and got to work. The glaze went on very easily. I used a similar technique to what I did the first time, but the results were more subtle. Because the glaze has a thinner consistency, I also had more control over spreading it out and deciding in which areas I wanted more or less glaze.
I was much happier with how this turned out! The glaze added a nice finish and luminance to an otherwise flat surface.
Round 3: Finishing Touches!
Because I figure this piece of furniture is going to get a lot of use, I wanted to add a protective coat. I have been using Polycrylic for many years now across various wooden projects, and it never fails. I chose a glossy finish, because I figured that would be easiest to clean, especially if something ever spills on the counter.
And voila! Now, the counter is almost* all done and ready to meet new customers!
*I have an idea for the front, but that is a project for another day.
What about your experiences with chalk paint? Have you ever had a project go awry? How did you fix it? Share your chalk-paint-tales in the comments below!
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