Saturday, June 30, 2012

Chalk Paint Console Table



Remember this poor fellow? I picked him up at the very end of my big rummage sale-ing day, in spite of the fact that he was in pretty rough shape.

His previous owners had broken off the drawer slides, and decided to fix it smear the entire drawer and frame with wood glue in hopes that it would stick.  FAIL! They obviously then gave up on him, but I could see a glimmer of potential under all that sticky yellow stuff, and took him home for me for the grand sum of $5.



Because he was made out of laminate (which was peeling in places), instead of “good” wood, I didn’t have any qualms about painting over his shabby exterior.  And I knew immediately what I would use—CHALK PAINT! After all, isn’t EVERYBODY using chalk paint these days? :) Actually, I had heard glowing tales of this wonder paint— goes on over everything, even nasty veneer? And no sanding before-hand? Now you’re talking!

But since $30+ for a quart of paint is sort of out of my budget, I decided to go the home-made route. Instead, I used this recipe that I stole borrowed from the Gardners to Bergers blog:

2 parts paint

(They say to use flat latex paint,

but I used satin exterior latex)

1 part plaster of paris

(which I got with a 40% off coupon at

Joann Fabrics- wahoo!)

Just enough water to make spreadable :)




I found this incredible shade of aqua/seafoam in the mis-tint aisle at Walmart (it’s Glidden’s Satin Exterior Latex), but I’m definitely going to have to find its matching shade, because I’m in LOVE with this color! This was really a jump out on the color limb for me—I tend to play it safe in the color department (if it’s not white, brown, or black, then it must be green! LOL). But I’ve been inspired by all of the turquoise yumminess  floating around blogland & Pinterest lately, and by the new curtains that I recently hung in my dining room:



Don’t worry, I plan on doing a full “dining room reveal” once I get my 99¢ chandelier hung (i.e. when I can talk Mr. Superman into hanging it—somewhere in between doing the body work and paint on his truck, taking his plumbing masters exam, and finishing up the new apartment :-) )


So, anyway, I mixed up my fancy homemade chalk paint (it was a lot clumpier than I expected it to be- the plaster of paris never really dissolved [Edit: next time I'll follow one of my helpful readers' suggestions and mix the plaster with the water first, before adding the paint) and went to town on my poor table—first with a foam roller, then adding another coat with a foam brush while it was still damp. I found that the foam roller seemed to make a blotchy finish, and the foam brush kind of streaked it on—but between the two, they created a nice, thick, even coat of paint. I didn’t even need a second coat! Once I let it dry, I wasn’t too happy with all the lumps of plaster on it, though, so I grabbed hubby’s sander (I love playing with his power tools!) and went to town, ending up with a lovely distressed finish. :)


(And, yes, I did the sanding right here in the dining room, because I couldn’t wait to get it into the house to see what it was going to look like! LOL… Tell me you’ve never done that!)
Then it was on to the hard part—accessorizing and styling my beautiful new table! If you’re anything like me, you change your displays dozens of times before you actually find one that you’re satisfied with (and even then, you feel the urge to switch it around a few more times!) I finally settled on the tabletop arrangement above—though I’m still looking for a larger white platter to replace the white plate (that I wrote a quote on with a dry-erase marker. Remember my aversion to permanence?)



So what do you think? The night after I painted it, I literally laid awake worrying if the color would be too bright for my house... but the more I look at it, the more I'm in LOVE with it! It brings the perfect pop of color into my dining room. Most importantly, every time I look at it, I smile! :)



And for a $5 table, I don't think it turned out half bad! :)



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30 comments :

  1. GORGEOUS!!! I think the color is amazing...it really spices up the whole place. love it love it love it!!!!!

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  2. Well, let's just say as soon as I give you a glowing review, I am pinning this! Love the color and can't wait to see a $.99 chandelier. Hint: Dissolve your plaster with the water and mix well before adding it to the paint.

    Distressed Donna Down Home

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    1. Awww, thanks! And thanks for the tip, too. I'll definitely be using this recipe again, so I'll try that next time :)

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  3. LOVE the way it turned out! I can't believe what an incredible transformation you brought about....
    Love your idea of buying plaster of Paris at JoAnn with a coupon. I've been pricing it at hardware stores and was disappointed in the high $$$
    Thanks for the tip!

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  4. Thank you! I haven't priced the plaster of paris anywhere else, but it's normally about $6.99 at Joann's... I paid $3.50 for it with coupon (and I still have a lot left!)

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  5. Very pretty! I am in love with home made chalk paint!!

    Enjoy your new sideboard. xox

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  6. Two words-love it! I love aqua; if I could paint everything that color and get away with it, I totally would.

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  7. Kathryn, Your console table turned out beautiful. I love the color you used to add a spot of whimsy to your room. You have it styled perfectly. I really like the wall arrangement above it too.
    I'm happy to be a new follower, and hope you'll stop by, Mary Alice

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  8. Great transformation, love the color! And you sure can't beat that price! :)

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  9. Looks FANTASTIC! You should be tickled turquoise.:) I love the picture arrangement above the table as well as the styling of the table itself. I think a large white platter in the center would be the perfect finishing touch. Can't wait to see more of your new curtains!

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  10. This is fabulous! I love the color and I love that you made the paint yourself.

    I'm your newest follower via GFC. I'd love for you to link up this project to my party, Cooking and Crafts. http://www.jamscorner.com/2012/07/document.html

    Have a wonderful day.

    Julie
    www.jamscorner.com

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  11. Oh it is awesome!! I'm so jealous!! $5??? I guess I need to start going to garage sales more often! I'm needing an entry table so bad!!
    Would love for you to share this at Show & Share today!
    www.vintagegwen.com
    Happy 4th!

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  12. This turned out so nice! I love the colour... it's so fresh.

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  13. What a pretty piece that you breathed new life into!
    I would love if you stopped by my linky party happening now to link your projects up!
    Stacey of Embracing Change
    http://staceyembracingchange.blogspot.com

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  14. I featured this project on my blog. Feel free to stop by and grab a button. :)

    Julie
    www.jamscorner.com

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  15. WOW!!! I absolutely love the color and how it came out. Super impressive :) Please consider linking up at hearts&homes link party on www.mercyinkblog.com

    happy friday!
    lauren

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  16. I love this!!! I'm your newest follower and will be featuring your console tomorrow!!! XO, Aimee

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  17. I am loving your table! Awesome job! I see a feature in your future :o)
    Stacey of Embracing Change

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  18. Thanks so much for sharing this at TheWinthropChronicles.com, this will be featured tomorrow!

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  19. Featured you! Nice job :o) Come over to see!
    Stacey of Embracing Change

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  20. I really love this table. You did a great job with the paint and with accessorizing it. I really need to try your chalk paint recipe. I'd love for you to share this at my link party. http://adventuresofadiymom.blogspot.com/2012/07/thank-you-again-for-time-you-all-take.html
    Rachel

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  21. Yay! You linked up! Joining the band wagon and featuring this in tomorrow's Show & Share! :)

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    Replies
    1. Awesome! Thank you so much for inviting me, and for the feature!

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  22. I love it!! Perfect colour!! I too have just tried home made chalk paint, and like you will try it a bit different next time.
    Saw you at Adventures of a DIY Mom party
    Debbie :)

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  23. I am all about the aqua ... your table came out awesome. I really appreciate you linking up to our party!! :)

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  24. I just love the color! And I'll need to remember that mix the plaster with water first ...

    Thanks for sharing at our Crazy for Color link party!

    :)

    Linda
    www.itallstartedwithpaint.com

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  25. It's the perfect piece of color in the room! So glad you came to our Color party!
    Kelly

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