Adventures in Making My Own Chalk Paint

Happy Monday!  It’s a short week, so it’s a very happy Monday!  I just got back from a nice long weekend trip with my family.  I’m feeling refreshed and ready to eat some turkey.  How was your weekend?  Did any of you go see Breaking Dawn?  I’m going tomorrow night with some friends, and I can’t wait!!!

Enough chit chat, let’s get to the adventures shall we?  First off, do you know Sherry from No Minimalist Here?  Well, she is the genius behind my adventure in making chalk paint.  She actually found three different ways to make your own version, and you can read all about it right here.

I had this console table behind my sofa in my family room.  I never loved it there mainly because it was a black table against a dark brown leather sofa on a black floor.  Basically it just looked really heavy and dark.  You almost couldn’t even see the table.  Take a look for yourself.

I had already removed the accessories in the above picture but you get the disappearing table idea, right?  It’s like where’s waldo.  This Pier 1 table that I purchased years ago was the right size though, and I liked the shape.  The easiest way to change the look would be with paint.  And that’s how this adventure began.

I wanted to avoid priming mainly because I wanted to distress the table to have a little of the black show through.  I had a specific shade of blue in mind for this table, and the real chalk paint didn’t come in this color.  I’ll be honest though, I mainly just wanted to see if Sherry’s version of chalk paint would really allow me to skip priming.  Considering that her version would only cost me $6, I figured it was worth the experiment.  So, I picked up some Plaster of Paris at Lowe’s and began making my own chalk paint.

There is no specific formula, and as I mentioned before Sherry found that there are 3 different ways you can make your own paint.  I chose the Plaster of Paris route because it was the easiest thing to find.  I would say I mixed about 2 parts paint to 1 part Plaster of Paris.  The more P of P you use the more of a chalky look you will get.  The paint will thicken up a bit.  If it gets too thick you can add a little water, but I never had to do this.  I did notice that you have to mix really really well.  In fact, I’d recommend using a whisk to mix instead of a wooden stir stick.  Whisking it in will make it mix together very smoothly.

The first coat I did was a light blue-grey.  I did not sand first, and I did not prime.  After the first coat was dry, I used a little gold rub ‘n buff on the edges.

It worked!  The paint stuck without priming or sanding, and it distressed beautifully!

This was not the color I was trying to achieve though, so I mixed in a little craft paint in phthalo blue.  I just added it right into to my homemade chalk paint and mixed.

Again, this wasn’t the “right” color.  So, I mixed in a different shade of blue craft paint – navy blue.

 I was working at night, so I decided to wait until morning to access the color situation.

I woke up to this.

Nope, still not the color of blue I was trying to achieve.  It was time to mix up a new batch of homemade chalk paint.  I grabbed the navy paint I used on my son’s bedroom ceiling, and added another coat of paint to the table.

Ahhhh, finally I’d found the right color.  Then I distressed the edges allowing the different shades of blue to peak through in areas and also some of the original black color.  I love the worn edges.

There are even a few hints of the gold rub ‘n buff showing through!  I applied 2 coats of satin polycrylic to finish.

I’m in love!  You can actually see the table now!  I wanted the color on this table to match the color of these old books.

It was an adventure trying to get to the right shade of blue but it was worthwhile.

I love this blue against the brown leather sofa.  This combination of colors is one of my favorites – brown, blue, red, and black.

I’m really glad I decided to try Sherry’s version of chalk paint.  It was easy to mix and use; and let’s not forget how inexpensive it is compared to the real thing.  It only cost me $6!!!  I only had to buy the P of P since I already had the paint.  I’ve never used the real chalk paint, so I’m not going to say that this was better.  What I will say is that it gave a chalky finish and allowed me to skip priming.  Holla!  Sorry, but that deserved a  – Holla!  You know it did!  In addition it was very easy to distress.  I’m also loving that you can make any color you want since the real chalk paint only comes in a few shades.  The homemade version just gives you an alternative.

Have any of you tried making your own chalk paint?

Linking up at My Uncommon Slice of Suburbia, Savvy Southern Style, Home Stories A to Z, Thrifty Decor Chick