Wednesday, September 14, 2011

Before and After Side Tables


                       A few weeks ago, I participated in Design Challenge HERE.


There were a number of people who suggested that I paint some of my furniture to brighten up my great room. One of the blogs that I read talked about this new (to me)Annie Sloan's Chalk Paint.
This is a link
What got my attention is that you do not have to sand or prime before painting. Now that is my kind of deal. I want instant gratification. All I would have to do is purchase the paint online, along with the special wax and special wax brush.


I am a very frugal person so this was a stretch for me to pay $35 a quart and $35 for a special brush. Biting the bullet, I ordered online. My bill including shipping was $205, including shipping. I ordered on can of Old White, one of Old Ochre, a can of clear wax, one of dark wax and two brushes.


The company that I ordered from was extremely efficient and my supplies arrived within the week. At this website you can find some really good tutorials and info on where to order the supplies.  


  
These are my before shots. Very nice, but i thought rather boring. Plus, they were chosen by my husband's ex wife. And they just were not mine, if you know what I mean.

Taking the tables out to the garage , I was excited to work on them and make them look, well, distressed and kind of country French. I applied the Old White to the legs only and the Old Ochre to the top. The shades between the two were not as different as it looked online. (I applied 2 coats of each color.)  Sooooo.... I decided to add the dark wax after applying the light wax first. That is where I ran into trouble. Even though I applied the dark wax very sparingly and with the "special" brush, it got to be a mess. I sanded off the top of each table and re-painted. Actually my husband got interested and started to help me. Then I tried it again...applying the light wax first, then the dark. A mess again! I had to use a lot of the light wax to remove the dark wax. I don't know if I like the before or after photos. Maybe it will grow on me. Jim really likes it. Here they are:





These are pre-buffing. I am about to go out and buff them right now. And you know what i discovered? A clean shoe brush works best for me. Jim picked one up for me from Wal-Mart and it works great!

I am not giving up on Chalk Paint. Maybe I will improve on my next project. It was fun and a learning experience.
I am linking up to All things furniture features and party:







http://frenchcupboard.blogspot.com/


Peace and joy of Jesus be with you today and always!

♥Charlotte

10 comments:

hootnonny said...

Hi Charlotte,

I prefer the after! You did a great job in making them "yours!" Can't wait to see them in use!

Have a great weekend!

Gail Dixon said...

My mother has these EXACT tables in her living room and I've always admired them. What a neat process that chalk paint it. I like the fact too that you don't have to sand and strip them first. I love how they turned out! Especially for a 1st try I think they're awesome. :)

Tammy@Simple Southern Happiness said...

Now that is a project right up my ally, you gave those tables new life.
I like the fact no prep work. That is the hardest dustiest part.

Charlotte Wilson said...

Thanks for the encouragement, my friends!

Rosemary Aubut said...

Great job, love the makeover!

Anonymous said...

I really like them!! I'd love to see what they looked like after polishing. I also like the idea of no sanding or priming, etc. I like quick and easy. Great job and thanks for letting us know about chalk paint!

hootnonny said...

Love the banner I was greeted with this morning! You'll have to tell me how you did your blog name!

Am fixing a tomato pie and butter beans for a luncheon today. A couple of friends are coming over and one I fear is bringing a lemon pie!!!

Lisa Gordon said...

Love the after Charlotte.
I think they are great.

Richard Cottrell said...

I wish I had come up with this chalk paint concept, somebody is making a killing. Every body on the blog circuit is doing it. Doing it, doing it! Richard from My Old Historic House.

Kristin @ Chi-Chi Studio Designs said...

I think they look great! The dark wax can really be tricky to work with, but I think you did a great job!

Thank you for stopping by my blog! Also--since you read the clear wax tutorial, I thought you'd like to see the dark wax tutorial, too.

http://restorationhouseinteriors.blogspot.com/2011/10/annie-sloan-paint-wax-tutorial-by.html