Is there a piece of furniture in your house that does not fit in with the rest of the room? An accent cabinet that stands out….in a bad way. Maybe a chair that doesn’t match or that side table that needs updating. For me, it is a tall brown wooden storage cabinet in my master bedroom. The rest of the room’s furniture is a beautiful and elegant dark black wood. This cabinet obscenely stood out and I was determined to fix this decor problem without having to buy something new. But how?
Enter one of the easiest and most inexpensive ways to update your furniture; chalk paint.
The beauty of chalk paint is in its simplicity. It requires no prep or prime; just apply and let dry. No sanding, no varnish, no polish. Just you, the paint, and a paint brush. It is readily available at any craft store and comes in a myriad of stunning and stylish colors.
Let me share how I did a DIY furniture makeover using chalk paint with you.
1)Buy the supplies.
For this project, I needed paint, paint brushes, and brown painters paper. I went to Michaels and used my 40% off coupon to buy this 16 ounce jar of Art Minds chalk paint in Onyx. I already had paint brushes and brown paper form past painting projects so this paint was my only purchase.
2)Decide where to paint the furniture.
I opted to paint in my master bathroom. Chalk paint does not have a horrible smell so it is an easy indoors project. For me, I knew the majority of this project would be done at night while my children were sleeping so indoor painting was mandatory.
3)Prep your project area.
I laid out rolls of brown paper on my bathroom floor. I wanted to have a 1 foot perimeter area around my furniture pieces to catch any splatters, spills, or drips.
4)Remove and set aside all hardware.
5)Clean the furniture piece.
You want your project piece to be free of any dust, residue, gunk, prior to painting. Though my furniture was clean, I still wiped it down using warm soapy water and a microfiber cloth to get rid of any oils from my hands while transporting. Then I waited 30 minutes for it to completely dry.
6)Paint.
Now the fun part, PAINTING! As with all painting projects, less is more. It is important to not over saturate the brush with paint in effort to cover more area quickly. Trust me, an over saturated brush means clumps, drips, and streaks. The cover up and removal of those drips are a pain and take up precious time. For my first coat, I started painting the top of the cabinet and then did each side. I painted the door last.
The first coat was streaky. I could see the oak color through the paint. I was a little worried about the streaks but decided to wait and see what it would look like once the first coat dried.
Painting hack
In between coats, put the wet paintbrush in a ziplock baggie and store it in the fridge. This keeps the brush wet and ready to use the next time you need it.
7)Paint the second coat.
Once again, less is more. I made sure to lightly paint the second layer as well.
8)Let the furniture dry completely.
I waited over night to make sure the newly painted cabinet was completely dry.
9)Reattach the hardware and admire your handiwork.
My DIY project cost a mere $9 and each coat of paint took 30 minutes to do. My old oak cabinet now fits in with the rest of the bedroom and I could not be happier. What piece of furniture in your home needs a DIY chalk paint makeover?
