My Intro to Chalk Paint

My Annie Sloan Chalk Paint

arrived in the mail a little over

 two weeks ago.

(I purchased it from Tammy at Periwinkle Pass:

she combines the shipping when more are ordered,

she was very prompt in sending it,

and she gave helpful tips about the colors of the paint.

On an added note, her son who answered is the

most respectful child I've heard on a phone

in a long time.

I think I'm going to train my kids to say, "Ma'am.")

I've been pining to try it on some furniture;

but

wanting to see how it works

before I attempt those daunting 

top kitchen cabinets,

I decided on some small things first.

I love this basket,

but it has seen better days.

 It's sturdy and a nice size

but it held fake flowers on the porch for a few too many seasons,

 and the discoloration

and tired look it wore

needed some rejuvenation.

(Tiger is obviously enjoying this photo session.)

 

 While I was experimenting,

I thought I'd clean this one up as well

(I cut the handle off on it).

 So after a thorough washing

followed by a day or two of drying,

I opened up the paint.

It was thick,

and I was amazed at how far it spread.

 I watered a little down to do on the inside of the basket,

but used it straight on the outside.

One coat covered this up nicely

and it looked like nothing had been removed from the can.

 I did the other basket in Old White,

but the shiny red covering on the skin of this basket

bled and turned it pink.

I thought this might happen as it bled terribly

when I washed it.

So after the white/pink dried,

I painted a coat of Provence.

This didn't turn pink at all.

 I added a light second coat as well.

I waxed both baskets after they were dry

with clear Fiddes Wax

and a touch of the Rugger Brown wax.
(Miss Mustard Seed introduced me to the wonders of using waxes
as well as Chalk Paint.  Her tutorial on waxes is
>HERE<)

  Isn't it great the way the colors on this basket came out?!

This little blue basket is taking the place

of the torn one

that couldn't take the heat of the kitchen.

I love the variety and spot of color

and know it will be even nicer once the cabinets are painted.

 The wax seemed to dull down the color just a little

and made the color not so flat on the baskets.

 It looks like a lively basket again,

ready for years more use.

 I am impressed with Chalk Paint.

Very.

I'll have to show you the mirror I painted for over the living room mantle

sometime soon.

And I'm trying to decide on this one,

what do you think?

Do I paint the table top with chalk paint

or

leave it?

 

I just got the table top off of Craig's List.

The original was glass.

Can you guess what happened to it?

I'll give you a hint,

he had his fishing pole used for catching magnitized fish,

and there was a magnet on the end of the fishing line.

One more hint:

the "he" wasn't my Farmer.

Linking up with:

Week Long Blog Link Party

 

Between naps on the Porch: Tablescape Thursday