9/15/2015

Chalk Paint Console Update

by Heather on 9/15/2015

Chalk paint is not a new thing.

It might be a scary thing, but certainly not new.

I love the idea of chalk paint. I don't love it's price.

I'm a cheapskate, and that statement would make my husband proud.

So I found {THIS} recipe via Pinterest. It's amazing.

It also doesn't hurt that I was able to get a tub of Plaster of Paris for 50% off at Michael's. Yay coupons!

I seem to have a penchant for starting project on items that I'm currently using, and plan to continue to use during the project. Makes my project planning super fun and easy. Not!

I decided to jump into the chalk paint with our TV console.

This is the 2nd time I've painted this console. The first time was 4 years ago, before I was really confident in my decorating and color choices. I was still feeling my way around things.

Please don't look at the feet of the console. I didn't paint them. Ooops. Oh well. Character and all that.

There was nothing wrong with the first green. It was Metro Green by Valspar, and it was fine. That was its problem. It was just 'fine'. I wanted more than 'fine'. I wanted a small right hook to the family room. The room has been that shade of orange for 6 years, and it's not changing any time soon. I am in love with that color orange, but that doesn't mean other things aren't going to change and get updated.

I followed the recipe I mentioned above and used leftover paint from the kitchen update {See it Here}.

I knew that I didn't want the piece to be all matchy matchy with the kitchen, the plan was always to glaze it. I had a bottle of Valspar's Antiquing Glaze and knew that it would add the depth I wanted. It'd also change the color of the paint enough to be different from the kitchen.

I did do some searching on how to glaze chalk paint and discovered that a single coat of water-based polyurethane would seal the porous chalk paint. So I picked up a quart of Matte Varathane Water-Based Polyurethane. I am never going to use another poly. Ever. This stuff is incredible. I've used all types of polyurethane, water-based and oil-based, and I am never going to touch the others again. I cannot describe how awesome this product is.

So after applying one coat of the poly, I liberally applied the glaze. I wiped off the glaze, with damp paper towels, until I had the build-up in the corners that I was looking for. I then added another coat of poly, after the glaze had dried for 2 days.

Then it was time to address the cabinet doors. I'd hammered out the center panels of the door frames before I had a firm plan as to what to replace them with. I knew that inspiration would strike. It struck in the form of expanded metal. It was perfect. It didn't match the hardware I'd found at Ikea, but I could make it match. After husband cut down the pieces, it was just a quick matter of spraying each piece down with water, and then applying a quick and dirty coat of satin black spray paint.

Voila! Instant character!

The hinges got the same treatment. And then I merely stapled the metal to the back of the door frames, and they were ready for handles.

Now that's all that's left to be finished is the drawer front where the audio and cable boxes are. I know what I want to do, its just making sure the idea will work with the remotes. Dang remotes.

We're hoping to move Baby Girl's toys into the now empty drawers, and maybe, hopefully, reclaim the family room a bit.