A First Date With Chalk Paint

I’ve seen almost exactly 257 pins and blog posts about different chalk paints and the various projects that folks do with them.  Last Sunday morning I decided I wanted in on the chalk paint game.  This is how that went…

If you remember (and thanks if you do), I bought a little sample of chalk paint during my visit to Fort Worth Vintage Market Days.  The brand is Oh Lola! Vintage Paint and the color I got was “Antique Egg Blue”.  I really wanted “Marseille”, a delightfully buttery yellow, but Yadi (the owner) said she sold out of that early.  I wasn’t surprised.  That yellow was hot.

Anyway, when I bought the sample, I was already pretty much set on using it to update this pathetic little stool I had sitting around.

You know the one.  Most of us have had or even still have one of these.  That sad little $10 blonde stool sold by that one huge retailer.  I actually got mine from the same warehouse sale where I bought my file cabinet that I painted.  It was maybe two bucks or something.  It seemed to have a checkered past, judging by the nicks and paint spills.

Chalk paint was the perfect match for this stool.  If you didn’t already know, you don’t need to prep your surface when using chalk paint.  No sanding, no priming.  Just a wipe down to remove dust and dirt.  Also known as a lazy Sunday project dream.

So I broke out my tiny Blue Hawk brush and got to work.

The first coat provided awesome coverage.  It was thick but not gloppy, and a tiny bit went a LONG way.

I went ahead and did a second coat (after an hour long nap) since there were still bits of blonde wood poking through.

This next part was a random idea that popped into my head after my nap.  I let the second coat dry for a couple of hours and then broke out my hot glue gun and a ball of polished hemp rope.  I marked the middle of the seat, glued the rope down and started working in a spiral from the center, gluing as I went.

Always be careful with your glue gun, kids.  I’m currently sporting a less than sexy blister on my wrist.  Sometimes my arms get flail-y.

The final step was to pad the feet of the stool.  I was going to use some felt from my craft stash, but since I was already in the rope-spiraling mood, I went ahead and made cute little spiraled hemp foot pads.  I really did that part just for me, unless you want to come over and turn my stool upside down and take a look.  In that case, I did it for us.

The stool ended up being a little more “farmhouse” than I expected, which isn’t really my style, but I kind of like it’s simplicity.

I’m still not sure whether it has a permanent spot in my home, but I did enjoy making it!  The chalk paint was a lot of fun to use, and I’m excited to have another go at it.  I’ve got more than half of my 8oz sample left (I only needed about 3oz for this project) and I’m sure I’ll find a good use for it.

If you decide to try this yourself, you’ll need less than one ball of polished hemp rope (you can get it pretty much anywhere – even the dreaded W), a glue gun and about 20 glue sticks, chalk paint, a paintbrush and a smidge and half of patience.  Definitely doable for the novice and experienced DIYer alike!

What do you guys think about chalk paint?  Love it, hate it?  Do tell…