DIY How To Paint Furniture amongst Chalk Paint (and how to last a DIY disaster).

Hey ya'll. So cry back the $50 Craigslist dresser I establish in conclusion month for my TV stand upwards project? And cry back how I said I was going to stain it? 
Well, my initiative off elbow grease at staining a dresser was a total fail. I spent 2 weeks on this thing, stripping it, staining it, hating it, icon it 3 unlike colors, together with ultimately saving the twenty-four hours amongst some novel chalk paint.
Welcome to the latest episode of disaster blog.

So, I've persuasion of a i M one thousand ways to tell this story, most of which involve me leaving out 99% of it, but ultimately I've decided simply to tell y'all everything.
I'm sticking my toe inwards the vulnerability pool. Don't allow me sink.
I forgot my floaties dorsum at the hotel.

Let's rewind to the beginning. I've been working on assembling our living room, together with finding the right sized dresser for the TV has been the hardest part. I'm ordinarily express inwards the budget department, hence I've ever had to assay together with create the best of what I already own.

When nosotros initiative off moved in, nosotros had a really former TV together with an antique dresser (that volition eventually terminate upwards inwards the entryway nook). It was the hottest of messes, together with oddly enough, I yet await dorsum upon that fourth dimension catamenia equally a swell one.

Youth.

Then, Kevin was introduced. It was the worst thrift shop dresser ever, together with no affair how hard I tried...it simply didn't work.

So, during the 3 calendar month catamenia that I was living at Panera together with the floors were beingness installed, I spent a lot of fourth dimension searching thrift stores together with Craigslist for something better.

And I eventually establish just what I needed on Craigslist for $50. 
Here's the master copy Craigslist picture.
I definitely sent Jesse to alternative it up. :)

I was exclusively interested inwards the shape together with dimensions, together with was willing to await past times the orangish forest color. 
So, Jesse hauled it domicile together with I laid it upwards inwards that fiddling extra room dorsum inwards the bedroom. Because although it makes null sense, I emptied out that room together with receive got been using it equally my projection room lately. 

So, this is where the story gets kinda odd. My master copy invention was to strip the dresser together with occupation a combination of walnut stain together with white launder to create a Restoration Hardware look.

I did tons of research, together with was simply for sure that I could delineate it off. 

I succeeded inwards stripping the dresser.....and together with hence totally failed amongst the staining. I didn't realize until AFTER I stripped it that the tops together with sides of the dresser were some sort of pressed forest veneer, together with no affair how hard I tried (even using several unlike products), the pressed forest simply wouldn't absorb the stain correctly. 

Although the staining procedure was a total flop, the stripping procedure was a success. And since I larn hence many questions close stripping furniture, I persuasion it mightiness live helpful to include a fiddling flake close my initiative off experience. 

First of all, I chose to occupation Citristrip stripping gel together with mineral spirits because they barely odor together with y'all tin john occupation them safely indoors (even though you'll yet wishing to opened upwards a window). The exclusively other supplies I needed was a plastic drib stuff (to grab all of the gunk that I scraped off), a plastic scraping tool, some scouring pads, some safe gloves (made for stripping furniture) together with some mineral spirits.

I took all of the drawers out of the dresser, poured some Citristrip inwards a metallic bucket (that y'all tin john larn for $2 at Home Depot) together with simply used a paintbrush to apply the gel to the surface of the drawers together with the frame of the dresser.

I allow the gel sit down for close xxx minutes, together with in i lawsuit I saw it bubble up, I started scraping off the repose amongst my plastic scraper. I was totally amazed at how easily it came off. 
It was weirdly cathartic to scrape off layers of gunk.
It easily removed all of the polyurethane and fifty-fifty most of the stain that was heavily applied to this 50 yr former dresser.

Because this dresser had a bunch of grooves together with hard areas, I together with hence used a scouring pad (and an former toothbrush) to take away the repose of the residue.

After that, I wiped the entire dresser downward amongst mineral spirits (to take away whatsoever of the leftover chemicals) together with and hence lightly sanded the entire thing amongst 320 grit sandpaper.

And that's when I added forest conditioner together with and hence tried to stain simply the top, but when it wouldn't take, I simply chop-chop stripped it dorsum down.  And together with hence I realized that it wasn't a total loss, equally raw forest surfaces are ideal for paint. Cup one-half full, ya'll.

So, anyways, equally I was wandering unopen to the pigment subdivision at Home Depot trying to alternative a color for the dresser,  I came across some novel chalk paint. I've painted tons of slice of furniture amongst chalk pigment (including my favorite dresser), but I've ever made my ain amongst plaster of paris (recipe establish here inwards tip #6).  

Mostly, because I'm actually inexpensive together with simply can't convince myself to pay $50 for the famous form (although I hear it's fantastic, hence delight don't riot.)

So, when I came across this stuff at Home Depot, I was curious plenty to assay it out. 

And, man child did I ever.

And this is the run of the story where my hear tells me to dry out heave amongst embarrassment, but my pump says, 'Onward, girl.'

So, I spent 3 hours icon the dresser black. It seemed similar a actually swell persuasion at the time. But, it definitely was not.

It ended upwards looking similar a large chalkboard, together with I simply wasn't feeling it for the living room.

So, then, I tried to pigment the dresser using the tan color. 

And I moved my workspace out into the actual living room hence that I could receive got a amend persuasion of what it would await similar inwards there.

In all honesty, I persuasion the dresser looked okay inwards this color, but in that place were for sure times of the twenty-four hours when it looked similar a large royal blob against the living room wall.

 I also tried spray icon the master copy hardware amongst fossil oil rubbed bronze similar I used here, together with it simply made it await kinda bulky together with outdated. 

And equally y'all tin john likely imagine, at this point, I wanted aught to a greater extent than than to throw a dresser bonfire party. And invite all the people.

But I marched on.

Finally, I decided to assay i to a greater extent than time. For the win.

 Now, I know icon a slice of slice of furniture white isn't just groundbreaking territory, but I looked through a bunch of inspiration pictures together with establish quite a few white dressers that left me feeling hopeful.

via Houzz

So, I decided to become for it.
 I painted it i to a greater extent than time...white. And together with hence I waxed it, added some modern hardware, together with finally....REJOICE.
Insert tears together with delirious laughter.

So, simply actually quickly, here's what I ultimately ended upwards using.

I used i fiddling offend of the white Americana Chalk Paint named 'Everlasting'. (*Update: You tin john also notice it online at Home Depot here.) The best run close this stuff is that y'all don't receive got to prime number or strip the slice of furniture or fifty-fifty sand it. You tin john pigment over anything together with it volition adhere similar glue. Obviously, I took a actually weird road that involved stripping a dresser together with icon it several times. But, allow me repeat: All y'all receive got to practise amongst this stuff is pigment it direct on whatsoever slice of furniture, fifty-fifty if it has a glossy topcoat. 

Isn't that fantastic? 

You tin john also pigment over a slice that's already been painted, together with it yet works. 

I know. I tested that theory thrice.

And for the finish, I chose to occupation the Creme Wax. All y'all practise is rub it on amongst a lint-free cloth, allow it dry, together with hence buff it to the desired shine. H5N1 wax complete is genuinely i of my favorites, together with it looks hence professional person together with smooth. I actually liked the Americana wax, together with I'll definitely occupation it again. Also, i fiddling $9 offend of wax went actually far. I used less than 1/3 of it on the entire dresser. And I was able to pigment the entire dresser amongst i offend of paint.

For the hardware, I decided to mirror our kitchen cabinet hardware, together with it totally kinda tied everything together inwards the principal living area.

And also, since the dresser was actually former together with basically infused amongst the odor of 1960's cigarettes, I vacuumed out the drawers, together with and hence painted the interiors together with exteriors of each drawers amongst some Kilz primer (to trap the smoke smell) together with and hence I used our leftover wall pigment to coat the drawers. (You may cry back when I did this a pair years agone amongst green paint.) It ended upwards beingness kinda cute....white on the exterior amongst a fiddling popular of grayish off white on the inside.

 In summary, straight off the dresser feels create new, together with I would similar to erase the past times 2 weeks from my brain.

And although the jumbotron is yet dorsum inwards the sleeping room (where we've been living), I ventured out into the living room for the initiative off fourth dimension since February, laid upwards the tiny TV, together with door pigment to create some dark together with white fine art that I framed over the sink. It's basically a scribble, but it seemed to work, hence yay.

And that, ya'll, is finally all.

I'll live dorsum inwards a calendar week or 2 amongst the dining room reveal.

'Til then!

P.S. Thank y'all for making it all the agency through some other long together with awkward post. 

10 points for beingness a soulsister.

That's all for today! 'Til side past times side time!

To banking concern tally out to a greater extent than slice of furniture icon advice, y'all tin john banking concern tally out my overstep v slice of furniture icon FAQS here.

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