Hey there! Hope you’ve had a great week! I’ve been working on a project that has taken up a good chunk of my time, but I think it’s paid off.

 

The Dining Room Chairs are DONE!!!

 

Whoo Hoo!! I’m pretty excited to say the least because this is a project that’s been a year in the making. Last summer we bought a set of six dining room chairs with the hopes of giving them a bit of a makeover.

 

 

It took me awhile, and some time on Pinterest, to figure out just exactly what look I was going for. I had a pretty good idea, and then fate stepped in and gave me a little help, too. I won a quart of Annie Sloan Chalk Paint (ASCP) in Old White at Haven, and an awesome Purdy brush came in our swag bags. “Time to paint the chairs, Beth!” They were practically shouting at me. (And luckily the paint made it safely home after getting shoved into my suitcase and put on a plane. So glad it didn’t open up and get all over my clothes!)

 

I have never used ASCP before, but I’ve only heard great things about it and was excited to try it out. I love that this is a low-fume paint because it has been so hot here this summer, I had to paint inside. No problem. The paint didn’t even make my house smell like paint. I’ve heard that with Old White especially, you need to use two coats. I found this was the case for me. This is after painting the first coat.

 

Another great thing about chalk paint is that there is no sanding or priming beforehand. I’m grateful I was able to skip those two steps because I had six chairs that needed the makeover. Could you image how long that would have taken? Shoot me in the face.

 

Four of the six chairs got two coats of Old White, but I wanted the two head chairs to stand out. A 4 oz. sample of ASCP in Graphite also came in my Haven swag bag, so, taking a great tip from Stacy @ South Shore Decorating, I combined the two colors to make a light grey.

 

I was surprised at how fast chalk paint dries! By the time one chair was painted, I could go back to the previous one and touch up or add a second coat. Everything dried in about an hour or so.

 

Once everyone had their coats of paint, I used fine grit sandpaper to rough the edges up a bit. The “chalk” part lived up to its name! There was lots of chalky dust after sanding…it reminded me of banging erasers together at school.

 

 

Because we will be using the chairs often, they need a protective coat. You can use varnish on ASCP, but furniture wax keeps the finish more matte than glossy. ASCP purists recommend using Annie Sloan wax, but I used Minwax Paste Finishing Wax because of the lower price, and because I could pick it up at my local hardware store. (Please don’t hate me forever, Annie Sloan peeps!)

 

The wax was easy to apply. It didn’t take very much…a little goes a long way. (Anyone need some wax? I’m gonna have this can til the end of time.) I used an old rag and buffed it on until I liked the look. The wax brought out the color but with more depth.

When it came to recovering the chairs, I knew I needed something durable and inexpensive, but still pretty. All it took was one canvas paint drop cloth from the hardware store to give me the look I was going for with a ridiculously low price. I paid less than $5 for the drop cloth, and it covered all 6 chairs. Awesome!!

 

 

I am in love with the finished chairs.

 

 

 

So much better than all that brown from before.

 

 

 

I hated that this is what people saw when they first walked into our house. And the brown chairs added to the boring look in the dining room.

 

Now the chairs add a little bit of color. Our dining room is anything but formal, and the matte chalk paint keeps the look beautiful but not stiff. And the drop cloth chair cushions are pretty, easy to clean, and not expensive to replace if we had to.

 

So, what do you think? I’m really happy how these chairs turned out!! When someone comes to the house, I’m not embarrassed to open the door and let them see inside. And slowly the brown is getting reigned in.

 

I’m grateful for the sweet Annie Sloan ladies at Haven, and some good luck!, so I could give the chairs such a pretty makeover. Have you ever tried ASCP? If so, what’s your favorite color? Any pros or cons for you? I’ve heard you can make your own chalk paint. I wonder how it compares to Annie Sloan. If you’ve made your own, how did you like it? Please share!!

 

 

Disclaimer: Annie Sloan Ltd. did not sponsor, or pay me, to write this post. I won a free sample of this paint and was happy to try out the product. All of these opinions are my own.

 

I’m linking up!

My Uncommon Slice of Suburbia , A Bowl Full of Lemons, The Thrifty Home, Someday Crafts, Seven Thirty Three, Beyond the Picket Fence, House of Hepworths, Tales From Bloggeritaville, Made in a Day, Sassy Sites, Chic on a Shoestring Decorating, The Shabby Nest, Remodelaholic, Beneath My Heart, Lolly Jane Boutique, Be Different Act Normal, C.R.A.F.T., Thrifty Decor Chick, Funky Junk Interiors, Under the Table and Dreaming, House of Grace, Primitive and Proper, Sugar Bee Crafts, Home Stories A 2 Z, Domestically Speaking, Southern Lovely, Somewhat Simple, One Artsy Mama, It’s Overflowing, Six Sister’s Stuff

 

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