Redefining Thrift Furniture with Homemade Chalk Paint

I have been getting my youngest daughter ready for her first apartment.  I don't know about you, but all my spare furniture went with my first daughter when she leased her first apartment, so we don't have as much to offer.  Not to fear, there are a few castoffs from my first child, and there are so many wonderful things to find new at great stores like Homegoods, Ikea and Hobby Lobby (yes, Hobby Lobby has some furniture!), but don't overlook the gems at the thrift stores.  I've noticed lately that there are so many more thrift stores which has made it easier to find great deals that need a little adjustment. I found a great nightstand at the thrift store and my daughter and I decided to paint it with chalk paint.

My daughter loves the Shabby Chic look and last year we did a cute bureau with some chalk paint we purchased at an antique store.  It looked great but the paint was so expensive. Since then I've noticed a lot of pins on Pinterest for homemade chalk paint, so of course I had to try it.  I found a great recipe at The Our Prairie Home blog and it really worked well. Click here to read about it.

I used:

1 Cup of Hot Water

1 Cup of  Plaster of Paris

3 Cups of Tinted Flat Paint

This was enough for a desk and a nightstand.

Please be sure you know to use gloves, a face mask and glasses (I always have on my readers) to make sure you don't the plaster of Paris in your eyes, nose or on your skin.  Please be careful and do this! 

I used basic kitchen utensils and bought the cheapest flat paint * I could find.  I had them tint it in the color I wanted--the color ended up a lighter that the paint color, but that worked out well for us. I first sanded the pieces, one discard and one thrift find.  They say you don't even need to sand it first, but I wanted to be sure it worked.

 I mixed the water and Plaster of Paris with a wisk and then added the paint by stirring.

We applied 3 coats with at least 6 hours of drying time in between. We added Annie Sloan soft wax for a finish to protect the paint. It darkened the paint a little, but that could be because I put too much on the first time.  Be sure to read her directions very carefully before using.

My Daughter did all of the painting.  Sorry for the dark work shots, it was painted in a dark basement room.

 We were going to buy some crystal knobs but felt the original brass ones worked best.Voila! Love it! Really very easy and such a better price than using the store bought chalk paint.

*Note: I purchased a gallon of the tinted flat paint for the two pieces, but really would have only needed a quart.