Vintage bedroom set transformed with DIY Chalk paint!!!

After weeks of research and countless you-tube videos (how to's), I finally felt confident enough to revamp a vintage bedroom set that I inherited from my great-great aunt. This bedroom set needed A LOT of cleaning, but I knew it had "good bones" as they say. I wish I had taken a picture of the original color of this furniture, it was beyond bad. I originally wanted to buy a pint of the "Annie Sloan" brand chalk paint but there are no retailers here in El Paso and the $40+ per pint and $20+ for the finishing wax was kinda of pricey... so I looked up D.I.Y. versions. I saw a couple of versions of the chalk-paint. I was was first going to do the "Plaster of Paris" chalk-paint but then I found out how toxic it is and that it can cause cancer, so that was a no-go. I also saw the non-sanded grout technique and thought it was a good mix but I wasn't too sure. Then I found the baking soda combination (thanks Alchemy Fine Living! & My Checkered Past)... that was so cheap and SO easy that I HAD to try it out! I started my project at Walmart by buying a gallon of latex paint (has to be latex) and pint of the accent drawer color. I also purchased an angled paint brush and sanding block in 150 grit. I had a vision in my mind of a very shabby chic-ish Victorian pink bedroom set, with Tiffany blue accent drawers inside. I still needed a wax and went to Lowe's to find it. I ended up purchasing that SC-Johnson's paste wax ($5!).

I started by using an old plastic container to mix up the paint. I used 1 tablespoon of baking soda (I blended it to a more finely milled texture) and mixing it in a tiny bit of water, enough to make a thick paste. After I mixed it, I added 1 cup of paint and mixed well. That's it! That's all I needed to make the chalk paint. Easy huh!!? I then started painting the vanity and ended up needing about 6 coats on certain areas because of the Formica and covering dark gold stripes. After about every 2 coats, I sanded down everything and made sure to get rid of the dust. At first, you're going to see that when the paint dries you can see the chalkiness of the baking soda but that goes away after you sand it down. After the last coat, I sanded down everything really good and made sure I wiped everything down with an old rag (cut up t-shirt). I also painted the inside of the drawers in a light blue that reminded me of the Tiffany & Co. jewelry boxes.  It was then time to start of the wax. I put a little of wax in another disposable plastic container, got my old clean shirt and started with a little bit. A little goes a long way! When you wax, the color deepens a bit but it's also good because that way you know where the wax has gone. I waxed one coat, waited 15 minutes, then went in a buffed it. I did this about 3 times. The wax took away the chalkiness and matte texture but you don't have to wax if you want to keep the matte texture. 

I waited about 3 days for the wax to harden and re-buffed it just in-case. I then spray painted the old dingy handles which I first sanded down, and cleaned with soapy water and vinegar. The vinegar helps the paint adhere better to the metal. I have heard that rubbing alcohol works too. I purchased contact paper in a "Toile" design at Dollar Tree which worked perfectly to cover-up any paint brush marks on the bottom of the drawer. I simply measured the bottle of the drawers, cut the paper and applied it. It wasn't at all hard to do. 

The final result was really worth the hard work and effort. I worked out of my garage and man was it hot in there. I think I lost a couple of pounds from all the sweating and squatting! ha-ha! For now, I don't want to even touch paint, but I still have a couple of pieces to paint to go with my daughter Brielle's bedroom set. If anyone wants to try something small, I would suggest buying a sample can of paint for $3 and painting a frame or something small just to get a taste of the chalk paint. Good Luck!

 Also, Happy Sukkot! To all of my Messianic Believers!