With only 12 days to go before we hit the road and tour some of the US of A, painting the bottom half of the kitchen cabinets seemed like a great idea to me. Too bad my husband didn’t agree with me and most of my friends. So I listened to reason for once and didn’t start painting the cabinets. Instead I decided to paint my kitchen chairs. A few years ago they were honey oak but after a few coats of black spray paint and some poly they were looking 10o times better. You can imagine the abuse these chairs suffer on a daily basis with 4 kids and 2 dogs that try to scratch at leftover crumbs left on the seats. I also may have occasionally used these chairs for painting. Ruby may also have mistaken the legs for bones a few times. The abuse was taking it’s toll.
My first attempt was to make a DIY AS Chalk Paint with Plaster of Paris. I found a recipe, thought their furniture looked great so gave it a whirl. I browsed my paint store cans in the basement and thought maybe the coral from our nightstands would be cool. The paint did not go on well, did not dry well at all and did not cover the black well. Paint fail! (Thank you instagram for capturing my paint failure when I’m in the middle of a mess and don’t want to head inside for the nice, expensive camera.)
Back to the drawing board! I grabbed the Galapegos Turquoise from the cloffice and mixed some plaster of paris and water again, added in the paint and went to town on my chairs. The reason I wanted to try this chalk paint is that there is no sanding, priming or prep really at all except for making sure the furniture you are painting is clean.
They turned out much better this time around! I did not distress the chairs at all but just rubbed some minwax wood polish over them. I posted this pic on fb the other night for feedback and why does my mudroom look like the color of bile?
I’m not in love with the look of the chairs, the paint color seems almost green in some light. I added some lemons to the table with a placemat to see if it helped any. Once the bottoms of the cabinets are painted I think I might like the table and chairs.
The table color is staying for now, I’m waiting until after the cabinets are painted before I decide if I like the chairs/table with the cabinets. Then, after painting the bottom cabinets gray, it is either find new stools for the counter or repainting those ones and finding some oilcloth fabric for the seat cushions.
Have you tried painting with AS Chalk paint or have you made your own? I’d love to hear what you think about it!
The yellow helped alot!! I haven’t used AS I make my own. I did use CeCe Caldwell. It was nice, but I prefer mine.
Oh it looks so good so far!! LOVE the color of the chairs. Can’t wait to see everything all done!
I love the colour of the chairs, absolutely beautiful! I think you just need to pull the colour through to other areas of the room, touches here and there in the kitchen and perhaps a rug to anchor it. Can’t wait to see the kitchen cabinets, it’ll really tranform the space! xxx
LOVE LOVE LOVE! Such a pretty color! They definitely don’t look green to me and I think they’ll look awesome against the grey cabinets.
when you posted on fb yesterday
i thought the blue
was the ‘before’ photo
and i thought to myself
‘those chairs are gorgeous…
why in the world would she want
to paint over that blue?’
clearly
i should have read
the entire post
i love how they turned out!
alison
We make our own “chalk” paint for everything we paint. I did purchase some AS paint to see if it was worth the cost and to see what all the raving was about, but I honestly don’t see that much difference. We all have our own preferences, but DIY chalk paint is fine for me!
The chairs look absolutely awesome. I love the blue.
i am really liking them! i think as with anything, it takes a little time to get used to something when you are used to seeing it one way for so long.
i am working on a diy chalk paint project right at the moment! well, not this exact moment- that would be dangerous for my mac!
I think the color looks great!
I love them! I think you should wait until your cabinets are done before making a final decision, i think that the final result is going to be lovely! Can’t wait to see you in two weeks!!
heather
I think once your lower cabinets are painted, you will probably like the chairs better. I think they look great! I just painted a vanity with regular old latex after doing 2 homemade chalk paint projects. It made me realize that I like the chalk paint 100x better – no priming, no sanding, no waiting days for the paint to cure. The chalk paint projects were done in a day, while I’ve been working on this vanity since Saturday, waiting for coats to dry, etc. Unless I want something glossy, I think I’m going to use chalk paint from now on.
I think the blue looks fantastic Ange! Especially when in my head I was picturing it along with your family room. I can totally visualize how it will all come together and I know you are going to just love it! And I SERIOUSLY cannot wait to meet you in a couple of weeks! Eeeeekkk!
Vanessa
Ditto the others, I think they look great AND the yellow just makes them stand out even more!
With the gray on the wall I think you need to carry a little of the blue into the kitchen. Do you have anymore paint?? Hope so, two thumbs up!!
Another vote for the blue chairs, I love them! With a few accessories to bridge the color to the kitchen I think it will look fabulous! I’ve never tried AS, you’re all inspiring me to make my own.
I like the chairs. I bet they will grow on you. Looking forward to the cabinets!
Much better! I love this shade of blue….I have used ASCP and I have made my own chalkboard paint and I have been been very pleased with both. The ASCP comes in some very fantastic color but I can make my own for pennies. Thanks for sharing this project with us I can’t wait to see the rest.
The color is beautiful! I definitely think you should wait til the kitchen is finished and see if you like them better then.
I love how you are taking your blessings and through transforming them, you are making home. A warm creative, full-of-life and hope home.
It’s all good!
<3
They look good! Smart move to wait on the cabs till after vacay… You are wiser than I am…
I personally LOVE the color – but I know photographs don’t always do justice!! You are working HARD!
Ange, I have tried to get onto this site over the past couple of weeks but it would not load for some reason..glad to be back here. The chairs looks magnificent..one of my favorite colors. Glad you persisted. They add a fun pop of color and it is so fresh. Enjoy them! I have similar chairs around my kitchen table and they have nicks where they have been hit against the table – no dogs, just kids and some adults
I love the new chair color. They look fantastic. I tried making my own chalk paint once and it was a big failure. I think I need to give it another shot.
I like the new color! I think it gives them a fresh and new look. (I guess that’s what you were probably going for, right?)