The good people from Annie Sloan sent me paint and wax* to sample as part of their launch of chalk paint into the Australian market. I had heard about the new paint...however I had only ever seen it used in that distressed antique-style finish...
And as regular readers would know, that's not the sort of finish I normally favour. I wanted to use the paint in a clean, mod-style and had the perfect piece of furniture to rejuvenate.
In 1993, as a young unemployed graduate, I committed crimes against furniture when I decoupaged a perfectly innocent milking stool. Yes, the horror!
DIY decoupaged stool.
Believe it or not, I was so proud of my efforts...clearly as I 've kept it intact since 1993!
But it was the 90s and I had a perm...Decoupaging seemed like a good DIY hobby while trekking between dead-end job interviews and the dole office...
This poor old milking stool is so handy - it's used as a ladder, spare chair, side table and play surface. I set about rectifying the sins of the past and sanded the stool back to its vintage goodness. It deserved another chance at life.
Think belt sander with a very coarse grit to remove the Victorian-era inspired decoupage and then hand-sanding the hard to reach areas around the legs.
The milking stool sanded right back
I painted the milking stool in graphite chalk paint. I didn't want to paint it entirely in one colour and decided to try my hand at that paint-dipped look which is so fashionable.
J Crew ad with fluoro (neon) paint dipped stools
All you need is good painter's tape and a ruler to get everything level and at the right height. I didn't primer the stool and just painted straight onto the wood. This particular stool needed three coats of chalk paint.
Going for that paint-dipped look with chalk paint
The Annie Sloan chalk paint dries to a matte finish, which you can then lightly sand with fine sandpaper. After it is dusted clean, apply a couple of coats of clear wax to make the finish more durable - it has a lovely satin sheen. I applied the wax onto the unpainted legs too.
Chalk paint dipped stool.
It almost has that minimalist designer look
black dipped stool
It turned out much better than I had expected...but I think anything was going to be an improvement. Ha!
I just hope I won't be recoiling in horror in 20 years time, wondering what possessed me to paint dip the milking stool...Anyway, I like it now, so that just will have to do.
*disclaimer I was given a tin of graphite paint and wax to sample by Annie Sloan