Featured Very durable flat chalky paint

Hi,
If you have one item that needs some paint.
!/3 cup Plaster of Paris
1/3 cup water
1 cup white latex paint flat/gloss/satin. Mix together and paint the item. It will make a very durable chalky white finish which can be scrubbed after drying.
greg

 

Plaster of Paris sets the paint off to quickly IMO I have found if you use 10% powdered tile grout into latex paint it lasts longer in the pot and gives a very nice finish

 

Durable enough to use on a kitchen table top? I have a kitchen table that isn't nice enough to spend the time refinishing so thought I would finally give chalk paint a go and see if it sells.

 

I would seal it with a waterbased varnish at least 3 coats and good to go

 

ok thanks

 

You may have to wax it first before varnishing if using water based varnish. I've always used latex/acrylics with Varathane (water based) varnish on furniture. A few months ago, I thought I'd give chalk paint a try to see what makes it so popular. The first time, I thought I could use the Varathane as usual, but the chalk/plaster whatever is in the paint immediately sucked the moisture out of the varnish, resulting in a horribly puckered and rough surface. I was not happy. I ended up sanding it and waxing.

 

Sand the chalk paint before varnish

 

Also, are you using a primer before painting?

 

No Need for primer with chalk paint

 

Just started to use chalk paint. Still out on the fence but that is because I am new to it. I DON'T like having to fuss with varnish, poly or wax afterwards and you definitely need to do one of those things. For what I'm painting ( dressers usually) I'm gonna stick to my latex.i did just finish a waterfall vanity with Annie Sloan's chalk peacock with a black glaze but I still need to wax or varnish. Just seems like a lot of fussing. I DO suggest you try it and make your own decision.

 

I recently tried a spray can chalk paint product on a picture frame. First ever attempt at distressing. White over blue... Failed!!! (most distressing!) Came back after several days and the paint had cured (hardened) and didn't respond to wire brushing (flaking off). I'm on a wait list for attending a paint class... hoping to learn about distressing. I have lots of items I'd like to paint.

 

I am not a fan of latex on high traffic pieces because I do not find it to be durable, but that's my experience, and my painting experience is sorta limited.

I have used Benjamin Moore's Waterborne Alkyd paint that I liked. It levels amazingly, almost looks spray painted when you are done. The draw back is the low VOC content giving it a long cure time. I sat the pieces I did for a month in a climate controlled area and the paint was very hard and durable at the end. You also have to paint in a climate controlled cool/low humidity room in addition to curing it there. The paint is very finicky and you do not use a good brush as well as climate control, it will not turn out well, but it also is super easy to work with.

I am going to give this chalk paint recipe a shot this weekend on a table and see how it turns out.

 

For those who don't need indestructible painted surfaces

The Annie Sloan and Jeanne D'arc Living brands both have great chalk paints in dozens of wonderful shades ranging from neutrals to deep and saturated velvety colors and at least the Jeanne D'arc Living ones are made of only natural ingredients, no latex or acrylic, or other plastics. Much better and more natural than hardware store paints.

The Jeanne D'arc Living ones are said to even work for painting floors if you apply a proper top coat wax.
There's chalky matte furniture paint, crackle finish paint, a wall paint range, etc.

Two beautiful shades to definitely try out are "Napoleonic blue" by Annie Sloan and "Warm latte" by Jeanne D'arc living.

http://www.jeannedarcliving.dk/_ul/xProductCatalogue/productCatalogue.aspx?Group=10026

https://www.anniesloan.com/annie-sloan-products/paints/chalk-paint.html

 

As a frequent painter of furniture (using mostly chalk paint) I definitely prefer Annie Sloan chalk paint to homemade varieties, and I've tried several "recipes." My advice for making your own is to use a handheld mixer (like the kind you make cake batters with) and add the dry ingredients slowly so that you don't end up with lumpy paint. When I paint with Annie Sloan chalk paint, I keep a small glass of water on hand and dip my brush every so often to keep the paint from getting too thick. When distressing, the undercoat is almost more important than the topcoat. A poorly applied base coat makes a distressed piece look like just a bad paint job, IMO. I always use a top coat, and my favorite one for chalk paint is General Finishes "Flat out Flat" because it's a TRUE matte finish (velvety) and is very forgiving in the application process. (I water mine down 3:1 ratio, because chalk paint is very "thirsty" especially the first coat of finish.) Hope this helps! And happy painting!

 

I used this mix last night and it turned out great.

Really impressed with the durability as it took some elbow grease to sand distress it.

Thanks for the recipe!