Tags
adding color to room, annie sloan, antique furniture, attic door vintiques, bold colors, bright colors, Centralia, Chalk Paint®, decor, decorative paint, distressed furniture, diy, home decor, home furnishings for newlyweds, ideas, inspiration, interior design in Seattle, interior design vintage style in Seattle, painted furniture, Painted Upholstery, repurposing, shabby chic, Upholstery, water based paint, Workshops
I have many times found the perfect upholstered piece but the fabric was not what I wanted, and I‘m sure that many of you have encountered this dilemma. Or, you have a favorite piece but would like to bring it up to date, without the high cost of new upholstery. Now, both problems can be solved using Chalk Paint® by Annie Sloan.
One of my customers found two huge wingback chairs and brought them to me for a new identity….they looked like this: These were lovely in their day, but needed updating. The customer chose Old White for the fabric and Old Ochre for the legs. Keep in mind that the more contrast there is between the base color and the top color will determine how many coats of paint will be required. I decided to explore the local hardware store for a way to make painting all of that upholstery real estate go faster…..I discovered the painting mitt above. It did make the job go so much faster because of the large mitt surface. So, what you need is a paint tray, painting mitt, water, Chalk Paint® in the color of your choice, Annie Sloan’s Soft Clear Wax, and some shop cloths (using a proper wax brush will make the job go much faster, but you can apply it with a shop cloth).
Spritz your fabric with water just to lightly wet it. Then, dilute your paint with water(approximately 30% water to 70% paint) and pour some into the paint tray. Use your mitt to pick up some paint(don’t soak it) and apply to fabric, rubbing and spreading it around until you need to pick up more paint. Don’t worry about good coverage on your first coat. After covering the entire area, let the fabric dry(overnight if necessary). This is what it looked like after one coat: Your second coat will cover much better. If your two colors are close to each other, you will only need two coats. These chairs covered in two coats: The two wingbacks required more coats to cover such a dark fabric with white. After you are satisfied with the coverage on your piece, lightly sand the fabric with a medium grit sanding block to soften it. Chalk Paint® sands very easily, so it doesn’t take much sanding to do this. Make sure you cover the floor beneath your piece to catch the paint dust. Wipe the sanded dust off of your piece, paint the legs, and apply a coat of Annie Sloan’s Soft Clear Wax. The sanding and waxing soften the paint and give it a slight sheen. Ta da: When considering your fabric, make sure it has a fairly short nap because sanding will remove the paint off of long fibers. The texture of the fabric will show underneath the paint, which is a plus. This fabric was a floral and you can see that texture on these chairs: For more examples of painted upholstery, follow the links to my Facebook page, https://www.facebook.com/atticdoorvintiqueshomedecor?pnref=lhc, and to my Pinterest page, https://www.pinterest.com/atticdoorvintiq/
Contact your local Annie Sloan Stockist for help, information, and workshops.
THANK YOU FOR READING THIS BLOG and HAPPY PAINTING!
Kassy at ATTIC DOOR VINTIQUES