My Chalk Paint Fail

I am about half way through my first chalk paint project.

I used Ce Ce Caldwell Chalk Paint rather than another product because there is a retailer close to my house.

But it is pricey.
This paint is supposed to be very green and good for the environment. An added benefit is that there is supposed to be no sanding and prep work except cleaning.

There was no odor. 
I went with chalk paint for the downstairs bathroom vanity, because I thought it would work better with a piece that wasn't real wood in places. 
 I think I was wrong about that.

Even with two coats of paint, the finish seemed to scratch right off.

I did a coat of clear satin poly and the original wood bled right through even though it was not at all visible with the chalk paint. 

So I did another coat of chalk paint.
 I will leave it "as is" for now.

I love the color and I didn't like the way the clear poly changed the color. 
I don't understand why clear poly isn't clear.

Now this may be user fail instead of product fail because as I look on-line the pieces do have a distressed look.

I have so many "distressed" pieces around here that I don't really need anymore. 

So far I have put more coats of paint on the vanity than if I had stuck with my 
primer and Sherwin Williams Satin Enamel. 

Sure I would have had to rough up the finish with sand paper a bit but I wouldn't have had to paint as many coats as I did on this.

Bill came home from a weekend away and he loved it.

S0, I will leave it for now and see how the finish lasts.

 If the finish doesn't hold up to the water and elements,
I will color match it with something from Sherwin Williams.

Before

After

 

Thanks for stopping by,
Sprinkled with chalk paint,
Katie   
Linking with,
Between Naps on the Porch
My Uncommon Slice of Suburbia  
Savvy Southern Style 
French Country Cottage 

My New MacBook Pro

I am so excited to be writing my first post on my new MacBook Pro.

I can't wait to get to know this new computer. 

My music was the first thing I uploaded.
 Email loaded as soon as I put my Apple info in.
I was worried about transferring pictures, but it turned out to be no big deal.

My children recommended this machine.

They thought I would have fewer problems with viruses.

So far it has been pretty easy.

I needed a new laptop

and I knew that I would have to learn Windows 8.
I've done a little research and read that there are a few kinks with that new operating system. 

So, I thought if I had to learn something new, I needed to get a Mac.

I need to figure out how to set my bookmarks and get a 
"Pin it" button for Pinterest.

It took longer to do my photos than I am used to.

I have been putting this purchase off since the summer. 
I wasn't excited about a learning curve, but it has been great so far. 
Sprinkled with Apple,
Katie 

Shabby Music Cabinet

Oh my!
I got so much done last weekend. 
I had the urge to redo another piece of furniture. 
I have been so pleased with some my other makeovers, that I wanted to try another one. 

I also felt the room was a little off balance. 
White on one side

brown on the other.

I thought about painting my little French chair but it needs to be recaned and I haven't figured out how to do that. 
I decided a white end table would help bring balance to the room.
I've been looking at some of the local thrift and antique shops for a candidate. 

I realized that I had the perfect cabinet in my garage.

 I found this little cabinet years ago at a little thrift store. 
I think I paid $40.00 for it.

It was a creamy color when I found it but I stripped it and painted it black. 

When we started moving furniture around it ended up in the downstairs closet for my  hoard of Christmas magazines.

It was next on the list to be given to the resale shop until

 I realized that it would be perfect. It has great lines.

Usually I just prime and paint but this time I thought it needed to be stripped.

Stripping furniture is easy and I did this piece after work one afternoon.
I paint the stripper on one section at a time, let it sit for about 10 minutes and then scrape it off.
Don't let the stripper dry on the piece. It is like removing oatmeal after it has hardened in the bowl.
It took about an hour and a half.
 In between coats I caught up on Pinterest. :)

The next morning I sanded and gave it a coat of white satin oil based paint.
It needed two coats.
I let it dry over night and then put it in place.

I let it cure another night before I accessorized it.

The knobs came from Old Home Supply.

I went with new knobs instead of vintage because I wanted them nice and sparkly.

 I don't know if this was a record cabinet or a sheet music cabinet. Either way I call it the music cabinet.

I moved the spool table over to the other side of the loveseat.

I even recovered the sofa and French chair.
I will show those in another post.

I got up early this morning to admire it once again. 
There was a little friend in the garden room to enjoy it with me.

Sprinkled with a cabinet and a gecko.
Katie 
Linking with,
French Country Cottage
The Brambleberry Cottage   
Cowgirl Up Link Party   
Funky Junk Interiors  
That DIY Party

White Walls in the Master

 There have been several times in this year of blogging that my photos told the story of how my house really looked.
Somehow a photo magnifies the imperfections.  
I loved the walls in our bedroom for the longest time and I thought they were the prettiest shade of antique white.
In some of my photos they look like a peachy yellow.

 The last time I painted was about 14 years ago.
I have done touch ups but they still looked very worn and  dinged up. Does paint change color over time?

I thought by replacing the sheers I would be able to live with it until next summer.

I was wrong.
As soon as I get an idea in my head that a room needs to be painted I can't wait to get started.

Our old exterior house color was called 
Palais White by Sherwin Williams.
When our handyman did repairs last spring he was supposed to paint with that same color.
Instead he chose his favorite white to touch up where he replaced wood. 
It was such a close match that I didn't even notice.
The painter we hired to finish the rest of the house is the one that noticed it.
Bill was going to give the gallon of it to the ReStore but
I said that I could make it work somewhere.

I decided to see if it would work in my room.

I love how it brightens the space.

Do you know that I never cared for white walls before?

I have always painted over the builder white.

But builder white isn't the same as a custom mix white.
This white is soft and reflects light around the room beautifully.

It took me about 8 hours to paint this room and put it back together.

Eight hours well spent, because I just love it.

 It is calming and restful.

and
clean and fresh. 
I love it and I finally feel finished with this room for a while.

 I would like to change out the ceiling fan for a chandelier. 

Bill just laughed.
He told me to go ahead but he doesn't want to hear me complaining about the heat next summer.
This is Texas, after all.
Thanks for stopping by.
Katie  
My Uncommon Slice of Suburbia  
Savvy Southern Style