Annie Sloan Chalk Paint

I'm gearing up for Clean Diet round #3. This time I will try to do it without going to the group meetings at the yoga studio, so we'll see if I can stick to it. I've already made a meal plan for the entire first week so that I don't have to put any thought into WHAT I'll be eating, but only purchasing/preparing my meals. That in itself is still plenty of work. As for now, I'm still working on polishing off my leftover Valentine's Day chocolate. Come March 19th, it's ON.

This Spring Break has been pretty relaxing, just as I intended. Most days I've stayed in bed until approximately 11 am. What would I do without my sleep? I need it more than any teenager.

My main project of the week (because there is always something) has been my coffee table re-do. I found this coffee table with perfect character at the Habitat for Humanity ReStore. It's brass hardware all around the outside of the table is what sold me.

 I had plans to paint it which is what led me to one of the greatest discoveries of my life: Annie Sloan Chalk Paint. I did some research and found that this chalk paint requires no sanding, no priming, just straight to the fun stuff. There were 2 roadblocks: A) Who the heck sells it in Savannah? B) Its way expensive. We're talking....$40 for a quart.

Road blocks were overcome. First of all, this sweet little studio on Whitaker Street called Lily Bay Bazaar is the only seller in Savannah.

Second of all, a little paint goes a long, LONG way, so the price is worth it. Also worth it for not having to deal with sanding & priming. While I'm raving about it, I also must add that is has no smell, it dries extremely fast, and its not drippy and gooey, therefore there is not much of a mess to clean up throughout the process. After painting, you have to apply a wax coat (wipe on, wipe off = easy breezy). The wax is also pricey, but again, you don't need much.

Here's a collage of the process. I was in the zone, but I think the whole project took about 2 hours from start to finish.

The color I used it called Duck Egg & its perfect. I may do a little distressing to maximize the shabby chic look, but for now I'm just going to keep it the way it is. The chalk paint has a way of making it looked a little distressed anyway because there is a matte finish to it and I didn't fully cover some of the rough areas. Another piece of great news... I only used 1.5 sample containers to do this whole table (2 coats) It really does last you, so don't be scared of the price.

And here's a look at the final product. I am in love. Oh! One final note: I did bite the bullet and buy an Annie Sloan paint brush for $28 because you can use the same one to apply the paint and the wax. Simply wash it with warm water and Dawn in between uses, then wipe away the excess water with a paper towel. Doesn't get much better than that!

It's not this blue in real life...its truer to the paint color in the sample containter

This could be the start of a painting addiction.