Answers to Readers Questions about Chalk Paint®

I've been getting lots of questions lately and I thought I'd take a few a break from my house stuff to address a few of them....I did personally answer them, but I thought I'd share a few with everyone.

Question:  I am confused about the order in which you paint, wax and distress.  Does it matter which order you do this in?

Answer:  If you have read any of Annie Sloan's wonderful books, or watched her You Tube video's, you will notice that Annie paints, waxes (clear and dark) before she uses sandpaper to distress.  After she distresses she will then add back some wax to the area she removed it in during distressing.  This method is known as the Annie Sloan Method.

However, it seems that most American's paint, distress and then wax.  Both ways are perfectly fine in my opinion.  I prefer to paint, distress and then apply my wax.  I think it is a personal preference as to which method you choose to do.  I don't see much of a difference between the two.  In my class I have my students do it both ways so they can understand the way Annie prefers, try the other way and pick which method suits them.  

Distressing before you wax creates a lot more "chalk" dust.  However, distressing after you wax takes a lot more muscle and you use a lot more sandpaper!  

Question:  My husband and I painted our kitchen cabinets with Pure White, but it just seems too "textured".  Do you have suggestions to make the Chalk Paint less "textured"?

Answer:  I do have experience with this for sure.  I used Pure White Chalk Paint® on my kitchen cabinets in my old house.  I wanted a clean white look with no distressing.  I wanted White White! When I painted my cabinets Pure White had just hit the states and it was my first time using it.  Since then I have learned a few things about Pure White.

1.  It had no pigments in it.  It is PURE White.  I love it!  I'm a white white girl.  However, with no pigments the consistency of this color is a tad different.  Using it will require an additional coat for the best coverage.  A tip I've learned is to use a base coat of white primer (I use Zinsser).  This will cut down how much Pure White you will have to use.  

2.  Unless you are willing to use a very fine grit sandpaper and sand ALL your kitchen cabinets smooth after painting, you will not get a smooth look with Chalk Paint®.  No matter what you are going to have brush strokes with this paint.  If you are going for a smooth, clean, all white look on your kitchen cabinets it is my opinion that Pure White Chalk Paint® is not the right paint for the job.  I would use Benjamin Moore or Sherwin Williams Pro Classic.  

3.  Another tip is that you can mix some Old White into the Pure White to give it a little thicker consistency.  I love a 50/50 mix of Old White and Pure White!!

I hope these tips help!!  If you have questions feel free to ask!