When I stumbled across
this tutorial, I literally shouted JACKPOT at the top of my lungs. Brillance, is what it is. Don't get me I LOVE Annie Sloan's chalkpaint, but it's very hard to get your hands on, and while there are a great many colors, you are always going to be limited to what they carry. Now, you can make ANY color chalk paint your heart desires (and of course, at a fraction of the cost).
All I did was mosey on over to Home Depot, grabbed Martha Stewart's paint sample of Main Lobster, and asked the mixer for a flat sample of the paint. It's a nice sized sample for about $5, and then I grabbed a 2.5 lb bag of Plaster of Paris for about $6. I went home, poured about 2/3 of the paint sample into a plastic container, then shook about 1/3 cup of the Plaster of Paris into the container and mixed thoroughly. What I ended up with was a lovely thick paint that was very similar to the chalk paint consistency. I got to work on the chair, but the mixture did start to thicken up with time, and the heat (I was painting outside) so I added a few drops of water (be careful not to add to much! a water little goes a long way), remixed and it was perfect and silky!
My chair was sitting outside for a while so not in great condition. It has paint flaking off of it, so I lightly sanded the thing to get most of the flakes off, then painted right over it. What I ended up with was a antiquey handpainted look- not the gorgeous smooth professional look my husband produces on furniture, but the change in style was fun & refreshing! I topped it with clear wax, and am now debating on glazing over the piece and distressing it a little before recovering the cushion seat with burlap. I'll be sure to share the finished pictures once I decide!