Or: How I Turned a Free Desk in to a Charming Vanity
Getting dressed and ready to the leave the house in the morning always seems like a hectic rush. With different things I need to get ready in various locations, not a lot of time to feel “put-together”, and limited patients, I end up stressed and panicked-feeling. Having a vanity with plenty of storage for my most-needed accessories and makeup has made a huge difference in my morning routine.
Last year, I re-decorated my vanity. I originally found this free desk (which was Smurf blue) on someone’s front lawn with a big free sign on it. Knowing it had great “bones” (was made of sturdy wood), I put it in the back of my station wagon and prepared myself for the massive sanding and painting job ahead of me. Though the paint-job made my desk/vanity look better than before, it didn’t really suit my bedroom or feel like “me.” I’d been wanting to re-paint it to a more suitable colour for a long time, so I was happy to learn more about Annie Sloan’s Chalk Paint and see the variety of colours possible.
I received two colours of Annie Sloan Chalk Paint to use for my bedroom re-vamp projects. They’re both really close to my blog colours/favourite colours!
Vanity after using Annie Sloan Chalk Paint
I was sent two different colours to work with on my project. I ended up using Provence on my vanity, but have used Scandinavian Pink on my dresser, headboard, and a picture frame. I’ll be sharing those projects, soon.
One of the great things I love about Chalk Paint is that it covers really well. It sticks well to both pre-painted and un-finished wood. This is good news for anyone, like me, who enjoys using vintage furniture in their home! The paint colours also layer well and can be mixed or thinned, depending on your project. I tested out the two colours (Provence and Scandinavian Pink), below:
Testing colours of Annie Sloan Chalk Paint on my vanity
You can see how well the paint covers, even on top of such a dark paint colour underneath! I used two coats of Provence to cover my vanity. I love the matte finish the paint gives and the hand-painted, vintage feel of the finished project.
The contrast of the Provence paint colour and my vanity items is pretty awesome, don’t you think?
A little bit of info on the paint I used for this project:
- Chalk Paint™ is the brand name for Annie Sloan’s unique water-based decorative paint.
- It can easily be washed off of paint brushes.
- You can use it on walls, floors, wood, concrete, metal, matt plastic, earthenware, brick, stone and more – inside or outside. You can even use it to paint upholstery and dye fabric!
- Chalk Paint™ comes in 32 historic and modern colours which you can mix with confidence.
- Chalk Paint™ is water based, non-toxic, odour free and extremely low in volatile organic compounds – each tin contains between 2-4g/L VOC.
I received two colours of Chalk Paint and two different waxes (clear and dark) for this project and future projects. I still have so much left in both cans! I’m sure I’ll be painting many more things in my home, since the paint has such great coverage. I’ll be sharing my other projects here soon!
