Just to think, a year ago, I knew nothing about all the wonderful paints used to give furniture a distressed, time-worn and well-loved look. Pinterest opened my eyes to chalk paint and more recently milk paint.
You can follow my collection of painted and distressed furniture ideas on Pinterest here.
I recently gave our hall bathroom a makeover by changing the color scheme from different shades of brown to a combination of turquoise with red accents. It all started with the red Burma Shave sign I made.
I wanted to add another touch of red, so a step stool we’ve kept for the boys to use since they were itty-bitty and too short to see the mirror to brush their teeth seemed like the perfect piece to add that extra bit of red to the room.
Their step stool has been painted five different colors over the years because I never felt like I got the color quite right. It was also glossy and didn’t have the aged and distressed look that I’ve grown to love. That all changed after it met Cerise.
When Shannon of Fox Hollow Cottage posted on Facebook that she was selling a new color of Maison Blanche La Craie paint named Cerise, I knew this paint would be the answer to getting that perfect combination of red with just a hint of the turquoise spray paint peeking through.
“La craie” is the french word for chalk, so this paint contains calcium carbonate just like Annie Sloan’s Chalk Paint. They are totally different formulas, but both allow you to give a piece of furniture a time-worn and layered look once sanded.
I am a monthly contributor at Shannon’s blog, so I emailed my friend hoping she would send me a free sample of Cerise from her online store. I may have even shamelessly begged.
Well, it worked and thankfully she said yes!
The base color was Krylon’s Blue Ocean Breeze. Since it was very glossy, I scuffed it up with a little sand paper and wiped it down with a tack cloth, then mineral spirits.
The wonderful thing about using Maison Blanche La Craie paint is that you don’t have to sand or prime before using it, but I at least gave it a quick sanding because I didn’t know how well the paint would take over the high-gloss spray paint.
After one coat of Cerise, I let the paint dry for a few hours. I lightly sanded with steel wool and then used a 220 grit sandpaper where I wanted to distress the edges a little more. You can also see little bits of white peeking through from when the stool was painted the very first time.
I did a dark wash by brushing on some watered-down brownish-black craft paint and wiped it off. To protect the paint finish, I sealed it with a clear wax and buffed it out.
The beautifully distressed step stool now sits in our hall bathroom and holds a laundry bin that waves to our boys and says, “Hey kid, dirty clothes go here!”. Sometimes they listen and sometimes…not so much.
If you’re wanting to make your own step stool, the parts you need are listed in the picture below. All the parts should be under $20.00 from Lowes.
I believe the little red step stool has met his soul mate. Sigh.
You can see the rest of the You can see the details of our vintage-inspired turquoise and red hall bathroom reveal here.
To see all of Maison Blanche La Craie paint colors, visit Shannon’s online store here.
Have any of you tried chalk paint yet? What kind has been your favorite so far? What are your thoughts on the homemade recipes?
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Miss Mustard Seed
Amber says
The cutest red step stool I have ever seen! Just when I think that I want to divert from red, you gotta go and post this super cute project. Question for you…. do you think all the paints you’ve worked with are pretty similar or is one easier to work with than the other? I want to make a good decision on my investment because husband’s eyes widen after I tell him how much chalk paint is. He’s a contractor so in his mind, “Flat paint will work just fine”. 😉
Sonya ~At Home with The Barkers says
Tricia~ I love the blue showing through! I have only used ASCP but I went with Christy from Our Southern Home to a Maison Blanche paint demo. I bought Magnolia and can’t wait to try. I have heard the wax is better than others! Did you find this to be true?
Nancy @ Artsy Chicks Rule says
I love the red/turquoise combo. Very pretty!! Everything looks so great in your bathroom and that stool is adorable. Thanks so much for sharing on Project Inspire{d}. Pinning 🙂
Nancy
Jodi blackmon says
Ack! It’s adorable! I love your little laundry bucket, too!
Visiting from Project Inspired (again).
Cheers!
Jodi
Shannon @Fox Hollow Cottage says
And I think Cerise loves you right back!! Your sweet little step stool looks perfectly pretty now. So glad it was just the color you were looking for. I was happy to treat you 😉
Tricia says
It was perfect, Shannon! I love how the Maison Blanche paint looks on our bathroom cabinet, too. Can’t wait to share that soon.
Julie {Lilacs & Longhorns} says
It looks awesome! I love that color and it’s the perfect accent in your bathroom. I’ve seen Maison Blanche paint before but have never used it…I’ve only used ASCP. I’m curious if you like one more than the other? I just might have to take the plunge and try it!
Chasity says
I have only tried CeCe Caldwell’s paint and loved it. Would love to try this brand. Your stool looks great.
Tricia says
I haven’t tried CeCe Caldwell’s yet but I just found a shop down the road that sells Van Gogh. I can’t wait to give it a try. I’m going to be using it on some fabric so that should be an interesting experiment. 🙂 Thanks for the compliment on the step stool!
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