Affordable and High Quality Chalk Paint Options and my Sideboard Makeover

I’ve mentioned before that I tend to be lazy when it comes to painting furniture, and that could not be more accurate.  However, I am always drawn to older pieces, ones that have character and flaws.  I love detail and knowing that there is probably a great story behind the scratches and nicks.  So what is a lazy girl to do?  Strip, sand, prime, paint?  Um no…who has time for that?!  Enter chalk paint; the lazy girl’s dream come true.  Paint right over the old finish, seal and you are done.  But with the ease comes a pretty hefty price tag.  Or so we all thought…

I was lucky enough to stumble upon Prairie Colors paint and love it so much that I became part of their “Prairie Colors Bloggers Posse.”  There are tons of incredible color choices and it is super affordable.  It is American made and inspired by the heartlands, so you know it spoke to me!  After a really hard decision and lots of debate, I chose to use Weathered Fence and the Tuff Coat Lo-Gloss Sealer.

Okay, now on to my sideboard reveal…Alright guys, I made a rookie mistake here and somehow deleted all of my “before” pictures of my sideboard!  Aah!  Luckily I still had a few hanging around from my Christmas tour.  I had been so in love with the size and shape of this bad boy that I threw it in my entry before I had a chance to refinish it.

Do you see the Greek Key detailing?  Swoon!  But it was in need of some love and had, I am not kidding you here, 4 holes drilled for every knob.  Wood putty, here I come!  I also removed the lip on the back of the top so that my lamp cord wouldn’t look funky hanging over it.  Luckily that was just a few screws and a whack or two with my hammer.  After sanding the top, which I knew I wanted to stain, I was ready to paint.

Yes, I totally painted this in my kitchen.  It was too darn cold in my garage to hang out there for long.  This picture is after one coat of paint.  I was blown away by how well the paint covered and super excited to know that two coats would be perfect coverage.  I used a bristle brush for the whole job as chalk paint tends to be very forgiving when it comes to brush strokes.

Fast forward a couple of hours (this paint drys pretty quickly) and I pulled out my trusty sanding block to distress the edges just a bit.  Shabby chic is generally not my style, but with the combo of paint color and knobs, I thought just a touch of aging would be perfection.  I am so giddy that I tried it, because I adore it!

I applied the Tuff Coat and stained and sealed the top, then moved it back on in to its rightful place in my entry.  I oohed and aahed over it for a bit before adding my decor.

And here is the sideboard all decked out:

I absolutely love finding affordable options for any and every thing, but this is probably one of my favorites.  The savings when compared to the name we all know chalk paint in pretty stunning.  And the great news is that I still have more than half of my paint and sealer left over to use for a future project.

What do you think about chalk paint?  Do you have a favorite brand or any money saving tips?  Drop a comment below and let us know!