Techniques

How to: Use Chalk Paint™ On Kitchen Cabinets

Hello! Painting kitchen cabinets is a fantastic idea. I’ve done it many times myself and I know many of you have as well. I’m just going to give you some ideas about what you should do.

First of all remove all the hardware, then give it a good clean. In a kitchen, you don’t know what splashed on it there could be all sorts of oils all sorts of stuff, so just warm water and a simple soap – no chemicals because you don’t know what that will do to the paint.

I’m doing Old Ochre Chalk Paint™. I’m gonna add a little bit of, the paint has been open for a little bit so it needs a little bit of water. I’m going to use this brush which is my flat wide brush and get a good supply of paint on there, not too far so about that.

I’ve already done one of these cabinets and I know that I’ve used two coats. This is the end grain of the wood, and the end grain I always find needs a little bit more paint. So I’m going to put quite a lot of paint on there now I’m going to spread it out as far as I can. You’ll notice I’m not painting like that, I’m painting with the end of the brush, and I’m painting every direction. It’s absorbing in quite a lot.

Now I’m going to start feathering it. This is very very pleasing to do because as you do it the surface becomes smoother and smoother as you feather out. I’m someone who loves texture, I also do really appreciate getting a very smooth, even, beautiful finish. The brush is just hitting the paint, it’s not pressing down. It’s just hitting like that and you’re going across and it’s really, really light and it’s done with a very small amount of paint and it’s usually done quickly.

So, all ready now. This is dry, the second coat’s done it’s looking really, really gorgeous. Now I’m going to wax it. I’m going to use my Clear Wax. Some people think you should varnish and use lacquer – whatever you call it. I would really recommend wax very, very strongly. For me, it’s just the best, it’s got a beautiful finish and it’s very, very strong.

I’m ready to go. Here’s my brush… my wax brush into there getting some good amount of wax on there. Not too much. The thing you want to do is you don’t want to rub too hard, you don’t want to, you just want to make certain that the wax goes into the paint that’s what it’s all about. And going into corners… making certain you go into corners.

I usually have a cloth with me just to remove the excess or any specks of dust or anything that goes into there. I’ll do one, two, three coats probably to make it really, really strong, leaving a good gap between each layer so that the wax has time to harden. At least a day, a week is really fantastic if you can.

So I did one yesterday and that’s all been painted and waxed. So it’s now ready for me to polish it. And I’m able to take some cotton cloth and just start polishing it. Sometimes it’s called buffing – buffing or polishing – and what it does is make it shine. And it shouldn’t take a lot to get a nice sheen to it. There’s very little effort. Here this is getting… to me, it’s got a really beautiful mellow sheen.

For cleaning purposes what you wouldn’t do is put any bleach on it you, would just wipe with soap and water for anything that you need to remove. No bleach – bleach will just eat right through it. Really it requires very little upkeep. If you do have a problem you can re-wax it but it’s not an obligation, it’s just something you might want to do. But it will give you a beautiful finish and very solid and very strong.

Learn the fastest way to update your kitchen cabinets simply by using Chalk Paint™ and Wax.

You probably spend more time in your kitchen than any other room in the house, so it’s quite natural to feel it needs a refresh. Or perhaps you’ve just bought a new house and aren’t able to spend money on new built-in cabinets just yet. But redecorating your kitchen needn’t cost an arm and a leg. You can use Chalk Paint™ to repaint the doors on your kitchen cabinets and drawers quickly, easily – and with minimal spend. We’ll never forget the customer who got in touch with us to thank Annie for their lovely holiday – the money they saved on redoing their kitchen meant they could put the money towards the cruise of a lifetime instead!

So what equipment do you need? Simply arm yourself with the Chalk Paint™ colour of your choice and a Flat Brush for a smooth finish. You’ll need to seal in your paint work when you’re done. For a traditional mellow finish, use Clear Chalk Paint™ Wax. For extra durability, try Chalk Paint™ Lacquer instead.

Step by step guide to painting kitchen cupboards with Chalk Paint™

  1. First, remove the doors and any hardware from your cabinets. Give them a wash with soapy water. No harsh chemicals needed.
  2. Paint the cupboards in your chosen Chalk Paint™ colour, using an Annie Sloan Flat Brush for a smooth finish.
  3. Leave to dry before painting a second coat of Chalk Paint™.
  4. Once dry, wax the doors using Clear Chalk Paint™ Wax and a Chalk Paint™ Wax Brush. Remove any excess with a lint-free cloth.
  5. Leave the wax to harden before applying another coat, allowing at least a day. You’ll want to wax the doors two to three times to make your finish really strong.
  6. *Optional* – for a polished finish, leave overnight before buffing the wax with a cotton cloth.
  7. Once the wax has dried, the doors are ready to go back on your cabinets. Just remember that the wax can take up to two weeks to fully harden (this is known as curing). You can use them in this time, but be gentle.

Painting your kitchen cabinets needn’t be a chore. It’s a great way to give your kitchen a completely new look in minimal time and without professional help. You’ll be amazed at the results! If you’d like to try this technique, make sure you buy your materials from your local Annie Sloan Stockist. They are trained to offer expert guidance on colour selection as well as tips on painting techniques. Finally, if you’d like explore using varnish instead of wax, Annie has a tutorial on using Chalk Paint™ Lacquer on cabinets for you too!

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