My new hobby!

One day I decided "hmmm... how can I make these end tables look more updated and more my style?"  I told my husband that I wanted to try and repaint them, and he thought I was crazy! 

I looked up some ideas on how to make my own chalk paint and winged it! 

I went to my local hardware store (Lowes in this case) and chose some paint colors in the Olympic brand (I went with the higher quality for more coverage/thicker formula) satin finish paint, and bought them in quart size.  I then went to my local grocery store and bought a cheap container of store brand Tums (calcium carbonate). 

When I got home, I put the calcium carbonate into my Magic Bullet and ground it up finely.  I measured up 1/2 cup of the powder and mixed it with about 4 tablespoons of warm water until it was dissolved.  I then mixed it into my quart of paint I had just purchased and mixed it well.

I sanded my tables down to give it a rough enough texture for the paint to stick to (wish I had taken before and during photos).  I then painted the whole thing with a light beige color and let it dry.  Then, on the top of the table, I painted it a beautiful dark/midnight blue color.  I wasn't too perfect on my paint job (which is very hard for this perfectionist) and just brushed it on in different directions in smooth way.  I also stippled the brush in areas to give it a more antiqued/older look to it. 

After everything was dry, I took some 320 grit sandpaper and roughed up the edges to make it even more antiqued (because that's my style).  I also took black stain and roughly wiped the legs with a rag to give it even more of a rough look. 

Then it was sealed with a thin layer of paste wax to help protect it, and to keep the satin look to them.   

They turned out amazing for my first project!  If I don't say so myself! 



So, what do you think??  And, I am being brave and testing my skills to see if people like my work enough to purchase them!  Keeping my fingers crossed!  :)