Homemade Chalk Painted Old Window

I’ve been reading about chalk paint on blogs for years now.  I’ve always wondered what the big deal was about it. It gets varied reviews, but most people claim it covers surfaces quicker and easier than other types of paint (without priming first!).

I’ve studied and priced out different options of actual chalk paint (like Annie Sloan’s here), but the price plus shipping is just too staggering for me.

So, last week, I decided give this  homemade version a try.  I had a special project going on for our bathroom decor, and I thought it was the perfect opportunity.

The ingredients are quite simple ~ 1 cup flat paint + 1 Tbsp. unsanded grout.

chalk paint recipe

I stirred it all up in a cottage cheese container.

unsanded grout

I don’t usually buy flat paint, so I used pure white ceiling paint (in flat finish) for this.  The grout I found at our little island building center, and that ($10) bag will last me through many, many batches of chalk paint!!:)

My project involved this big ol’ window with lots of panes.

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The most time consuming part of the whole thing was taping the paper to the glass and removing the hardware.

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Although it seemed so tedious when I was doing it, taping off the windows was totally worth the effort.

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Once the taping off was finished, I brushed on the first coat of chalk paint.  Oh, my.  It was so, SO thick…and absolutely a dream to use!!  I was worried that the old stain of the window would bleed through without priming it first…

and it did a bit.

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But, in this case it worked out fine.  I wanted the look to be a bit “antique white” instead of stark white, and after the second coat, it turned the color I wanted.

Although I didn’t take a picture of this step, it’s very important!!  Before you rip off the tape, run an x-acto knife around the edges of each window pane.  That will prevent the paint from ripping off the sides of the wood.

I sanded the entire surface after the final coat, and loved the silky finish of chalk paint.  It’s a bit hard to explain, but it appears to be “softer” than latex paint.

You can sand and distress to whatever degree of distressing you like.  I didn’t sand heavily, but just sanded to bring out the detail of each pane.

distressed window panes

Then we hung it up in its new place of honor (above the tub).

hung window

It looks a little bare and forlorn right now…But, don’t worry, I have some more ideas for that wall…

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