You know when your eyes spot that great find buried under a stack of old wood and dust, and who knows what else, but your heart starts to beat a little faster and you blink a few times because you’re not sure if what you’re seeing is real? I know you know what I’m talking about. That’s happened to me numerous times, but when I spotted this church pew in an antique store in southern Missouri sitting OUTSIDE of the shop on the side of the building, I started to hyperventilate. I knew before I even got to her she was coming home with me. Who knows how long she had been exposed to the elements. She was in rough shape with a wobbly leg and covered in dust and grime, but I could see her beauty and I was determined to give her a second chance.
She sat in the garage for several months before I drug her out into the backyard for her makeover. I couldn’t wait to get started. I immediately thought she needed to be white but after I gave her a soap and water bath, her wood was glorious. I thought about all the people who must have sat in that pew on Sunday mornings over the years, those that had spent time there deep in prayer, listening to the pastor deliver his message that day. It almost felt like I should leave it as is. Do you ever feel that way when you begin a makeover on a piece of furniture with so much history that you might somehow be disrupting the synergy that comes with it if you alter its appearance? I did on this particular piece so I decided to step back and really give her the once-over. I looked her up and down several times but I knew in my heart when I first spotted her, I pictured her white so white she will be.
I just happened to be headed to the hardware store that day and saw stacked on an endcap Rust-Oleum chalk paint. It wasn’t a new product but it was new to me. I had never used it and thought it was worth a try. I perused all the colors, chose my “white” and headed home. From there the makeover began.
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Of course on this DIY I was so excited to dive into the process that I failed to take a before picture. Have you all done that, too? Bear with me. Remember I’m knew at this and I will do better on future DIYs, I promise.
If you are like me, you always start to question yourself after the first coat of chalk paint. It usually looks terrible and you think it’s a total loss. You can’t imagine it’s going to be a good outcome. I do anyway. If you’ve worked with chalk paint at all, you know what I’m talking about. It always amazes me when you begin applying the second coat and start to see the transformation. It usually begins to take shape after two coats but occasionally a third coat is needed. With this particular project I was pleased with only two so I stopped there and topped it off with Annie Sloan’s clear wax. I couldn’t be happier with the outcome. I would definitely use this chalk paint on a future project and recommend it to others. It was reasonably priced and easy peasy to apply.
I think if she could talk, she would be saying, “Well, would you look at me now.”
