DecoArt Chalky Finish Dry Erase Board, Monday, June 16, 2014

I have been away FAR too long…LIFE got in my way and I HOPE that I will make time to do the things that I love…I just have TOO many things that I LOVE To do, so like YOU, I have to make choices…

Today I CHOOSE to share my latest project from last night…A Dry Erase Board using DecoArt Chalky Finish Paint…

I LOVE the creaminess and LOW odor of this product.  I have been playing with different brands and have even made my own~~I have liked them all, but I am enjoying THIS product and can’t wait to try it on other surfaces.

I would like to encourage YOU to go visit DecoArt’s website to learn MORE about this product and to see the AMAZING projects that have been created…

Click  HERE to go to the website AND be sure to sign up for their newsletter WHILE you are there!

I used a large old window that came from the house of an older couple that was very important to me during my childhood at church…their granddaughter was my best friend for many years, so just the memories of looking at this project will always bring a smile to my heart.

The products I used are: 

Timeless (this is similar to Desert Storm in Americana Paints)

Serene (this is similar to Soft Blue in Americana Paints)

Treasure (this is similar to Calypso Blue in Americana Paints)

Crème Wax—clear to “SEAL” your project

Oopsy Daisy Stencil

Make-up Sponge

Large Soft Paintbrush

Dry Erase Marker

I cleaned the window really well and let it dry completely.  I used FROG TAPE (painter’s tape) to protect the glass…this step is really not needed, but I didn’t want to get WAX on the glass as I was sealing it.

I painted the wood with a large soft paintbrush using Treasure…I absolutely LOVE this color and can see SO many uses for it in a girl’s room...

When this was dry, I sanded off quite a bit of the paint to let the brown of the frame show through…One of the GREAT ADVANTAGES of chalky finish paint is how easy it is to sand off to get that Primitive/Cottage Chic look that is so popular in home décor…REGULAR paints are much more difficult to sand to achieve this warm, vintage look.

You will notice in the finished picture that I painted over the metal latch on the top…ANOTHER benefit of chalky finish paint is that this paint ADHERES to metal surfaces…no need to tape it off or to paint around it…WHAT a time saver!!

I flipped the window over to put a design on the window.  I chose LIGHT colors so that the marker could be been seen easily when it was being used as a dry-erase board.  The stencil I choose was a very simple but busy design, so I wanted to make sure it was a SOFT color.  IF you are new to stenciling, I would suggest that perhaps you choose a simpler design until you get used to stenciling, but IF you go slowly, this will not be hard to do.  I will warn you that since most of this stencil is cut-away, it tends to BOUNCE more because you don’t have many places that you can tape it down…I FOUND that if I put my fingers on the CENTERS of the flowers, it was easier to control the BOUNCE…

I used a make-up sponge to apply Timeless to the stencil…do not use a lot of paint and apply it in an up and down motion quickly…the paint will NOT be smooth, but that is not important…that adds a bit of texture.  Another note is when you paint on GLASS, you do NOT want to continue to over-work the surface or your paint with pull off~~this is true of ALL paints!  The paint will dry quickly since you are not using much paint…IF you wish, you could use a sponge roller to do this step.  I chose NOT to because I was afraid the stencil would move since so much is cut away from my chosen stencil, BUT if you use a simpler design, this would be LOTS quicker, BUT it will take more paint since rollers take more paint.

When finished with the one section, pick up the stencil and reposition it to do the next section.

IF you have an area that needs to be painted, but it is smaller than your stencil, make certain your paint is dry on both the glass and the stencil and place the edge of the stencil up against the edge of the glass with the excess stencil being flat over the glass that has already been painted.  This is MUCH easier than trying to BEND your stencil. You can leave a small space if you wish, but it is not necessary because nobody will ever notice...WELL somebody MIGHT cause there is ALWAYS "one of them" lurking... ;)

The edge of the stencil is again the edge of the window...I left a space between the design so it would not matter that I did not match the design...

When this was dry, I used another make-up sponge to pounce Serene all over the back of the glass.  I think this could have been done with the TREASURE, but I was afraid it would be too dark…IF you wish to try it without the Serene, I would suggest doing a TEST patch on another piece of glass from an old picture frame! ALSO, if you wish, you may ROLL this paint on using a sponge roller that is available in any paint section. 

When the Serene was dry I used my large soft paintbrush to paint on a coat of Treasure on the glass AND on the back of the window so it would look neater…Keep the paint going in the SAME direction.  You do NOT have to paint the wood on the back because it will be against the wall, BUT when selling products or giving them as gifts, I prefer the back to look FINISHED…I think it is one of those SMALL extras that helps to make “quick and easy” painting look more professional.

this is the BACK of the finished piece

I applied another coat of Treasure, this time painting it in a different direction to get better coverage.  Paint quickly and with a soft touch…do not continue to repaint over the SAME section over and over or you will pull off the paint!!

After this had dried, you are ready to WAX…Use either a waxing brush or a clean cloth to apply the Crème Wax.  I used a clean WHITE cloth…I have the brush, but I preferred the cloth cause it just seems to go faster…I would suggest waxing the BACK first because silly me got impatient and started to wax the front while the back was still wet and I scratched it a couple of times…YES, HASTE does make WASTE…but not to worry, I just applied some more paint and all was well…THAT is the joy of VINTAGE painting~~imperfections ADD character (OK…THAT is what I tell myself…LOL)!!!

Let the wax dry and buff it with a clean WHITE cloth…SO EASY…NOW if you choose, this is when you can add a darker wax on top of the clear wax to give it more of an antique finish, BUT since I was using Treasure, a Dark color, and the original frame of my window was brown, I did not see a reason to add the dark wax, but YOU can make that choice for YOUR project!

Charcoal REALLY did like the PAINT also!!

The WAX sets the paint…ONCE the wax was on the back GLASS, as a TEST, I took my fingernail and gently scratched the glass to SEE if the paint would come off…it did NOT!!  YES, if you scratch it deeply, as with ANY KIND of paint, it WOULD scratch off, but with regular wear and tear, it is fine!

I'm not sure this is the surface that DecoArt had in mind...sigh...

This project is DONE!  I did this in one evening.  I would say that ACTUAL painting time was about 90 minutes, BUT there is quite a bit of down time for the drying process, so plan accordingly.  I will be adding screw hooks and a chain to hang this…be CAREFUL to use strong hooks so the window will be secure.

I see GREAT possibilities for this project to be adapted…Small picture frames would be AMAZING…You could simply choose ONE COLOR to make them and possibly add a cut-out to the front for an added touch of whimsy!

I plan to put this over my painting table so that I can keep NOTES of what I am painting or WHEN I need to purchase a NEW DecoArt Product!

I think I will look for a small container to attach to the side to keep my marker in place…I will paint it with the chalky finish paint…a small spice can would be PERFECT…hmmmm…I think I shall invade my spice rack!  =)

I sit here AGAIN thankful for the ability to CREATE and for the talents that I am blessed to develop…I HOPE this will inspire you to TRY this WONDERFUL Product and to ALWAYS GIVE THANKS for all that you have…Blessings to YOU…~charlotte♥