Why does everyone love chalk paint?

[Whaeanui]

I just wanted to know if anyone else isn’t quite as in love with it as me! I think that people love it because it’s easy to use, no prep etc right? But that’s only with certain furniture. I also notice everyone uses wax, to keep the look of the chalk paint I guess. But that needs reapplying every 6 months. Who is doing that? I don’t like that idea so with furniture I’m experimenting with, I’m trying to use polyurethane varnish etc but that’s not simple either and you do that with other paint. What am I missing? Why is everyone so into it? I have noticed that it’s good to blend and create nice effects with, but you still need a top coat.

It's crap

😂😂 thanks for the honesty @FayCarew

I agree with you! It’s overrated.

Thanks guys, damn annoyed I bought 3 pots to experiment with now! I’m trying to figure out how to get this top coat to work on what I’ve painted already! Definitely won’t use it again

Love Frenchic- it genuinely is very good, hardwearing and easy to work with. I’ve done my front door and kitchen cupboards ( plus many other things).

Annie Sloan was streaky and chipped instantly. They’re not all the same

PS the top coat is no good - I can’t get it to not streak so I never use it

Frenchic is great, looks really smooth and lasts well.

Thank you @Dotcheck so much! I have rust oleum and I’ve painted 2 things so not sure if I should keep trying with the top coat or just paint over it. These YouTubers that say our fantastic had me perplexed!

@Dotcheck what top coat do you use. This is my problem. I have got two coats on, then the polyurethane recommended from rust oleum, varathane? But when I sand between layers the chalk paint is slightly chipping in little dots. I definitely cleaned, have tack cloths etc

Frenchic maybe would have been better choice.

Don't like. Cheap finish. Feels horrible.

Not a fan of Rust-Oleum, very poor finish and the lacquer leaves streaks. Have found Wilko own brand to have a better finish.
The reason I like the chalk finish is because it is better at disguising the many flaws in my home and furniture.
Ideally I would renovate properly and replace most items, but beyond my budget at the moment, so it has to be a paint and filler job.

It's worth trying Frenchic, it's lovely to paint with and can go on literally everything (including tiled fireplaces and UPC window frames here). They have a 'lazy' range which doesn't need any primer or waxing etc, it's really good and fine for external so doors, garden furniture etc.
There is also a range I've got on Amazon called "The one", again no priming waxing etc.
I bought rustolium once and it was awful, never again!

@PuppyPerson thank you so much!! Really helpful

@AddictedtoStarmix thank you too. I obviously brought the wrong type to try first up

What are you painting? I use the Frenchic alFresco range as it is designed for outdoor use.
I don’t use a topcoat anymore, but I do make sure I use 3- 4 thin coats, and then let it cure.
I might consider some sort of top coat if it was going to get heavy use though

I don’t like rust oleum either- I bought the ‘guaranteed, sticks to everything’ version and it flaked right away

@Dotcheck I am painting a shelf unit and drawers to actually store all my DIY and craft things! I even primed it! I’m thinking maybe I can rescue with more coats of the stupid paint and then try a different top coat as I definitely need to seal it.

I use Little Greene Paint Co for most stuff.

Their ASP (All Surface Primer) and, most times, their Tom’s Oil as a topcoat (both come in pretty much all of their colour range). It’s not cheap, but it does go a long way.

Hi OP, this is really interesting - I’ve found Rustoleum chalk paint really good. I’ve used Frenchic, too, which was beautiful to paint with, but found Rustoleum not that different and cheaper too. I always sugar soap and lightly sand things first and then sand in between coats too. (Was about to make Rustoleum purchase for some upcycling but am having second thoughts after advice on this thread! 🙈😂)

@MadameSapphire thank you. Yes online reviews were good but I do wonder if most of those are using wax? I don’t sand between coats of the chalk paint, as per instructions but am about to try doing that this morning to see if that helps when I go to top coat and sand between those layers- necessary otherwise it’s not nice and flat. It hasn’t been as straight forward as it claims, that’s for sure!

@Furries thanks, will look into those! Wish I had asked the questions here first before buying!

Thank you to all the suggestions. I got Frenchic lazy range, loof this time for the ikea drawers. It’s wonderful! I sanded the rust oleum stuff I tried first ( I did prime that too with that Bin primer ) and then applied the Frenchic and it’s so good. Two coats. Great finish, love it! So good you don’t need any top cost or wax.

I also made a console table recently and stained it using LittleFair’s wood dye. I wasn’t going to try the rust oleum polyurethane again so I got LittieFair’s Titan topcoat. It’s excellent! Highly recommend it. Quick drying, self levelling. Really good.
Thanks to everyone who suggested Frenchic. I’ll be trying other suggestions for future projects too.

Good to know thanks 🙏 !!

Do you have before/after photos - I love seeing transformations!