Annie Sloane or is there a simple (cheaper!) alternative?

[Ipanema01]

I have a huge wooden chest of drawers that I'm going to attempt to paint white and change the knobs on this weekend and I've noticed lots of fans of Annie Sloan chalk paint on here.

Is it super easy to use, and how much wax do you get through? The chest is approx 160x95 and I'm not sure how much paint and wax to buy.

I'm not good at DIY so I basically want to do it in the simplest way possible!

Has anyone ever used any wax other than AS and been successful?

One tin of AS Old White will cover it. You can water AS paint down quite a lot as well - I find I get a better finish by doing that and painting more than one coat. Unless you like the thick paint shabby chic look in which case don't water it down. The longer you leave the lid off the paint tin whilst you're working, the more the paint thickens - just be aware (so if you water it down and it's too thin, leave the lid off for half a day).

You can use any clear wax - doesn't have to be AS. Briwax is good but again, I'd do more than one coat as it offers more protection (I use this). It takes a good month for the wax to truly cure and harden.

One thing to be aware of tho if you're using chalk paint. It doesn't take kindly to having things like hot cups or wet glasses put on it as it marks easily (which is why a few coats of wax is sensible). On the positive side, it's easy to whip out the tin and recoat at anytime, even over the top of pre-existing wax.

Hope this helps.

Oh, and one tin of wax will be more than enough. You won't get through it all on one chest of drawers! Spread it fairly thinly - if you over load your cloth (or brush) it's really hard to rub down to a shine afterwards.

Absolutely everything bessie has said!!

Tin of paint did me 2 units with enough for touch ups and tin of wax probably not even 1/4 used after that

Thanks so much both, so so helpful!
I don't really like the shabby chic look and would prefer it to look as smooth/modern as possible - is that achievable with Annie Sloan? The reason I'm looking at using it is I read you don't need to faff with sanding etc, as opposed to ending up with a particular look..

Also, any recommendations on the type of brush to use for this fun task?

bessiebumptious2 you suggest old white, I was going to go for pure. Any major difference? Thanks

Hi Ipanema01 I'm thinking of doing the same to a dresser and also don't like the chabby chic look, have you painted your drawers yet? If so how did it go?

Hey Mum2KSS, I have ordered the Pure white as I think that'll give a more bright white finish, but I haven't done it yet. Was hoping to do it this weekend but I think I'll be too busy now! I'll try to post a photo on here once I've done it

Old White and Pure White will be just as it sounds, really. The Old White has a more yellowy and aged tinge, so a more off-white. All the colours are nice, anyway.

I also don't like shabby chic, but you don't have to go with that particular look if you don't want, even with chalk paint. BUT, I would recommend several thinner coats of this paint rather than one or two heavy coats, otherwise the look won't be so smooth. If you want a smooth finish, you will need to sand down in between coats because it's hard to get rid of all brush marks with chalk paint. Unfortunately that does get a bit dusty although it's very easy to do!

Now, I've never tried a small roller for the bigger areas, so that might be worth a try, and just use the brushes in areas you can't reach? I'll be trying it myself at some point.

I do prefer, if it's a piece of furniture that I think I might want to repaint in the future, to use standard rather than chalk paint and put the initial effort in. Reason being that once you've used chalk paint, unless you want to continue to always use chalk paint, you're a bit stuffed. You'd need to sand the CP off, and then sand off any of the original finish before you started!! Just remember that chalk paint is actually cutting corners...

Good luck and post a pic when you're done!!

And for brushes, I'm afraid you tend to get what you pay for. I have several on the go and use them according to what I'm doing, so for e.g. I have a 1.5" harris brush that is brilliant for varnish, but I wouldn't paint with it.

Not helpful, I know, but again it's really down to personal preference and type of application.

I used Rustoleum chalk paint (cheaper than Annie Sloan, but not as many colours) on this old dresser. I'd undercoated and painted half of it with an F&B eggshell then didn't like the slightly shiny finish.

The chalk paint was easier and quicker to use than the eggshell, I've given it one coat of wax so far, might do another when I have time.

I used ordinary emulsion paint when I painted some brown dining chairs and then wax on top. I experimented with varnish on the underside of one chair but decided I preferred the wax finish.
I tried Annie Sloan paint on one chair and the Rustoleum on another but I much preferred the results I got from the emulsion paint I used on the remaining chairs. The brush marks were annoying.

Never tried it but I have read about people making their own chalk paint by adding chalk powder to emulsion and then following the same waxing process. Am sure if you google it you will find something.

Dirt cheap too.

Tried that but I couldn't get it smooth enough. Still tiny powdery bits of chalk so I abandoned that idea.

Thanks all!
The chalk paint has just arrived so I'm just waiting for some drier weather to attempt it
I'll post a pic when I'm done.
Twittwattwoo that looks amazing!