October 3, 2013

Annie Sloan Chalk Paint at the Back Porch Mercantile


I've been in the process of upgrading some of my home's features, including replacing the carpet and getting a few new pieces of furniture. I also gave some current furniture a face-lift with Annie Sloan Chalk paint. This product has been popular for some time, but I don't think I quite believed that it was as amazing as folks said.


I jumped in head first by painting an old chest of drawers in Annie Sloan's newest color "English Yellow." The paint came from a shop down the street from me called The Back Porch Mercantile, Knoxville's only Annie Sloan Chalk Paint stockist.



During a second trip to the shop to pick up the finishing wax, I met and struck up a conversation with Jenny, the owner. She invited me to join in one of the store's Chalk Paint workshops and even though I'd already painted my chest of drawers, I decided it would be fun to learn more.


Not only did I learn more tips and tricks of the process, I got to use some of the tools of the trade. The Annie Sloan brushes are really great...I didn't think I needed special brushes at first, but once I used them in the workshop, I was hooked. Especially for the waxing...they made it so much easier.


I also learned about how to layer the paint and mix different colors to create textures. My favorite thing about the class was getting to use the gilded wax...so Marie Antoinette, don't you think? Loved it!

I probably won't paint too many more pieces of furniture, but when I do I will definitely know more about how to do it and how to get different effects. I highly recommend the workshops at The Back Porch Mercantile for anyone who is interested in learning more.

Here's some information (and you can also visit the store's Facebook page):

Beginner Workshops:
October: 
Thursday 24th 5:30-8:30
Saturday 26th 1-4

November: 
Thursday 7th 5:30-8:30
Saturday 16th 1-4
Thursday 21st 5:30-8:30

December: 
Thursday 12th 5:30-8:30
Saturday14th 1-4

Please call 247.4532 for more information.

Have you joined the Annie Sloan Chalk Paint craze? It really is fun to transform furniture without any sanding or scraping old layers of paint. What's your favorite Annie Sloan Chalk Paint color or color combination?