Dark Gray Painted Chair
Big news guys, dark gray is IN. It’s hot! It’s trendy! Go paint everything dark gray! Okay–if you say so.
But seriously, I have noticed a big increase of the amount of dark gray I’m seeing in the new houses being built around me, and having such a light color schemed house I am inclined to add a bunch of dark gray accents. I haven’t shared them with you yet but here’s the first of many…a dark gray painted chair!
It used to look like this:
And I actually refinished this only a couple of years ago. But I used them in the dining room and they got demolished by my kids. Plus I had painted them when I was still pretty new to painting and I didn’t do a great job. So it was time to repaint.
I took off the cushion and started painting, using Chalky Finish in their dark gray color, Relic. This color is beautiful…mostly dark gray with very slight blue undertones. Gray is a hard color to not have undertones at all. I painted it pretty quickly and let it dry. Then I added another coat the next day.
After it dried, I gave it a quick sanding, wiped it down with a cloth and then painted DecoArt clear soft touch varnish on top. I like this because it’s a hard polyurethane finish but with a soft touch. It’s soooo smooth. Like buttah.
After the chair was done, I did a quick reupholstering job on the seat cushion. I used a drop cloth and some extra batting I had and just wrapped it over the top of the existing fabric. I stapled it down and trimmed it. Pull it tight but not too tight.
Then I screwed it back on and voila! Looks so pretty!
Why do I use Chalky Finish paint as opposed to latex? Well latex is great for walls, doors and even some large furniture projects. But if you want a certain feel and finish, chalky finish is very flexible. You can distress it much more naturally, where latex tends to roll and get sticky and weird. If you distress latex, you have to wait 24 hours for it to cure more and then distressing works a bit better. Also if you wanted to add a glaze, chalky finish paint colors will deepen and get so rich and vibrant. And it goes onto anything without sanding.
Isn’t it purdy?
I am a member of DecoArt Core Blogger Team. This post was sponsored by DecoArt but all opinions are my own.
I use this Americana brand of chalky paint all the time. When I first discovered it, I was singing the Halleleujah choris after paying for ASCP for years. I get my Americana chalk paint at Michaels with a coupon. I just used the last of the varnish so I need to get more. I have painted night stands, end tables, a coffee table, and an accent table with this stuff. I absolutely love it!!! WalMart is now selling a Waverly brand of chalk paint—haven’t tried it yet but I want to try it for comparison. They had the wax but I don’t recall seeing the varnish in WalMart. I just have no luck in applying/wiping off the wax the right way, so I am sold on the varnish. And yep, I am seeing lots of gray too. About to paint my dining room gray.
I use this Americana brand of chalky paint all the time. When I first discovered it, I was singing the Halleleujah chorus after paying for ASCP for years. I get my Americana chalk paint at Michaels with a coupon. I just used the last of the varnish so I need to get more. I have painted night stands, end tables, a coffee table, and an accent table with this stuff. I absolutely love it!!! WalMart is now selling a Waverly brand of chalk paint—haven’t tried it yet but I want to try it for comparison. They had the wax but I don’t recall seeing the varnish in WalMart. I just have no luck in applying/wiping off the wax the right way, so I am sold on the varnish. And yep, I am seeing lots of gray too. About to paint my dining room gray.
Yes the wax I feel is a lot tricker to get a good finish. The varnish is great and super easy to use. I love it!
Dark gray everywhere! I don’t like dark gray. It’s depressing. I prefer light, cheerful colors — so difficult to find lately. Adding yellow to dark gray doesn’t change it to cheerful for me.
I’m loving the dark gray everywhere! Great job on the chair.
I love how this turned out!
I really love how the chair turned out. I do like the dark gray when paired with a fun bright color.
Thanks! I love the dark gray with coral.