This desk was perfectly sized, quaint, and lovable; the kind of piece that you see and go, "Ooo!" as you involuntarily shrug your shoulders. I acquired this desk locally and with its little compartments to organize your things, a place to put a desk lamp that doesn't disturb your work space, and a couple of drawers, I thought it was just perfect.

THE MAKEOVER

Repairs, sanding... you know the drill. I also removed the flimsy backing to the hutch which immediately opened and lightened the desk. Now that that's out of the way, LET'S TALK ABOUT CHALK PAINT PEOPLE.

Chalk paint is having a bit of a moment these days. It’s pretty warranted, but that doesn’t necessarily mean it’s always the best option for a project. (If you really want to hack away some of the hype, read this. Or this slightly less angry argument.) Here's why folks love it: You ("in theory") don't have to worry about sanding, priming, or even stripping the surface of your piece. You simply paint over all that mess and chalk paint will cover it with a single coat. Hooray! Sure, it can be more expensive, but think of what you're saving in primer, stripping agents, sandpaper, and time.

Arguably the most well known chalk paint brand is Annie Sloan and that’s because it’s amazing, though it can be difficult to track down and costs a pretty penny. Your best bet is to go to her website and punch in your zip code to find local retailers. For this project though, I went with Rustoleum Chalk Paint in Charcoal. Needlessly defiant? Nah, I wanted to keep the cost down. I also wanted to give this piece around 4 coats so I had a extra layers to sand down, smooth out, and manipulate. Annie Sloan would have almost been too much of a good thing for this project.

Painting this desk felt like experiencing chalk paint PTSD. What I'm about to write includes past experience, inner monologue, and present day work on Paul. As I begin to paint, I can't help thinking how absolutely fabulous this is. One coat they say!? Oh how it just clings to the surface! No drips! Oh this is spectacular. I can see why people get so excited about chalk paint...

Then I look at the streaks of paint and start to wonder, is it the lighting? I'm using my high quality paint brush... will this dry smooth and even or will you still be able to see the brush lines? I thinned it out with some water so it shouldn’t… I'll just watch it dry, it does dry so quickly... oh! Oh no! Oh come on, no! It's dry and you can still see those paint lines! Ok ok, don't panic, this is fine! You have a degree in art! You know how to paint! Something must be off. I'll just go over it again... surely it just needs several coats. Then everything will even out and it'll be ok. (Applies second coat.) Better! See, nothing to worry about, you can't even see.... what the...?

Sidebar: I can't tell you how many blogs tell us to "just have fun with it! Embrace the experience!!" Oh yeah? Just like that? I'd argue that this steadily developing panic is pretty un-fun. Call me a perfectionist, but I don't want this to look like it was painted by an eight year old.

Sidebar to the sidebar: Viktor Lowenfield is known for defining the stages of artistic development. In the Dawning Realism Stage (around 9-13 years old), children wrestle with whether or not the outcome of their work appears real. They become aware of their artistic limitations and abilities to make the outcome of their art line up with what they're envisioning in their mind. They aim for perfection in their work, and, If they feel they fall short, they get incredibly frustrated. Chalk paint reduces me to an eleven year old kid- a grand vision of what will be, only to be met with a harsh reality of what is.

Here's the thing about chalk paint. It's not going to look airbrushed. Even if you go over it with a paint roller (not recommended). Even if you get a really expensive paint brush. Even if you don't completely suck at painting. BUT DON'T GIVE UP YET. Once you have a few coats (or three) on your piece, get an extra fine piece of sandpaper (something in the 300's grit is best), wrap it around a foam block, and drag that baby back and forth in the direction of the paint. Tip! (/WARNING!) Do this outside. The process yields chalk dust and plenty of it. As you sand, you'll notice the paint color begin to lighten and the previously noticeable paint brush markings smooth out. Here's a video of me sanding this desk. Notice how much lighter the sanded paint appears compared to the unsanded area below.

(Of course. The video isn't working. I'll keep at it. In the meantime, here's a picture. The sanded areas are lighter and smoother than the unsanded areas towards the top of the picture)

What makes chalk paint great is it's ability to distress simply and how easy it can be to manipulate. Distressed it too far and want to go back? Not a problem, just add another coat of paint, it'll be dry in less than an hour and you'll be back at it. I chose to do nearly three coats (four is some areas) of chalk paint on this desk so I would have enough thickness to really manipulate without sanding down to the wood. Once the paint has been sanded, you won't notice those paint lines or imperfections. The surface will appear smooth and chalky. BUT OH THE FAITH YOU MUST HAVE.

Now for the next tiny panic attack. The color is lighter than I wanted (because I sanded it), so NOW WHAT. Again, faith. Chalk paint requires a sealant top coat of some kind. If I stopped at this stage, a swipe of my finger on the surface would leave a mark, and my finger would likely pick up the chalky residue. Wax is a popular option. You can go with a clear wax, or a wax with a stain that will play on the paint color. Darker waxes tend to give pieces that gorgeous vintage feel. You can also buff the wax to make it shine. But, if your piece is going to endure frequent use, you might want something a bit tougher. I recently discovered Minwax wipe on polyurethane (what took me so long?!) and absolutely love it, especially for projects that have lots of nooks and crannies. "Everyone" raves about Minwax Polycylic (you know, the teal can). It's good, but I personally find it really watery and drippy. To each their own, but I loved how easy this wipe on poly was to use. And the lightening of the paint crisis was alleviated! The poly coat restored the richness of the paint color. Hooray!

One last thing about chalk paint. No matter how smooth you get it, the piece will still have that somewhat hand-painted look when you get close. If that's not what you're after, then you likely don't want to use chalk paint, especially a dark colored chalk paint. That said, if you want something that beautifully gives off a distressed and worn look, dries quickly, and has subtle variations in the paint, then chalk paint is a great way to go.

Waiting for the poly to dry... notice how much deeper the color is once again!

Three layers of polyurethane later and... ta da! I give you, Paul: