I recently inherited a few items from my grandparents as the family prepared the home for an estate sale.  One item, a solid wooden desk, I wanted for my boy’s bedroom and loved the idea that they would ledger on the same desk that my father and his brother used as kids.

The desk had stains from drinks, small divots and scratches in the wood but overall, was in great condition.

I knew I wanted to incorporate olive green into the bedroom because it matched an army trunk that was my Grandfathers’.   I first checked out Magnolia’s line of chalk paint at Target, Magnolia Paint , but I didn’t like the $32 price tag.  If you are one who likes convenience of a pre-made-ready-to-use chalk paint, they have a great selection of paint colors for your project.

If you’re like me and like to decorate on a budget, this Chalk Paint recipe is for you.

I ventured to Sherwin Williams to collect a few samples of olive green paints.  Like any color, there are so many variations & shades I thought I’d like best but I ended up eliminated them from my final selection first.

Final paint selection, SW Oakmoss

This shade of olive green matched the army trunk perfectly and looked great with a black and white gingham pillow that I had already sewn for a desk chair.

Steps to refinish your furniture:

•  Lightly sand the surface of the piece and apply more pressure to areas that may have damage to smooth out the surface
• Remove all debris
• Remove any drawers and hardware
• Prepare your chalk paint
  • 1 cup of paint
  • 1 tbsp plaster of paris
  • 1/4 of hot water
    • Add paint into a glass bowl, add plaster of paris and hot water and mix until there are no remaining clumps of plaster and you have a smooth mixture.
  • Begin painting your piece, smooth and even strokes, let it dry then add a second coat once it’s completely dry.
  • If you intend to distress your piece after the paint has dried, keep that in mind as you’re painting.  You  may not want to have complete coverage if you’re looking for a more distressed look.
  • Once your piece has dried completely, distress if you want.
  • I recommend adding a wax finish to protect the surface.  I used Minwax Paste Finishing Wax in clear.

For an alternative chalk paint recipe, you can try out Natalie’s (of The Vintage Porch), here.  She provides great tips on finishes, brush selection, and amazing before & after pictures of projects she has tackled.

Check out the before and after of the desk:

Before

Painted, Drying and waiting to distress

I found this sleek little chair at Marshalls & love how it brings out the original color of the desk and also ties in the wood of the boys bunk beds.

This refinish gives me all #thefeels #meaningfulspaces #meaningfulpieces.