Chalk Paint and Strippers

This Cedar chest was my most recent (completed) project.

This is me trying to get a decent Picture... Love to make stuff... hate to take pictures of it lol. 

It's currently being used as a toy chest in A-baby's room :)

The top was a disaster and it needed to be stripped and sanded. I accidentally deleted the before pictures (Damnitt!!). Although I found the exact same one in the clearance center at Ashley Furniture. Hate to be a furniture racist - but any wood with a red undertone makes me gag.

The stripper I used on the top of the chest is the same stuff I'm using to fix the top of this dresser that somebody ditched. The previous owner and anybody else that has seen it thinks I'm crazy for taking it in but I would be crazy for leaving it!!! It's solid wood, Canadian made (even the hardware), working dovetailed drawers and in my opinion it's really only the top that needs all the TLC.  

This is a progress picture of the top after it's first coat of stain and the label from my bottle of EZ strip. This stuff is fume free and works wonders for a product that doesn't pump chemicals into the air. For those with homes that double as workshops this is a great product when you're trying to keep the smells to a minimum.

This dresser is about to be my most favoritist project yet but I've hit a fork in the road. I don't know if I want to weather it or not!!! I'm loving it now that I've finished the first couple coats of paint but I'm scared I'm going to hate it if I beat it up :(.

Comparing the waxed and weathered drawer to the freshly painted ones... HELP!!

Since I found it with one drawer missing, I decided to remove the opposite drawer to balance it. That left me with the luxury of having an extra drawer to test some paint techniques! I waxed (FIRST) and weathered the drawer once it dried..... still can't decide.

*Handy Mom Hack*  I'm having de-ja vu to one of my first posts as a Mom. I use baby wipe containers for everything lol.

If you are anything like me - nothing gets done in one sitting. I love that using wipe containers keep the air away from the paint and paintbrush because If I have to leave it and come back to it - that's ok :). Also, I mixed the chalk paint right in the container!

To make chalk paint this time I used 3 tablespoons Plaster of Paris, 3 cups of paint and a tablespoon of water. This recipe is smooth as butter I love it.

In my last post I used a recipe with baking soda and it was great since It was a basic white and I didn't weather it.

Excited to share the finished product once I CAN decide, this is such a unique piece of furniture and the color is my new go-to.

Thanks for reading!