A Dresser Update with Magnolia Home Chalk Style Paint

You might remember that I bought a couple of quarts of the Magnolia Home Chalk Style Paint online recently.  I have a dresser that has already been through a couple of makeovers, and thought it would be a good chance to experiment with this paint and test it out myself.  I appreciate a low pressure, low stress approach when experimenting with a new paint product.

The Dresser

This is one of the first pieces of furniture that I painted when I started blogging almost eight years ago, so I thought it would be helpful to give you a refresh on this dresser’s humble beginnings.  It was pretty rough, and the wood veneer was a mess, but I love the pretty lines of it, and knew there was room for improvement.

Dresser Makeover #1

From its humble beginnings, I gave it a light and bright new look, and changed out the hardware as well.  Not too bad for one of my first furniture makeovers, right?  The bottom drawer was a hot mess, so I just got rid of it altogether, and added a piece of plywood and a basket in its place.

Dresser Makeover #2

Years later, I gave it another update, this time using Annie Sloan’s Chalk Paint.  Again, I think this was another one of those experimenting sessions, and this dresser is far from perfect, so it’s a great candidate for my tests.  I was running low on paint, so I had to get a bit creative with the paint technique, which is why it’s a bit of a hodge podge.  I was just ready for something different in terms of color, and this did the trick.

Dresser Makeover #3

And now we’re on to makeover #3 – with Joanna’s Chalk Style Paint.  When I ordered her paint online, I ordered two quarts in two different colors.  I chose their beautiful shade of blush called Ella Rose and a neutral called Garden Trowel.  

While I absolutely love the Ella Rose, after playing with it a bit, I determined that it wouldn’t work for me on this particular piece of furniture for my own home.  But I’m not giving up on this color – in fact, if you’ll remember in this post, I’m really hoping to incorporate it in my home somewhere, perhaps paired with navy.

So, Garden Trowel it is!  Since I also love the way that hardware can change the look of a furniture piece, I added some glass knobs from Hobby Lobby.  It’s far from perfect, but it’s a pretty piece that I continue to appreciate even now, years later.

You can see why I was taken by the curves of this dresser.

As far as the Magnolia Home Chalk Style Paint goes, I’m really pleased with it.  It’s thick, but covers really well.  I didn’t spray this piece, since it already has so many imperfections, but it brushed and rolled out really nicely.  I think it could be sprayed, but the paint would have to be thinned out before doing so.

Are you a serial furniture painter? Have you tried any of the paints in Joanna Gaines’ paint line?  There are so many different options – I only wish the Chalk Style Paint was available in stores instead of online!

Jenny