Dresser Makeover | Chalk Paint® Decorative Paint by Annie Sloan

I received product to review in this post.  All opinions are 100% my own.

I am scheduled to have my baby exactly 3 weeks from today.  Over the past two months, I have been getting ready to meet our little guy by getting his nursery together and I am excited to finally start showing you what I have been up to beginning with this dresser makeover.

I started with a dresser that I picked up from the thrift store for $45.  It is solid wood and just needed some updating.  It was PERFECT for the nursery.  I wanted to go with a fish theme in the nursery because my husband LOVES fishing.  The fishing details are subtle and throughout the room because I didn’t want to overwhelm the space with fish.  I brought the dresser home with me and started thinking about how I could finish it to go with the fishing theme.  I decided to use Chalk Paint® Decorative Paint by Annie Sloan in the color Aubusson Blue and finished it off with their Clear Soft Wax.  I had never used Chalk Paint® before and was excited to give it a try.  It is definitely different than any other paint I have ever used.  First, I need to clarify that this is NOT chalkboard paint.  The Chalk Paint® is a really sticky and thick paint that makes it so that you don’t have to sand or prime your project before you get started.  It made the process of painting it super fast and painless!

To use it, you just paint the project and then let it dry.  If you have enough coverage after one coat, then you can go straight to the wax.  If you want more coverage, just paint another coat on the project and then let that dry.  I had complete coverage at two coats.  I actually coated everything but the drawers twice.  For the drawers, I liked the way that the wood was coming through the paint, so I only painted one coat.  Applying the wax is as easy as rubbing a cloth in the wax and then on the dresser.  I found that if I moved in circles that it worked the best.

Now for the fun part!  Remember how I mentioned the fish theme?  I decided that for the knobs I wanted to do something a little bit different than usual.  The bottom drawer pulls are Seachoice Galvanized 4″ Dock Cleats.  I know you’ve seen them before.   They are used on boat docks to wrap the rope around to keep your boat tethered to the dock.  They really are so perfect for the drawers!  The top drawers are nautical monkey fist knots.  I bought some rope and followed a You Tube video and tied them myself.  To attach them to the drawer, I fed the rope through the hole and then secured them with a knot on the inside of the drawer.  They are the perfect touch!  I am in love with the way the drawer pulls all turned out.

There you have it!  A subtle fishing themed dresser that is perfect for the nursery!  On top of the dresser, you will find some books, toys, and a lamp.  The lamp is from IKEA, toys from Target, and books from all over.  Last, the frames up above the dresser are from Michaels and I got them on sale for $4 each!!!  You can’t beat that!  I will eventually have pics of my baby in the two empty frames.  The frame that has the sea creatures in it is a print that my friend made for me that I am in LOVE with.  It is perfect for the subtle underwater, fishing theme I am going for.

Well?  What do you think?  I am excited to show you more of the nursery in the next two weeks.  It has been a labor of love for sure!