My first attempt at upcycling furniture!

My first attempt at upcycling!

I've always been fascinated by upholstery and upcycling but have always been put off by the hard work!  Who has time to prep, sand, seal, clean, prime add solvents and more?!

I have absolutely zero experience decorating but love parisian inspired furniture. Unfortunately it seems like everyone else does too and is very expensive. But after stumbling across this post about upcycling it gave me the confidence to try renovating some old furniture myself using a paint called Annie Sloan Chalk Paint.

Annie Sloan Chalk Paint, Soft Wax and Annie Sloan Brushes

Unlike usual paint where you would need to prep, sand, seal, clean, prime and everything else that requires painting furniture. Annie Sloan Chalk Paint requires none of the above. I couldn't believe it so was keen to get started with my new project, this five draw dresser:

Before

I realised that painting a five draw dresser would be too much of a challenge so decided to paint a three draw dresser instead!

First coat

I chose "French Linen" Annie Sloan Paint, cleaned the wood and then removed the cabinet knobs and applied a first coat of paint. The next day, I applied a second coat, leaving the cabinet to dry again. 

After a few hours, I applied the soft wax to seal the paint.  Then I added crystal knobs I bought from Laura Ashley in the sale. You can pick up similar ones,  a lot cheaper, from Homebase or B&Q.

                              My first attempt at upcycling 

Although initially daunting, my first attempt at upcycling old furniture was not as bad as I imagined, so perhaps I'll upcycle something else. I would love to see more examples of upcycled furniture, share them below if you have any!