Have you ever used chalk paint? Have you ever wanted to? Have you realized how EXPENSIVE chalk paint brands can be? Well, this happened to me. I wanted to paint everything with chalk paint and kept spending so much! Then I learned how to make your own chalk paint with calcium carbonate.
That’s not the only way to make chalk paint to paint furniture. Let’s explore how to make homemade chalk paint 5 different ways.
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There are a few more recipes for chalk paint than to make chalk paint with calcium carbonate. After trying out these 5 different diy chalk paint recipes, I found that using calcium carbonate in the chalk paint recipe was my favorite, but reserve your judgement until you see the results.
How Do I Make Homemade Chalk Paint?
While there are different mediums to use when making different chalk paint recipes, most of the rest of the ingredients are the same. The good thing is they are also things most people probably already have in their basement or garage.
Ingredients In DIY Chalk Paint Recipe
Here are all of the different main ingredients to make chalk paint that we will test out in this post:
Here are the ingredients needed in most of the recipes of chalk paint:
- water
- choice of paint (latex or acrylic)
- one of the fine powders listed above
Why Make Your Own Chalk Paint?
The reason to make your own chalk paint with calcium carbonate, baking soda, plaster of paris, baking powder or unsanded grout is because you can make it better and cheaper. Chalk paint adheres super well to furniture. I really love that you technically don’t have to do any prep work, but it needs to be sealed.
A few benefits to making your own chalk paint are that color is customizable and the ability to make as much as you want. I made my own chalk paint when I painted my ikea dresser, I made a small batch that was enough to do two coats on the dresser and a couple other small pieces of furniture.
No waste. That’s a big plus for me that this is sustainable and uses leftover latex paint.
The biggest benefit is having control over the process, the consistency, the amount, color, everything and what you make ends up being cheaper, better, and stronger than what you are limited to buying at the store.
Can You Use Acrylic Paint To Make Chalk Paint?
Yes, but it’s complicated. You can use acrylic paint, but only when making chalk paint with calcium carbonate with the acrylic paint. If you try to add plaster of paris or unsanded grout to it, it kinda just hardens into a rock and makes the paint unusable.
Can You Use Baking Soda To Make Chalk Paint?
I have done the viral add baking soda to paint to make it look like a ceramic pottery before and it worked nicely. Though, I’m not sure if I had let the paint sit out if it would harden as well, but I was able to paint with it when I first mixed up the “chalk paint.”
Since I have tried this technique before and didn’t really like the results for a piece of furniture, I have left it off of the testing part of this post, but still included the recipe.
Acrylic paints are great for outdoor projects. You could also use acrylic chalk paint if you have a smaller project or a project with a lot of colors. Latex with a fine powder is still my choice for making the perfect chalk paint, but you can use acrylic paint.
There are also acrylic-latex hybrid paints out there that you can use as well. Also when using acrylic paint, make sure you want to use all purpose acrylic craft paint.
Frequently Asked Questions About Making Chalk Paint
Here are some frequently asked questions frequently asked questions about making chalk paint:
Is A Top Coat Needed When Painting With Chalk Paint?
Yes! Absolutely! I cannot stress this enough, if you use chalk paint and want it to have any kind of longevity, they you should probably prime before painting, but AT THE VERY LEAST, use a top coat. Polycrylic is my favorite way to seal the paint.
Can Chalk Paint Go Over Other Chalk Paint?
Again, Yes! If it has a sealer on top, which it should, I would lightly sand to make the paint be able to grip better. Otherwise, go ahead and paint right over the chalk paint with more….well chalk paint!
Can You Use Unsanded Grout?
Yes you can. That is one of the ways I will list in the recipes next. I have to admit, before this post, I had only tried the other methods. So this is a learning curve for all of us.
How Is Blending The Chalk Paint With An Immersion Blender?
Or should I be mixing the chalk paint mixtures with something other than by hand? Honestly, I think this is personal preference and the recipe for chalk paint you are using.
Can I Spray Chalk Paint In A Paint Sprayer?
Yes! It is possible to spray chalk paint with a paint sprayer, but don’t do what I did. If your paint mixture is too thick, which chalk paint tends to be so it is durable and covers well, it won’t spray well.
Actually it just kind of sputters out of the machine, ask me how I know. When I use my sprayer with latex paint, I have to water it down. For spraying chalk paint, you’ll have to water it down even more. I recommend doing test runs on scrap wood before spraying your furniture.
5 Ways To Make Chalk Paint At Home
Here are 5 different recipes for making chalk paint at home:
Making Chalk Paint With Calcium Carbonate
- 1 C Latex Paint
- 4 tbs cold water
- 4 tbs calcium carbonate
Making Chalk Paint With Baking Soda
- 1 C Latex Paint
- 3 Tbs cold water
- 1/2 C Baking Soda
Making Chalk Paint With Plaster Of Paris
- 1 C Latex Paint
- 2 tbs water
- 2 tbs Plaster of Paris
Making Chalk Paint With Unsanded Grout
- 1 C Latex Paint
- 1 tbs grout
- 2 tbs water
Making Chalk Paint With Baking Powder
- 1 C Latex Paint
- 1/4 C Baking Powder
- 4 tbs cold water
I used this technique on the a vase and it gives a similar texture to the baking soda. I also recommend not using this on furniture, but it makes a great texture for ceramics and updating home decor.
Ways To Blend Your Chalk Paint
We can have two ways to blend your chalk paint. When it comes to the plaster of paris, I get two bowls, one for mixing the plaster of paris and water and the other for the latex paint.
- Mix the plaster of paris and the water with a whisk until there are no bumps.
- Slowly add the mixture to the latex paint and mix.
Another way to blend the rest of the chalk paint recipes is to get a small mixer whether it is an immersion blender, a small one with a whisk attachment, or one of those milk frothers. These work well for getting the paint smooth.
I understand if you don’t want to ruin a mixer just for paint, but it will yield great results.
I did have great success just hand mixing really well with a wooden stick and a whisk. I added the water and chalky binders each one part at a time and mixed thoroughly at a time to keep the mixtures smooth.
For example when making the chalk paint with calcium carbonate:
- Add the paint to a bowl
- Add one tbsp of water and one tbsp of calcium carbonate
- Mix well
- Repeat until all the ingredients are added
Chalk Paint Results
Now that we know how to blend and how to make our own chalk paint, let’s look at which one was the best. I’m looking at factors of how smooth it looks, the mixture it self, and how many coats it took for coverage. Here are the results of the chalk paint recipes, and what I recommend about each:
Calcium Carbonate
Spoiler, this was my favorite method.
Mixture: The mixture is a bit runny compared to some of the others because of the amount of water added, but it did seem to thicken up so just be aware of that.
Coverage: The coverage is really good, but this also depends the color of paint your using as to how many coats you may need. I used a medium toned beige, so 2 coats will usually do the trick. I did 3 light coats just to be sure.
Finish: It has a very smooth finish when it dries. Depending on how you blend the mixture, there may be some lumps or dots of the additive which you can see in the picture above. The way to fix this is to sand lightly in between coats. Overall it dries smooth with minimal brush strokes and looks really nice.
Baking Soda
Mixture: The mixture was thicker and went on smooth enough. Remember when adding the additives and water to do so part by part for smooth mixing.
Coverage: The coverage required at least 2 coats, but each coat requires major sanding in between to make it somewhat smooth. Even then it was still very chalky to the touch, almost like sandpaper.
Finish: Even with sanding in between coats and a top coat, the finish is somewhat streaky and really textured which still shows through the top coat. I think this is a great effect on ceramics or furniture that you want to add texture to. Least favorite.
Plaster of Paris
Mixture: The mixture is hard to mix by hand so it is a good one for one of the blenders or if you don’t have one, just use a whisk
Coverage: This mixture has good coverage without too weird of a texture, but there is still texture
Finish: This is my third favorite of the 4. It has good coverage and the mixture isn’t too runny or thick. It does leave some texture that mostly disappears with a good top coat, but I think the calcium carbonate mixture still made a smoother finish that I prefer.
Unsanded Grout
Mixture: The mixture is one of the thicker ones and if not mixed well can get a bit gritty.
Coverage: Great coverage, needs minimum of 2 which looks pretty full coverage due to the thicker mixture
Finish: The unsanded grout has a really nice and smooth finish, I give it an A minus. It still was not as smooth as the calcium carbonate mixture so it gets second place.
Final Thoughts
The final results and my personal opinion are in. When I started out to on this journey, I thought it was best to make your own chalk paint with calcium carbonate. AND I was right. The other methods were fine, but it was definitely the calcium carbonate that gave the smoothest finish.
Apart from that, it was a great experience to make my own chalk paint. It’s the second time I’ve done it and it won’t be the last. The best results come when I sand in between the layers of paint lightly and seal with a strong top coat. Let me know if you try this!
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