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Counter Stool Makeover

SimpleDecoratingTips.com counter stool makeover and my 1st attempt at chalk paint

Big news… I’m no longer a chalk paint virgin… Once I started on this project, I got a vision for a fun treatment for these stools and have included the free PDF for you to download at the end of this post so be sure to check that out too. So here’s the ‘before’, keep reading to see the ‘after’…

un and colorful, soon became garish and overbearing to me.

These aren’t the first stools in our fairly new kitchen renovation in our 100 year old house…

If you have been following me for a while, then you may remember the ‘colorful stools’ I wrote about last year… if not, you can check out that post here: post about the colorful stools… Inspiration for Colors

SimpleDecoratingTips.com colorful stools had to go

But for some reason, I just don’t live well, day in and day out, with very much color in my house, and thus what was once fI was able to sell them on my ‘secret source for vintage finds‘ very easily.

I also found a replacement…

I decided that not only the color, but the busy pattern on the legs was just too busy for me in our kitchen. So when I went looking for replacement stools…

I specifically wanted stools with nice straight, plain legs, that didn’t take up too much floor space, as I’m trying to squeeze 3 stools in a tight space.

This is what I found:

SimpleDecoratingTips.com priming tops 1

They’re available here in these 2 sizes: source for this 24″ stool and source for this stool in a 29″ version. I love that they are super inexpensive so if I decide I’m sick of these next year, so worries, I’ll sell them and come up with a different plan. But even though these are quite inexpensive, they are super sturdy!

So to start with, I primed the seats…

Yes, I know that I said I’m no longer a chalk paint virgin, and I’m not… but I used the chalk paint on the legs, for the seats I had a different plan, and it started with primer and latex paint.

SimpleDecoratingTips.com painting gray on tops

After the primer was dry, I coated the seats with 2 coats of gray latex. (this is the same color that I painted the antique dry sink re-do with too)

Then it was time for the chalk paint on the legs… I was giddy with excitement!

So I’m simple-minded, I get giddy easy. 🙂

I’ve read sooooooo much about chalk paint, some very contrasting things so I didn’t know quite what to expect…

I decided to ignore everything else I read and just read the manufacturer’s directions on the jar. It clearly said “No need to use primer – reliable adhesion to most surfaces without sanding or using a layer of primer”

So keeping them to their word, I went right ahead and started painting the lacquered legs with the chalk paint.

SimpleDecoratingTips.com tip paint inside 1st

Here’s a painting tip: start on the inside of the legs opposite of where you sit, so your arm doesn’t drag across wet paint to get to the inside later.

The actual chalk paint brand I used was already premixed… I felt no compulsion to try some brand that calls for me to have to mix it myself from powder, (which might explain why some things I read talked about chalk paint being super runny… maybe they did the mix your own and added too much water!?)

Here’s the source for the chalk paint I used. I was only painting the legs of 3 counter stools so I figured a 16 ounce container would do it, and turns out, I barely used 1/4 of the entire pot.

chalk paint

I was pleasantly surprised to find out the chalk paint went on wonderfully smooth, thick and covered extremely well. Remember, I didn’t prime or sand the pre-finished stools from their gloss finish, and this is how well the chalk paint covered after only 1 coat:

SimpleDecoratingTips.com close up of chalk paint coverage

A quick 2nd coat and this counter stool makeover was ready for the next step!

I wanted a little something interesting in the stool design, after all I lost all the color and all the fancy legs from the previous stools, but I didn’t want to fall victim to adding color then tiring of it immediately. After staring at my kitchen for a while, it struck me…

The lights over the peninsula are reproductions lights in sort of a 1920’s style, and I love them, so playing off them I went with a font that looks 1920’s and a pattern that repeats the black stripes…

SimpleDecoratingTips.com print for stool tops

Most of us are familiar with the saying ‘eat, drink and be merry’…

That sounds fitting for the kitchen counter stools, we eat there, we drink there, and I’m frequently telling one of my grandchildren at snack time to be kind to their sibling, that’s sort of like be merry, right?

But before I committed to those words on a stool, I wanted to be sure it wasn’t derived from some twisted person encouraging drunkenness 😉

I was pretty sure it came from the Bible, and it does… Ecclesiastics 8:15  Great! Moving on…

I created my PDF designs on PowerPoint, emailed them to OfficeMax to have them print them out on heavier paper, not cardstock, but heavier than thin typing paper, I think it was 28# paper. And very important: on a laser printer! (ink jet will run and not be so pretty once the Mod Podge hits it)

After I cut out the printed papers, I coated the top of the stool seats with a layer of Mod Podge. Mod Podge is available in so many different varieties and finishes

SimpleDecoratingTips.com placing and mod podge print

Then carefully centering the circle paper on the circle seat, starting in the center of the paper and working towards the edges, I lightly smoothed out the paper decal, flattening it into the very sticky Mod Podge on the seat, taking great care to not get air bubbles in the paper.

Here’s a tip I’ve learned from Mark Montano since re-doing these stools: Lightly mist the graphic, front and back, with water before setting it on the Mod Podge to prevent air bubbles.

Next, I coated the entire seat and paper with another coat of Mod Podge.

SimpleDecoratingTips.com mod podge over top

As the 1st top coat of Mod Podge was drying, a few small air bubbles did pop up, but went back down as it dried. I gave the seats another 4 coats of Mod Podge, just to give them extra durability.

Once the seats were totally dry over night, it was time for me to finish the legs.

I took them outside and with a sanding block outfitted with 220 grit sand paper, I ‘distressed’ the legs.

SimpleDecoratingTips.com lightly sanding edges

Again, I was pleasantly surprised with how nicely the chalk paint finish sanded off the legs. If this was latex paint I was sanding, it would tend to get sort of ‘pilly’ and gummy, but not this chalk paint, it was dry like fine sawdust and came off beautifully.

SimpleDecoratingTips.com sanding done

I chose to sand off the edges where normal wear and tear would occur, to try to give it a somewhat believable distressed finish.

The final step in this counter stool makeover was the finish on the chalk paint.

I used the same brand of finish… I guess it’s some sort of liquid paste wax.

SimpleDecoratingTips.com wiping on wax

This part was maybe a little let down. This product smelled more like a water based poly smells, and I wonder if it’s actually closely related to that? Next time, I think I’ll try just good old paste wax and see which way I prefer.

Regardless, the new kitchen counter stools are done, and I think they turned out kind of charming.

SimpleDecoratingTips.com tops done

I like how the stool graphics coordinate with the lights over the peninsula.

SimpleDecoratingTips.com coordinates with glass shades on repro lights

Here they are all together…

SimpleDecoratingTips.com eat drink and be merry counter stool makeover

So far, so good!

They’re not wearing negatively on me at all. I like their playfulness, yet in a subdued tone… perfect… I think.

Here are your free PDFs for ‘Eat’, ‘Drink’ and ‘be Merry’… (this is the 1st time at my attempt to share a PDF with you too, so if something isn’t working right, let me know and I’ll attempt to fix it)

  • SimpleDecoratingTips.com ‘eat’ PDF
  • SimpleDecoratingTips.com ‘drink’ PDF
  • SimpleDecoratingTips.com ‘be merry’ PDF

Shopping List:

  • Mod Podge for gluing and sealing the graphics to the stool seats

Here are some more furniture re-do projects:

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Industrial-Grunge-Textured-Trunk-Redo
Spring-decoupage-Project
How to Paint Faux Driftwood
Nightstand ReDo
Window with Reverse Paint and Decoupage
MCM Table ReDo
Secretary-Desk-Redo
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embossing paste stencil
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before and after antique dry sink re-do step by step
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Painting Tips
tips to find the right lampshade
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Repurposing: Stencil a Vintage Window
sofa table redo before and after
Counter stool makeover and my 1st attempt at chalk paint
Inspiration for Colors
Coastal Cottage Style Table
DIY Directional Arrows
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Creating a Trophy Wall in a Whimsical Library
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Thanks so much for stopping by! Please feel free to follow and share this blog with your friends, as well as on Facebook, Pinterest, Flipboard, Bloglovin, YouTube and Instagram! I appreciate you reading along.

This post is also at: Between Naps on the Porch, Thrifty Chic Decor

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Welcome to Simple Decorating Tips! I’m Liz, the author, and I’m so glad you’re here!

My goal is to encourage you with DIY tips, techniques and tutorials so you feel empowered to join in the fun! Along with this DIY blog, I have a DIY shop, Frame and Frills!
Frame and Frills is in Wisconsin. I stock amazing DIY products! Fusion Mineral Paints, ReDesign Transfers, Decoupage, Waxes, loads of DIY Goodies, re-done Furniture and more! Even if you're not close to where the shop is in Wisconsin, good news... I ship nationwide, (USA) daily! Check out the link here and let's get your DIY on!
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Welcome to Simple Decorating Tips! I'm Liz, the author, and I'm so glad you're here! My goal is to encourage you with DIY tips, techniques and tutorials so you feel empowered to join in the fun! Along with this DIY blog, I have a DIY shop, Frame and Frills!
Frame and Frills is in Wisconsin. I stock amazing DIY products! Fusion Mineral Paints, ReDesign Transfers, Decoupage, Waxes, loads of DIY Goodies, re-done Furniture and more! Even if you're not close to where the shop is in Wisconsin, good news... I ship nationwide, (USA) daily! Check out the link here and let's get your DIY on!


Disclosure Policy: According to FTC guidelines, I want you to be aware that some of the content of this blog may be a source of income and therefore may be used to promote products, services, or other businesses. I will only choose to promote products/services/businesses that I feel will be beneficial to my readers. While I hope to generate a small profit for my time and effort to create this blog, I hold myself to the highest standard of integrity. I appreciate my readers, and make it my goal to deliver quality, honest material on this blog through each post. Thanks for reading along, Liz

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Sharing is great! Please feel free to share this blog with your friends, as well as on Facebook and Pinterest and Flipboard and Houzz and YouTube the more the merrier! I appreciate you stopping by. But please remember that all photos, images, text and content are owned by SimpleDecoratingTips.com. So anything you share, please be sure it always links back to my original post it came from. Please do not remove watermarks, crop or edit anything without written permission from me first.

Disclosure Policy: According to the FTC guidelines, I want you to be aware that this blog is a source of income and may occasionally incorporate endorsements or testimonials and shopping links. It is important to me to disclose this to you. The content of this blog is a source of income and therefore may be used to promote products, services, or other businesses. I will only choose to promote products/services/businesses that I feel will be beneficial to my readers. Products provided to me by my advertising partners for my review are given to me free of charge with no cost to myself. This does not ensure a positive review of the product in any way. While I hope to generate a small profit for my time and effort to create this blog, I hold myself to the highest standard of integrity. I appreciate my readers, and always make it my goal to deliver quality, honest material on this blog through each post. Thanks for reading along, Liz

Disclosure Policy According to Federal Trade Commission guidelines, I want you to be aware that this blog is a source of income and may occasionally incorporate endorsements or testimonials. It is important to me to disclose this to you. The content of this blog is a source of income and therefore may be used to promote products, services, or other businesses. I will only choose to promote products/services/businesses that I feel will be beneficial to my readers. Products provided to me by my advertising partners for my review are given to me free of charge with no cost to myself. This does not ensure a positive review of the product in any way. My truthful opinion will be what I state, no matter if I'm getting paid or not. Accuracy and truth are the priority for me on this blog's information, no matter if it's about a product or anything else. Not every product or service or store etc. may be mentioned in each and every post as an affiliate. While I hope to generate a small profit for my time and effort to create this blog, I hold myself to the highest standard of integrity. I appreciate my readers, and always make it my goal to deliver quality, honest material on this blog through each post.

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