But I promised a tutorial blog for the popular faux zinc look and it's finally here!
I decided to make my little kitties a house/bed for a holiday gift. Since they love to get inside of things they aren't supposed to, I thought I'd make them something meant just for them.
And since my meows are not prissy in the slightest, faux zinc seemed like a good fit.
Ready to make your own? Go!
Step 1) Choose a piece.
(Remember my photography skills are supbar, and the lighting in my house just plain sucks.)
Step 2) Clean it.
I like to use a mixture of vinegar and water. It kills the yucks, definitely gets them off, and also eliminates odors. If you've got a sticky spot on your piece, vinegar and baking soda will help.
Step 3) This one is just for me.....Take a door off.
Although all the cute pet beds I've seen on Pinterest have a full opening in the front, I think my babies would be happier with a more enclosed space. If you've ever met a cat, you'll understand this. So, I only took off one door. And I didn't fill those holes with putty because I'm lazy. But if you were to take a door off of something, you might want to fill the holes with wood putty.
Step 4) Paint!
You want to choose a dark gray color. I always use CeCe Caldwell's paint because it is natural and wonderful and oh so beautiful. For the faux zinc finish, I use Vermont Slate. I prefer to use Purdy 1.5" brushes for most of my projects but you can use whatever you like. Paint it on in even strokes - 1 coat of this paint is plenty for great coverage!
I knew she'd be the first to check it out! Had to drag her out of there!
Step 5) Let it dry. Take a break. Start a new project. Take a nap. Read a book. Drink some wine.
Step 6) Now the fun begins! You'll need to gather your supplies: Acrylic paint in metallic silver & clear wax & a wax brush. Yes that is the cheapo acrylic paint from Michael's. It works great!
Step 7) You want to put drops of the silver paint around your piece. If you're like me and you don't read through the whole tutorial before you start...doing each step as you read, then you're going to be in trouble here. I hope you're still reading. Good. As the acrylic paint sits on top of the chalk paint, it will start to pull up the chalk paint. If you wait too long before the next step, you will have spots where the wood shows through. Just do a small section at a time to keep that from happening.
Quickly move on to step 8.
The spacing you use between droplets depends on how much silver you want to show. Closer together for more silver. For this piece, they were about 3 inches apart on all sides.
Step 8) Dip your wax brush into the wax, and brush it over the piece, grabbing the silver paint as you go.
(See what I mean about pulling up the chalk paint? I had to fix that.)
Do this with the whole piece and revel in how awesome you are!
Step 9) is totally optional. Well, I guess they all are...hahahaha. I crack myself up sometimes.
Next you will dip your brush into an awesome tub of dark wax (you know, the one I didn't take a picture of), and go over the piece again. It gives it that perfect faux zinc finish that you were looking for when you clicked on my blog!
All finished!! Now I just need to find a pillow to put inside for my insistent little meows!
Just in case you felt like this blog didn't have enough pictures, here's a photo of a table I've done with the faux zinc finish! I love this one!
Feel free to comment or e-mail with questions, comments, or shout-outs! Much love to my fans!
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