Amy Howard Cracked Patina

Amy Howard has a super fun product called Cracked Patina.  It will give you the look of something that's been painted with a couple coats of paint and it started to crack and chip away.  I haven't ever been a fan of the crackle finish that was popular a few year ago but with a little research and Amy Howard's product I'm sold. 

The first thing you do is paint a first coat of Amy Howard, I chose Charm School on this medallion.  It's best to chose the darker color to go on the bottom.  

After the 1st coat of paint is dried you apply a coat of Cracked Patina.  It goes on like a sticky clear layer of paint.

You wait for the cracked patina to dry and then paint the lighter color and it will start to crack.  You'll want to not paint over areas so try to paint in sections being careful to only get the paint in the section you are painting.  I would have tried to get a photo of it before it cracked but it's a fast process and there was no time for photos.  

When you would see items from old houses with chippy paint there were areas that were missing the paint totally and some that were just cracked apart.  To get the missing paint you'll want to wait for the paint to dry a bit and then take your hand and press it on top of the paint and pull it away, some of the paint will stick to your hand and create the missing paint areas.  This is really messy but totally worth it and it washes off with water so that's even better.  

I did a clear Amy Howard clear wax (right side) and Amy Howard antique wax (left side)

This piece I put Amy Howard wax on like I do with all my other waxes and it was totally wrong.  I got it to turn out good in the end but it was pretty iffy there for awhile.  

Here I am working really hard to save this piece. 

Note to self (and you) - Read the directions and follow them.  

I am the type of person that does not read direction first, I jump right in and then when it goes wrong I'll resort to reading the directions.  John is the total opposite he'll read directions before doing anything and then he follows them step by step..... me I skip around and make up some of my own steps.  

Here is the finished medallion.

I'll talk about the correct way to wax with Amy Howard waxes in another post.  After I read the direction and did it her way I LOVE this wax.  It would be my first choice in wax.

Another cracked patina project.  I won't walk you through all the steps since they are all the same as above.  

I bought a crate from a second hand store for part of the Amy Howard display.  It's the perfect size for holding paint cans but it's a bit dated.

Spa White with Tick Tock over the top.  

Raised stencil is another fun project I do to give flat surfaces a fun twist.  I'm sure I'll post that process someday if you beg me to.  

I liked the look but didn't love it.

Now with another layer of cracked patina and Charm School I love it.

I have another example of cracked patina but I'll share that with you in a few days.  

Tomorrow is Trash to Treasure Tuesday so be sure to come back and check out what project I have going on for that.  

You'll love the cracked patina so head on up to ACE Hardware located within County Market and pick up a couple cans of paint and patina.     Later......

Charm School Girl – Amy Howard at Home

While at garage sales you see things that have good bones but their exterior is beyond ugly.  Some can get past the ugly and some cannot.  I am one that can get past the ugly and see right to the bones and the transformation that can happen with a little TLC.   This little cabinet was sitting in the corner all by herself just like one of the kids on the playground that wasn’t allowed to put her toe in to play Eeny, meeny, miny, moe.  But I seen her sitting over there and quickly rescued her.  She was beautiful in her day but now she wasn’t so cute anymore but after I get done with her she is going to be stunning. 

As soon as Ace Hardware contacted me to paint their Amy Howard at Home Paint display I knew she was going to be perfect for the job.  Storage on the top and inside the cabinet and of course a color that would attract customers to come look at her and see what she was all about.   I chose Charm School (seriously I didn’t think of the paint name when referencing the school playground, I guess it just goes to show she was made for this project). 

With cabinets you can either paint over the hardware if you want that old farmhouse look (they painted over everything) or you can remove the hinges and pulls.  Put them in a bowl or jar marked with what they belong to so when it’s time to put it back together everything is in one place.  (take my advice, since I never do and wish I would).  John has spent many hours searching the garage for a hinge here, drawer pull over there, screws in a bowl with 17 other ones….. yeah it’s not fun at that point.

Charm School is a deep red with a deep pinkish tone to it; I really like solid coverage so I painted 2 coats of Charm School on the cabinet inside, and 3 coats on the outside, drawers, and doors.  Waiting in-between coats for it to fully dry.  You will know when it’s dry because the paint will look dull and chalky.  If you are impatient and do not wait for it to dry you will just drag the brush through the wet paint and cause it to pull away from the base wood.  Go weed the flowers or grab a drink and sit on the porch for a bit.  

I wanted a surprise for the person opening the cabinet so I then painted the inside with Tick Tock.  I do like my solid coverage so again it was another 2 coats to cover the Charm School.  Why did I paint it Charm School if I was going to cover it with Tick Tock you ask.  I like furniture distressed and when painting two colors you can distress to the 1^st color which is what I was going for on the inside.  Now that I'm blogging this I totally forgot to take a picture of the inside.  My bad.

After all the painting I grab my sander and distressed just the edges of the piece, being careful not to distress too much.   After sanding wipe everything with a lint free cloth to get all the paint dust off.  Next step was waxing.  Amy Howard at Home Clear Wax was pretty amazing, I’ve used a lot of waxes in my day and this wax is probably going to be a favorite (when used properly).   Amy Howard has paint brushes and I would recommend buying the brush, it’s amazing for paint and even better for waxing.  In the below photo you can see the dull chalky paint on the left and the right is where the Clear Wax has been applied with the Amy Howard brush.  I've never put wax on with a brush but it was super fun after I made plenty of mistakes trying to figure out the correct application procedure. 

 

I used the dark wax on her also, she really liked it and it gave some depth to the paint and the creases. 

I put her all back together including new door and drawer pulls but something wasn’t screaming…………LOVE to me…..  she needed a bit more pop.  Back up on my table and I painted a fun flower on the door with Tick Tock, distressed her again and another coat of wax.  Notice I painted after it was already waxed….. you can do that with this paint, no need to sand it off.  Which is a good thing for me cuz I change my mind lots. 

The next two pictures were taken with my real camera in the daylight vs my cell phone under florescent lights so the color is a bit different and more true to her real color.  

And here she is all ready to be delivered.

Charm School Girl feels amazing and she looks stunning.  Amy Howard at Home Paint is just what she needed.  If you would like to meet Charm School Girl in person head on over to Ace Hardware located within County Market and tell her Connie sent you and tell her that I miss her.  

It's like sending a child off to college when you work so hard on a piece and then....... she's gone and you can no longer control who will love her. 

Later....

Amy Howard at Home - 1st Experience

Recently I was asked to try out a new paint line that our ACE Hardware was selling.  The paint line is called Amy Howard at Home.  I’ve never heard of the paint line so being me I couldn’t wait to open all 3 cans of paint and get started.  The first thing you do is turn the cans over for 30 minutes and then stir all the yummy ingredients together. 

Chalk paint is bit thicker than regular paint but after you learn how to use it you'll grow to love that thickness.  I loved the colors and the feel of the paint on my brush and was excited to make a transformation with these plain ole' wood bowls. 

I painted a wood bowl in each color that was given to me.  Some pieces will need more than 2 coats for desired coverage, I chose 3 coats on the wood bowls just because I like the rich color contrasting with the dark wood that I didn’t paint.  

My next step was to distress, I’m a distress lover but you do not have to distress if you like the full coverage look.  The paint distressed very well and blended the edges like the distress had been done with years of touching and rubbing.  A nice old worn look but while distressing the color becomes dull and lifeless, don’t worry…. the next steps will take care of it.   

Next process is to wax the paint after distressing.  If you chose to not distress the paint you can skip the waxing but why?????  This is my favorite part.  I LOVED Amy Howard Light Antiquing Wax, it was smooth and buttery and went on well with a lint free rag.  For the bowls I rubbed the wax with full coverage, I do not recommend this technique with larger items unless you want your arms to look like Popeye’s.  The wax is a bit sticky when putting it on but wait the desired 15 minutes and with a lint free rag buff the wax and it becomes a smooth matte finish that is heavenly to the touch.  The way this wax feels and looks after a little elbow grease, kinda like polishing a shoe, is amazing.  Not that I ever polished shoes but I can imagine it’s the same process. 

So let’s admire the little beauties with their new look.  

The colors are Spa White, Tick Tock and Charm School

To see and feel these bowls in person head on over to Medford’s ACE Hardware Store located within County Market and check them out.  Let them know Connie sent you and if you liked the information keep checking back for more tips and treasure adventures I happen to find.  

Later....