![\"Cherry](\"http:\/\/thehappyhousewife.com\/home-management\/files\/2015\/06\/cherry-cabinet-before.jpg\")
<\/a><\/p>\nThe hutch was in pretty good\u00a0shape (which is rare for me to purchase something that looks this good) however, I really liked it\u00a0so I spent a little more than I normally like to pay for used furniture.<\/p>\n
The only major issue was a that piece that had broken off on the bottom cabinet. I actually had the broken piece of wood so I could repair it, but it was lost in the move.<\/p>\n
I knew I wanted to paint it with Annie Sloan Pure White chalk paint, but it took me almost three years to get to this project!<\/p>\n You can buy Annie Sloan brushes, but I’ve found the bristle brushes by Purdy<\/a> (that are available online, Home Depot or Lowes) do a great job and they cost significantly less.<\/p>\n Here’s one thing I’ve learned about covering cherry with white paint, the cherry bleeds creating a pinkish hue instead of the pure white. When you are not finishing with a dark wax or a distressed look, this really matters.<\/p>\n I’ve covered a few really dark pieces with chalk paint recently and I’ve decided that using one coat of primer means using less coats of the very expensive chalk paint.<\/p>\n By the time I painted the shelves, I had realized there were coverage issues so I did one coat of primer first.<\/p>\n I prefer using spray paint primer because it is so much faster than painting with a brush, but if you are painting inside I do not recommend it! I love the Kilz primer and it is available at Home Depot and Lowes.<\/p>\n I wish I would have primed this whole piece before I started, but I forgot about the bleed issue. I did end up priming the doors and some of the very visible parts of the cabinet, but not the entire thing.<\/p>\n Thankfully I only have one other piece that is this color that I’m thinking of painting because I do not like priming.<\/p>\n I wanted this cabinet to have a “pop” of color and Annie Sloan didn’t have exactly what I wanted.<\/p>\n I ended up buying sample containers of Florence<\/a> and Aubusson Blue<\/a>. We tried several different variations of these two colors, but ended up deciding that a 50\/50 mix gave me the deep teal color I had seen on Pinterest.<\/p>\n As a side note, can I just say that I wish I was rich and could buy every sample container of paint and mix colors to find awesome combinations for my furniture? I had SO MUCH FUN finding the right color for my cabinet, it was like kindergarten all over again!\u00a0<\/em><\/p>\n Also, if you really want to try chalk paint I highly recommend buying one of the sample containers. They are around $13 which is much less than the $50+ quart container. You can actually paint a small piece of furniture like a side table or bedside table with the sample container. Especially if you want to do a small statement piece with a pop of color, the sample size is perfect!<\/p>\n Due to the cherry stain\/ laminate this cabinet need FOUR coats of Annie Sloan Pure White. The places I used the primer needed only two.<\/p>\n The back wall needed two coats of the Florence mixed with Aubusson Blue. Although I probably could have gotten away with one coat.<\/p>\n I ended up doing two coats of the clear wax <\/a>on the majority of the cabinet, but did four coats on the shelves and the places people would be touching frequently.<\/p>\n I bought my wax brush on Amazon for significantly less than I’ve seen elsewhere. This wax brush on Amazon<\/a> was around $20.<\/p>\n Annie Sloan (or other brand) chalk paint is not cheap, so I try to save where I can when it doesn’t make a difference in quality.<\/p>\n I usually paint or change out the hardware when I redo a piece of furniture, but I loved the handles on this cabinet. They were in perfect condition and looked great with the white.<\/p>\n I can’t believe how much more I love this cabinet. Right now it is in my kitchen, but I might move it to my living room once we finish the office remodel. I really feel like it could go anywhere in the house and I’m excited about the possibilities.<\/p>\n Before\/ After.\u00a0<\/strong><\/p>\n<\/a><\/p>\n<\/a><\/p>\n<\/a><\/p>\n<\/a><\/p>\n<\/a><\/p>\n<\/a><\/p>\n<\/a><\/p>\n