In all fairness I should say that this project which you see below was my first time using milk paint. I knew nothing about how to use milk paint or how it would react. Of course that didn’t stop me from trying it out.
I wanted to revisit the mirror and redo it with my newfound skills. But not being one to leave things alone, this time I decided to use the original Old Fashioned Milk Paint – the one that gives us the chippy look. You see in the other projects I mention I had used the SafePaint version which does not chip.
And what is the difference you ask?
The original milk paint was designed for use on porous surfaces such as wood or masonry. The one that I had used up till now the Safepaint version, was for non-porous surfaces. It can also be used on metal, like when I painted a metal trunk, two of them! The bonding agent is what makes this paint stick to the non-porous surfaces.
What I Used:
- Old Fashioned Milk Paint in Snow White the original formula without any bonding agent
- Extra Bond
- Daddy Van’s All Natural Decorative Wax in Dark Nior
- Brushes
- Clean Cloth
And so I was feeling rebellious now and used the original formula of Old Fashioned Milk Paint without the bonding agent. I wanted to go for some chippy goodness. I also used another color. This is snow white which is a bit warmer from the oyster white I had used originally.
The How To:
I mixed up my snow white with equal parts luckwarm water and painted the mirror. I added about three coats of the milk paint.
And then I waited…
…and waited.
After an hour it dried into this chippy goodness you see below…
At first I was excited but then I realized that if I blew on it the paint would all come off and I’d be left with … a mess.
It turns out I was getting excessive chipping because I had applied a wax to this mirror a year ago and the wax was not allowing the paint to stick.
Some suggested I strip the old paint and start fresh. But I was not about to go outside in the cold and try to sand anything down. So I did what any lazy, sane person would do! I added Extra Bond to the original milk paint. Yes you can buy the bonding agent separately. (You can see my affiliate links for all these products below)
Whew! Lucky for me I had a bottle. I had no idea when I had bought it a year ago that I’d be needing it but you see sometimes the old noodle thinks ahead.
After letting it dry overnight, I sanded it down and added a bit of distressing on the edges.
After a good buffing with a clean piece of cloth it was all done. See the pretty shine?
…but in a good way!
See the layers and the peeling? I tell you, I hated this look when I first started blogging but now I think that the mirror is speaking to me!
“Thank you for letting my personality shine through.” Of course!
It is so much better than it was with the brown wood.
And now a warmer look, more layers and much more depth.
So don’t be afraid to try new things. Even if you mess up, like I did, you are only one chat away from help. 🙂
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[…] to do with the top, I instead proceeded to the sides. I had some leftover milk paint in Snow White from this project and used […]
Jeannee Taylor
Tuesday 20th of February 2018
It's beautiful and you could not have chosen more beautiful flowers for it! Jeannee
Leanna
Tuesday 20th of February 2018
I love this old mirror Mary. I expect that New York is a treasure box of thrift stores and vintage architectural stores. This piece is gorgeous. Thank goodness you had extra bonding available to fix the paint. I have never worked with milk paint, I tried chalk paint a few times but don't like the final finish at all. I may try milk paint someday so this was a lesson learned for me. Thanks.
Patti Estep
Tuesday 20th of February 2018
Hi Mary, Great job. I haven't worked with milk paint in years. There's something so nice and organic about it and I love that you chose to put spring tulips in the base. So pretty.
Josephine
Tuesday 20th of February 2018
Nice! My husband does not like the chippy look, so I have to sneak bits in and hope he doesn't notice.