How to make chalk paint

Chalk paint has revolutionised furniture painting, making upcycling a buzzword and a trend that shows no sign of declining any time soon. Chalk paint gives a furniture a chalky, matt finish and is particularly great for those trying to create a vintage, period or shabby-chic look full of character and charm.

But chalk paint from brands such as Frenchic and Annie Sloane can be expensive, particularly if you have a large projects planned or want to create layers of different colours for a distressed furniture vibe. However, fear not, with a little knowledge, creativity and imagination you can make your own chalk paint, blended to your perfect colour.

• Frenchic launches 35 new wall paint colours: see them here!

Just make sure you mix well before starting to paint - and for detailed advice on how to use your chalk paint, see our ultimate guide on how to paint furniture.

On a practical note, if you need to update your painting kit, we've tried-and-tested a range of brush sets to find the best paint brushes and put together a buyer's guide of the best painting tools - you're welcome.

What ingredients do you need to make chalk paint?

There are many individual recipe out there, but most of them will include standard emulsion paint (sometimes called latex paint in the US) and one or two of the following ingredients;

• Calcium Carbonate
• Baking soda
• Plaster of Paris

Best chalk paint recipes

If you've tried mixing up your own paints before, it won't take you long to develop your own perfect chalk paint blend. But if you're not sure where to begin, here are a few of our favourite chalk paint recipe tutorials.

MrDiyDork - Cheap and easy chalk paint recipe

MrDiyDork, aka Kevin, shares his simple recipe for homemade chalk paint, using one part plaster of Paris 1 part to three parts matt or eggshell acrylic emulsion paint. His step-by-step video tutorial is thorough and easy to follow, so it's especially handy for beginners. We love his tip about mixing with an immersion blender or drill bit to get rid of lumps!

Our Handcrafted Life - Easy Homemade Chalk Paint Recipe

Craft and upcycling blogger Megan shares her recipe for chalk paint in the tutorial above. Like the previous video, we love how simple the formula is - and at four minutes long, this clip has the advantage of being super speedy.

Lizzy Marie - DIY Best Chalk Paint Recipe Tutorial

Blogger Lizzy Marie uses calcium carbonate instead of plaster of Paris in her chalk paint recipe. Her video also includes instructions on how to apply and seal chalk paint, to guide you through your project from end to end. Plus, we love her tip about using lolly sticks to create your own colour palette for future reference.