North London Trash – Painting Chairs – The Dip Dye Trend

If we’ve hung out in the last week, the chances are I will have bored thrilled you with my ‘I’m painting a chair’ chat. For those of you on the edge of your seats (pun intended) – here is my first creation! Plus my very easy tips on how to paint your own understated masterpiece or two.

Having found this chair, crying out for a new home on the streets of Camden, this is my first ‘North London Trash’ experiment. Let me know what you think!

Step 1 – Clean chair to remove any dust, grease or dirt and give it a light sanding, this way the paint has an ideal surface to adhere too. If you are thinking of painting multiple chairs, I’d opt to use a paint such as Annie Sloan chalk paints, which promise to adhere to any surface effectively with little or no preparation. I love Paris Grey, Barcelona Orange and Antoinette. £18.95 for 1L.

Step 2 – Lay down an old sheet to protect surfaces and over a few days, apply two matt white base coats. I used Dulux Pure Brilliant White Matt that I had in my cupboard, I’d recommend popping to your local DIY store for this, they often have paints perfect for this purpose, some second hand at really good prices and you never need as much as you think. Allow 24 hours in between each coat to dry.

Step 3 – Using my ‘Painted Chairs’ Pinterest board and my favourite interiors magazines as inspiration, I chose to paint my first chair using the dip dye trend in vintage pastels. I used eicó Helmatt paints in Surf and Socialite, I can’t recommend eicó paints enough – perfect for any project striving for greater green credentials and a premium, odourless finish. £14.50 for 1L.

I painted the bulk of the chair in Surf, leaving the bottom of the leg free for the Socialite, the next day I turned the chair upside down and painted the Socialite portion. Repeat this process with a top coat.

Step 4 – You can then apply a clear matt top coat for protection (of the chair and your clothes). I have opted not to do this as yet, as I am confident in my eicó paints! Voilà, the chair is done. Tweet me your creations! @designfootnotes

Now for my next ‘North London Trash’ project! …I wonder what it will entail x