How to Create a Worn and Crackled Effect
Do you like antique furniture? Do you like these imperfect pieces of furniture with an aged look and abyss by the weather…I love it!Â
Almost everyone loves magazine sets where everything is perfectly decorated and organized. Each decorative item seems to have been carefully chosen and everything is in its place to make the decor pleasant to look at.
Often, these projected images make us believe in an unrealistic world in which there is no life! I was once a housekeeper, the title that best suited the work I was doing at the time. So I had to maintain houses of all kinds and most of the houses that I had the opportunity to visit in my life were, if I can call them that, simple houses in their raw state, houses in which there was a very present family life. Even though a few of them were due to undergo renovations. Perfect houses without snags where there was not a piece of furniture or a scratched wall, I really didn’t often have the opportunity to visit them.
Well, there was still one house in particular that was almost identical to a magazine page. Despite everything, my client was not satisfied with two or three things that seemed aggressive to her. This very nice lady is always on the lookout for elements that allow her to improve the decor to make it as perfect as possible. Let me tell you that I have noticed that this feeling of always wanting to make our little nest cozy, and as perfect as possible, is impossible to achieve, whatever the efforts made. For what? Because a house without life is not a home, it is a cold and unrealistic setting. With all the precautions taken, over the years, the furniture ages, history is written on it.
We can look at a scratch on the sideboard and say to ourselves…well, that’s the time the brother-in-law had one drink too many and dropped his plate on my sideboard or remember the time the little niece left her spelling on the couch thinking she was Picasso and so many other memories!!!Â
Brief! All this leads me to tell you why I like to make furniture full of imperfections like these two tables. Not only because I love doing this easy to do job with spectacular results, but also the way this style will allow the tables to survive future mishaps and collisions is simply brilliant. Any future scratches or the like will simply add detail to the work. I am personally too much of a perfectionist to have shiny, smooth furniture to accept the marks that will become apparent over time. I’m a bit like my husband with his car, my heart sinks when my children hang up the furniture. This is one of the reasons why the worn style suits me perfectly.Â
For some people it may seem difficult to achieve a worn and cracked effect, but in my opinion it is a way to highlight imperfections. The techniques for obtaining these effects should be known and practiced to give a unique and old-fashioned style to your furniture and accessories.
 So, instead of fixating your gaze on a few annoying details, you will instead be in awe of your perfectly imperfect achievement. In fact, your piece of furniture becomes a masterpiece in itself.Â
List of Products Used
- Colorantic Cleaner and Varnish Remover
- Colorantic Chalk-Based Paint: Toasted Marshmallow
- Colorantic Foam Roller
- Purple Oval Brush #10
- Colorantic Matte Top Coat Varnish
- Colorantic Sanding Block
- Cracking Medium
- Hot Water
- Rags
The Steps
By reading the following, you will easily learn how to create worn and cracked furniture and objects.Â
Preparation
Even if this is the least interesting part of the project, it is undoubtedly the most important for a successful job.Â
First remove all furniture hardware if necessary.
Spray Colorantic Cleaner and Varnish Remover and leave it to act for 30 minutes. Once the time has elapsed, it is very important to rinse very well twice to remove any residue left by the cleanser.
I didn’t apply an oil primer since the polish cleanser and remover made the old polish very matte, so I was ready to move on to the next step.Â
The Paint
If like me, you want to see the wood emerge from the cracks, here are the steps to follow:Â
- Apply two coats of Toasted Marshmallow paint to all surfaces. Do not paint the areas where you want cracking.
- Once the paint is completely dry, apply crackle medium to the unpainted areas and allow to dry thoroughly.
- Once the cracking medium is dry, you can apply a single coat of paint, and in no time you’ll see the cracks forming.
- Using the sanding block, you can now apply wear in the desired areas.
- If you want two-tone crackles, first apply a base colour. Once dry, apply the medium, leave to dry and apply the second, contrasting colour. It won’t be long before you see coloured cracks appearing.
Protection
Now that your work is finished, you are ready to apply two coats of Matte Top Coat Varnish to protect everything well.Â
These are very beautiful pieces of furniture that will stand the test of time very well.Â
If you want to have even more ideas for repurposing furniture and various objects, you can join our Facebook group, Colorantic English Paint Community or follow our publications in the different online platforms.
Colorantic – Manufacturer & Supplier of chalk paint
About Colorantic :Colorantic is a 100% Canadian business. We manufacture and distribute chalk based paint and otherDIY Products for furniture & craft home decoration.Web site https://colorantic.com/en/Subscribe to our newsletter : At the bottom of the web siteFacebook :Â / https://www.facebook.com/colorantic/Instagram:Â / https://www.instagram.com/colorantic/YouTube: Â https://www.youtube.com/@ColoranticPaintPeintureBlogs https://colorantic.com/en/blog/ |