Children's Chambers
       
      STEP BY STEP INSTRUCTIONS
      SPONGING A CHEST OF DRAWERS

      Sponging is the easiest paint effect to do and it can be used on walls or furniture. The key to creating a great look is the combination of colours used. It is advisable to experiment first.

      TOOLS AND MATERIALS NEEDED

      • Large sea sponge broken into 3 pieces
      • A roller, tray, and a brush
      • Paper plates
      • Paper towels
      • 3 colors of latex paint
    Getting Started...

    PREPARATION

    When you are working on furniture, spend time preparing the surface well. First remove the handles. If you want to keep the handles, put them aside. Give the whole surface a sanding to remove any flaking paint, drips or old paint. There is no need to remove all the original paint unless it is very thick. When the piece is smooth, apply a coat of latex primer.

    SPONGING

    When you are sponging in several colours, the top colour will be the most dominant and the first colour, the least. Give the whole surface a coat of one colour (I used the green) with a roller. Pour a little of the other 2 colours  (yellow and blue) onto paper plates. Wet the sponges so that they are just damp. Dip the sponge into one of the colours and remove the excess on paper towel, then  dot the sponge in an erratic pattern all over the surface. When you have covered  about 70% of the surface with this second colour, you are ready to add the third.  Repeat the process until you have an even pattern of three colours. Leave the furniture  to dry. Give the whole piece 2 coats of clear varnish for protection. Screw the handles back on. I made my own handles from rubber leffers from a toy store that were screwed  and glued onto small pieces of wood. The wood was then screwed onto the drawers.

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