Homemade Liming Wax for a Weathered Oak Finish
This week I showed you my faux Restoration Hardware Console Table. I used a combo of Annie Sloan Chalk Paint in Coco and a homemade Liming Wax to achieve the weathered oak look I was going for.
Today, I’m going to show you how to make your own Liming Wax. You can use Liming wax to get a lot of different looks on painted furniture. Of course the weathered oak is one look. But you can use Liming Wax to get a beachy look over the top of any color of paint or even just use it to soften a color. Many paint companies now carry a Liming Wax but you can make it on your own without having to purchase another type of wax.
Here’s What You’ll Need:
Clear Wax (any brand will do)
White Paint (latex/acrylic/chalk paint will work best)
Umm, yea that’s all.
I used Sweet Pickins Supreme Soft Wax in Clear for my Liming Wax because I carry it in my retail space and it’s a great wax to work with in general.
Then I used General Finishes Antique White Milk Paint. Again don’t get it confused with Sweet Pickins Milk Paint. The GF Milk Paint is an acrylic paint. You can distress it but you won’t get a farmhouse chippy look with it.
Take a few tablespoons of wax and put them in another container. I used a good ol’ Red Solo Cup so I could just toss it after I was done.
Then take just a spoonful of paint. You don’t need an equal amount of paint otherwise your Liming Wax will be too concentrated. Mix the two together and presto change, you now have Liming Wax.
Now how do you apply it? Easy. Apply your Liming Wax just the way you would apply an Antiquing Wax to a piece of painted furniture. First, take a small amount of clear wax and working in small sections apply it to your furniture. Then take a little bit of Liming Wax (just a touch, you really don’t need much) And apply over the clear wax. By using the plain clear wax first you will have some time to move your Liming Wax around and work with it. You can add a little more clear wax over the top if you need to remove a bit of the Liming Wax or need more working time.
You might see the paint from your homemade Liming Wax ball up a bit when you move it around. Just wait for it to dry and dust it off. It’s no biggie.
I used an old rag to apply the Liming Wax but if you have a piece with lots of detail, you could use a brush to get into all the nooks and crannies. Then wipe away any excess. Hope you find it useful to make your own Liming Wax.