Can you paint a lampshade with chalk paint?
I can see you eyeing up that lampshade in the corner of your room. Maybe it’s a little dirty, or you just don’t like the colour anymore, either way, it’s time for a change. And that nagging thought about painting the lampshade has led you here, wondering can you paint a lampshade with chalk paint? Well, let’s find out, I have an old lampshade and some Rustoleum chalk paint, so let’s get this lampshade painted!
Can you paint a lampshade with chalk paint?
Yes, you can. I used watered down chalk paint and a regular brush to paint this lampshade. it took a couple of coats to fully cover but the paint has worked really well.
Have a look at the before and after to see for yourself. For my full guide on how I did this please read on.
What you need
This is a simple project and you don’t need too many materials to make it work.
- A Paintbrush
- Chalk Paint
- Something to mix the paint in
All I used for this project was a paintbrush, some chalk paint and a paint kettle to water down the paint in. Any sort of plastic container or glass jar will work well for this.
Water Down The Paint
The first and most important step for this project is to water down the chalk paint.
You don’t need to be too precise with your mixture but aim for around a 3:1 ratio, 3 parts paint to 1 part water. That is the mix I used and it worked well.
Apply The Chalk paint With a Paintbrush
Now simply paint the chalk paint onto the lampshade using a paintbrush.
After One Coat
So below we have the lamp after it has been painted with a single coat of chalk paint. You can see the light coming through in lots of places. If this is the look you are after then you can stop here, or continue, which is what I did.
Apply A Second Coat
If you want to completely cover the lampshade so you can’t see any light through then you can apply a second coat of chalk paint. That is what I did.
Done!
That’s the lampshade completed, I really like how this has turned out.
