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DIY / Painted Furniture

Milk Paint and Liming Wax Finish

If you’ve been reading along the last few weeks, then you might feel like you’ve seen enough of this little powder room. I promise today’s Milk Paint and Liming Wax tutorial has us nearing the end. The last one will be tips on setting hexagon tiles.

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I received product to review for this post. This post also contains affiliate links.

From the very conception of the vanity table design, I wanted to create a top out of reclaimed wood and finish it with liming wax.  I knew the soft white tones would play off the white tiles perfectly.

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To give the base of the table the perfect patina, it also received a liming wax finish over black milk paint.

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After the table was built, I needed only a few  simple supplies. If you want to build your own extra heavy duty vanity table this post will walk you through the steps.

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You can see how the reclaimed wood with authentic aging, evident in the worm holes and a beautiful oak grain, would accept the Amy Howard liming wax nicely.

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Using an Amy Howard waxing brush, liming wax and a toothbrush I worked the wax into the wood and the wormholes.

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Here is a good side by side comparison. The left side is just liming wax applied to the oak. The right is raw wood.

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When the liming wax was applied to the top, this is what it looked like. It was still a tiny bit tacky to the touch at this point. (Affiliate Link)

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Applying the wax was super quick and easy to do! The next day I just buffed the piece down with a soft cloth.

For the table base, I used Toscana Milk Paint in Noir.  Because the wood was unfinished I didn’t need to add a binder.

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I mixed the Toscana Milk Paint, powder in Noir  with water at a one to one ratio, stirring it with a plastic spoon in a mason jar. It mixed up very easily and quite beautifully with no clumps.

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Before the paint had a chance to dry, I wiped off a little of the excess paint to show more of the wood grain. I just used a paper towel.

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As the Noir dried, it became grayer in color.  If I had used a regular wax or a clear finish the black color would have returned.

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The next morning, I sanded the table lightly with 400 grit sandpaper wrapped around a piece of steel wool. My intention was not to sand off the paint, just give it a super smooth finish before waxing.

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Before waxing, I also wiped it down with a tack cloth.

Using the waxing brush with a soft hand and a dappled off brush, I applied the wax.

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It’s kind of a subtle change with the liming wax, but you can see how the wax brought out more of the woodgrain.  The front and side pieces of wood used to build the table were actually salvaged from our master bathroom demo.  The table legs, from Osbourne Wood Products, are available here.

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In the photo above, the left side has been waxed. Below, the table is finished! Seriously, it probably took less than two hours of actual prep, painting and waxing.

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Once the powder room tile was complete, we moved in the vanity table and had a plumber drill a hole for the sink.

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You might notice in these finished photos the top is not quite as white as it was.  The liming wax, water and soap had a bit of a reaction.

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I probably would have been fine with this little bit of extra character, but as the wax was constanly exposed to water the finish showed eveidence of more wear. Then someone placed a cup on the table and I really didn’t want to live with the resulting ring.

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So, I cleaned the top with mineral spirits, lightly sanded it and applied a matte top coat.

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If you compare the original wood to the re-finished piece you would see clearly that some of the liming wax is definitely still visible in the grain but not as much on the surface.

I will definitely use the liming wax again.  You can purchase it here. I think it would work perfectly fine on a side table or bedside table.  The repeated exposure to water probably didn’t do the finish any favors.

Both finishes perfectly compliment the tile and the table. I really couldn’t be happier.

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Want to see all that when into transforming this powder room? Click here. 

Disclosure: I received product to use in this post. All opinions, thoughts and words are my own. This post also contains affiliate links.
At no additional cost to you, I make a very small commission from sales related to these links.

 

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