Give any piece of furniture a beautiful Gustavian finish with this milk painting technique from Jeffree Turney of Lone Ranger Antiques.

Tools and Materials

• Any wooden item, new or old
• Paint stripper, if necessary
• Milk paint
• Water
• Large recycled plastic container, such as an empty iced tea or lemonade jug
• Plastic fork
• Paintbrush
• 100-grit sandpaper
• 300-grit sandpaper
• Howard Feed-N-Wax furniture wax

• Minwax in Dark Walnut
• Latex or Rubber Gloves
• Socks
• Long plastic-bristled scrub brush

Milk Painting How-To
1. Strip item to raw wood.

2. Mix 1 cup milk paint to 2 parts water in a large recycled plastic container.

3. Paint trim and base coat in one stroke from end to end, along the grain.

Tips:

• Use fork to continually stir paint and keep it evenly mixed.
• Don't let milk paint drip on itself (don't hold paint container over painted surface).
• Paint fast because milk paint dries quickly -- especially in dry, warm weather.

4. Use 100-grit sandpaper to distress highest edges (where wear and tear would most likely occur over the years). Use 300-grit sandpaper to smooth flat surfaces.

5. Mix 20 percent "Howard's Feed 'n' Wax" furniture wax to 80 percent "Dark Walnut" Minwax.

6. Wearing latex or rubber gloves covered with socks, apply wax. Use a paint brush for tight spots. Rub off excess wax immediately with a long plastic-bristled scrub brush.

Resources
Genuine old-fashioned homemade milk paint is available from milkpaint.com. Howard Feed-N-Wax is available on Amazon. All other tools and materials are available from The Home Depot.