How to Create a Crackled Paint Finish

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There are so many paint finishes you can choose from for your painted furniture and projects- from silky smooth, chippy, or distressed, but today I’m going to share with you a crackled look, that closely resembles a very aged paint finish.

Deco Art sent me a box full of products to test, and in the box was some Crackle Glaze. I love naturally crackled paint, and was skeptical how authentic a faux crackle would look, but was curious to see how it would worked and would look.

I painted two different pieces with chalk style paint made with Blue Minerals. One piece was a portion from an old foot board, and the other was just a very old board.

According to the directions, the size of the crackled appearance depends on how thickly you apply the glaze, so I put a very heavy coat of the crackle glaze on the board, and allowed it to dry.

You can see, with a heavy coat, it created a very large crackled appearance. I was very impressed with how natural it looked, but my only complain was how glossy it made the paint look.

I don’t associate glossy paint with old finishes, so I painted another thin layer of chalky paint over it, and it’s perfect now. From now on, I’ll always paint one layer of paint, then the crackle glaze, then another layer of paint (after the glaze has dried). I’m still working on this board, so I’ll be showing you what I’m turning it into soon.

On the old foot board, I applied a thinner coat, and you can see the crackled areas are much smaller.

I’m in no hurry for summer to be over, but I am in the mood to create some Autumn decor, and this foot board now does double-duty as a sign and a coat hook.