Skip to content

Peony Lane Designs

Re-love, Re-imagine, Restore, Reuse, Relax

Menu
  • Home
  • blog
    • Business
    • Etsy Selling Tips
    • Painting
    • DIY
    • Recipes
  • YouTube
  • Shop
    • My Etsy Shop
  • About
    • As Seen In
  • Resources
  • Disclosures
    • Privacy Policy
  • Reseller Resources
  • Advertise
Menu

Wax Distressing for the Perfect Shabby Chic Look

Posted on May 21, 2019June 23, 2020 by Stacy Verdick Case
Wax Distressing for the Perfect Shabby Chic Look Pin This!

What the heck is wax distressing? Is that when the candles get anxiety?

I love this technique! If you’ve ever seen a piece of furniture that you KNOW is freshly painted but somehow the person who flipped this piece of furniture managed to create an authentic Shabby Chic look, you could be looking at wax distressing. A fantastic paint distressing technique that works with any paint. Yes, even spray paint, which you probably know is convenient to use but extremely difficult to distress.
This will be one of the easiest techniques you’ll ever learn. All you need is a candle. I would recommend a white candle. White taper candle for wax distressingJust head to the thrift store and raid their supply of candles. I always find tons on unscented white taper candles that might have scratches or dents so people don’t want them anymore. Grab them for awesome prices (usually 50 cents) and keep them in your furniture flipping toolbox. They’re fantastic to have on hand to wax slides, latches, and of course wax distress! 2 or 3 candles will last quite awhile.  In a pinch hop over to DollarTree and pick up their emergency candles.  You have to order 4 but they’re good to keep in your vehicle emergency survival kit anyway.

Where to Distress?

Now you have to decide where on the piece of furniture you would see normal/natural distressing over time.  This is where people sometimes go wrong.  They distress everywhere on a piece of furniture but that is way too much.
The image below shows where you would distress for a dresser and a chair.  You can see the arrows are pointing to areas that would be touched or bumped frequently. Focus on edges but not every edge. As you can see in the image on the right the knob and drawer have distressing but not all the way around. A little goes a long way.
Where to distress
Take your tapper candle and scrub wax on the edges where you want your piece to be distressed. Make sure the wax is heavier in some areas and lighter in others for a more authentic feel.
Once you’ve completed all the places you want to see a distressed it’s time to paint! Use spray paint, chalk paint, latex paint, any of them will work. Put as many coats on as you need an allow your paint to dry.
Once your paint is dry you can flake the wax away using a putty knife or a soft brush.  That’s it!
Below is a video that shows how I used this process using spray paint over the top.  The results are so beautiful! I couldn’t be happier with how it turned out.
If Shabby Chic isn’t your style you can always try the paint wash technique the Turquoise Iris pioneered! Check out my attempt to master this technique HERE.

via IFTTT

Related

A photo of stacy Verdick Case Owner of PeonyLaneDesigns.com

Get Your Happy Junkin’ T-Shirts!

Official Merch

Shop My Etsy Vintage Store!

Recent Posts

  • Best Fabric Paint for Upholstery: A Review of Jacquard Lumiere
  • Don’t Toss It—Stock It! My Zero-Waste Vegetable Broth from Kitchen Scraps
  • Quick DIY Friendly Porch Glow-Up with Solar Railing Lights
  • From Loon to Luxe: A Little Thrift Store Rescue
  • Dated to Designer: A Small Buffet’s Jaw-Dropping Makeover
Affiliate Disclosure
© 2025 Peony Lane Designs | Powered by Superbs Personal Blog theme
We use cookies on our website to give you the most relevant experience by remembering your preferences and repeat visits. By clicking “Accept”, you consent to the use of ALL the cookies.
Do not sell my personal information.
SettingsAccept
Privacy & Cookies Policy

Privacy Overview

This website uses cookies to improve your experience while you navigate through the website. Out of these cookies, the cookies that are categorized as necessary are stored on your browser as they are essential for the working of basic functionalities of the website. We also use third-party cookies that help us analyze and understand how you use this website. These cookies will be stored in your browser only with your consent. You also have the option to opt-out of these cookies. But opting out of some of these cookies may have an effect on your browsing experience.
Necessary
Always Enabled
Necessary cookies are absolutely essential for the website to function properly. This category only includes cookies that ensures basic functionalities and security features of the website. These cookies do not store any personal information.
Functional
Functional cookies help to perform certain functionalities like sharing the content of the website on social media platforms, collect feedbacks, and other third-party features.
Performance
Performance cookies are used to understand and analyze the key performance indexes of the website which helps in delivering a better user experience for the visitors.
Analytics
Analytical cookies are used to understand how visitors interact with the website. These cookies help provide information on metrics the number of visitors, bounce rate, traffic source, etc.
Advertisement
Advertisement cookies are used to provide visitors with relevant ads and marketing campaigns. These cookies track visitors across websites and collect information to provide customized ads.
Others
Other uncategorized cookies are those that are being analyzed and have not been classified into a category as yet.
SAVE & ACCEPT
Powered by CookieYes Logo
Sign up for my email newsletter

Be the first to know about new DIYs!

Name
Enter your email address

No thank you.

 

Loading Comments...