Chalk Paint vs. Milk Paint; Which is Better for Painting Furniture

This is a detailed post about chalk paint vs milk paint and which is better for painting furniture. I’ve also included painted furniture examples with each.

I remember the first time I purchased chalk paint. I was in a little boutique about 30 miles north of where I lived. I kept staring at all the furniture painted with this new “chalk paint” style and I had to try it. My thoughts were “wow, am I really going to pay Forty dollars for a quart of paint?”  And what would I paint? All I knew was that I loved this style and I had to try it.

This was the beginning of my furniture painting journey. Fast forward a few years (ok maybe like 10) and I’m going to share all about Chalk paint vs. milk paint and which is better for painting furniture.

Let me share one more thing about my trip to that little boutique.  While I was perusing the isles of painted furniture, I found a really neat vintage chair.  The owner had apparently repainted it with white chalk paint and recovered it with a scripted fabric.

I loved the vintage style and farmhouse look of it. The ironic thing was that the chair was $42, and the chalk paint that I was about to buy was $40.

Disclosure; this post contains affiliate links. As an Amazon Associate I earn from qualifying purchases. This does not affect the price you pay. This disclosure statement refers to the rest of the Amazon links in this post.

The owner then asked if I wanted to take her class on “how to chalk paint” for $50. I decided I would buy the chair and the chalk paint and study how she applied to chalk paint to the chair. Was this cheating? Maybe? But I had a limited amount to spend and I wanted that chair 🙂

So I purchased my chair and a can of chalk paint and on I went to start my furniture painting journey!

A few years passed and I started hearing about a similar product called milk paint. I knew both paints were made of different ingredients, but both were still primarily used to paint furniture. 

Chalk Paint or Milk Paint; Which is Better for Painting Furniture?

Above is a before and after picture from my milk painted tv stand project.

Before I give you my opinion, I want to share some facts about chalk paint vs. milk paint and their differences.

What is Chalk Paint and why do you use it?

• One of chalk paints biggest draws is that it does not require a primer because it will stick to almost any wood finish. In the furniture refinishing business this was huge. You could paint over polyurethane, wax, even glue and it would stick! Gone were the days of stripping and sanding and preparing wood for paint. 
• Chalk paint distresses easily with a little sand paper. It comes off in a fine powder, which also makes it very forgiving.
• Chalk paint is {mostly} made of latex paint, calcium carbonate and water. The calcium is what makes gives it the chalky finish.
• Because chalk paint “dusts” off easily, I always recommend adding a top coat of wax or varnish.  Speaking from experience, the paint does not hold up well to without a top coat.
• You can make your own chalk paint, but most people buy it already mixed in a quart size can.
• You can mix chalk paint colors easily. The paint can also be diluted for a smoother finish or for use in a paint sprayer.
• A little chalk paint goes a long way. I was fearful when I purchased the $40 quart size can that I was wasting my money, but I covered about three full pieces of furniture with it!
• For those of you who like the convenience of a spray paint, you can find chalky spray paint in any big name store.

What is Milk Paint and why do you use it?

• Unlike Chalk paint, milk paint has been around for years. The ingredients are natural and eco friendly.
• You will find a lot of milk paint products in the powdered form. All it requires is to be mixed with water.
• The main ingredients for milk paint are quark (Quark is a type of fresh dairy product made by warming soured milk) and lime. The downside to these ingredients is the smell!
• The powdered form of milk paint will require the addition of a bonding agent if you don’t want the “chippy” look.
• Speaking of adding a bonding agent, this is the bonus for vintage lovers like myself. If you want the aged chippy wood look, all you have to do is apply milk paint without the boding agent and you will find that the paint will chip naturally over a period of just a few hours.
• The downside to the powdered form of milk paint is that it can be rather tricky to mix the perfect consistency.  Most new furniture painters would rather buy milk paint in a ready to go can. There are a few brands that come already mixed like General Finishes milk paint.  unfortunately, with the “ready made” milk paint cans the bonding agent is already mixed in.
• In my opinion, milk paint with the bonding agent does not always require a top coat. If the piece of furniture I’m working on doesn’t get a lot of wear and tear, I rarely use a top coat.
• I have found that milk paint does show brush strokes much easier than chalk paint. It does not “self level” as well as chalk paint.

Disclosure: this is my opinion and some of you might disagree. I’ve tried to lay out all the facts first and then form my opinion to give you guys a good knowledge base about chalk paint vs milk paint.

Which one do I prefer? Chalk paint or Milk paint?

I love the smooth finish of milk paint and the fact that I can create that chippy look by forgoing the bonding agent. I even used milk paint to paint my laminate cabinets.

On the downside, milk paint does show brush strokes easier than chalk paint and does not bond as well (in my opinion).

Back to the question, which paint do I prefer? It depends on what I’m painting.

I do prefer applying chalk paint to a furniture piece that has many layers of old paint or varnish.

In my opinion I think chalk paint is the best paint for furniture because it covers previous paint and sealer without lots of prep work. It also gives a better coverage and more “even toned” look.

The only downside is that it will require a good chalk paint wax or top coat for a lot of use.

The kitchen table above is my chalk painted dining room table that I’m still super pleased with.

Milk paint is my go-to paint for that chippy look. Otherwise, I prefer using chalk paint because of its better coverage and ability to hide most brush strokes.

A close look at the chippy paint technique that I applied to this vintage fireplace mantel with milk paint.

I hope my thoughts about chalk paint vs. milk paint help you figure out what paint to use to repurpose or up cycle something of your own!

You might also be interested in this post about how to paint furniture the right way the first time.

If you enjoyed this post and want to save it for later I would love for you to pin it to Pinterest.

Lindsey**