Tim Gould's Memory Table

Please join me in giving the wonderful Tim Gould a round of applause. Tim has been working with me for the past few months as one of my Painters in Residence, and today I am sharing the last project created during his residency. Tim has developed a technique using my paint, Chalk Paint® and homemade vinyl stencils to apply text to furniture - to give it a voice of it's own, and to bring out it's real character.

Tim had this table for years, but its glass top had been smashed in an accident and was covered in stains and marks accumulated over the years. But these marks of age and the memories that accompanied them inspired Tim to give this table this wonderful transformation.

To achieve this look, Tim created word and image stencils on a computer, printed them on to vinyl, and applied them to the table surface. (The stencils are actually being used here in a reversed way - the stencil masks the details and shapes (the text and images)). Tim then painted over the table (and the areas that have been masked off with his stencils). To create a patina that looked brimming with history, Tim applied layers of paint - starting with Pure, Emperor's Silk, Provence and finishing with Graphite. He then sanded areas of the paint back to reveal the various colours beneath.

The words and shapes were highlighted by applying Loose Brass Leaf to the area around them. Once dry, Tim carefully peeled back the stencils/ masked areas to expose the letters and shapes.

To finish the piece, Tim covered the legs with Loose Brass Leaf, and then applied my Clear Soft Wax with a little Dark Soft Wax to add depth.

Have you got an old piece of furniture, whose marks of age could be turned in to a feature with a little Chalk Paint®?

Yours, Annie

Follow Tim on Instagram, Facebook, and his website: http://www.objectables.co.uk/

And remember to follow #PaintersInResidence on Instagram and Facebook, as well as my Painters in Residence board on Pinterest

How to stencil a chair with Chalk Paint®

I have been dying to show you my new video tutorial about stencilling. My stencil designs and the way I work with them is quite free and, I hope, liberating!

In this two-part tutorial, I combine two of my stencils in random overlapping patterns to transform an old dining chair. It’s a fairly standard splat back chair with a good central panel for stencilling on. I love playing around with my stencils and I want to point out that just because you’re using a stencil with a particular design, it doesn’t have to inhibit your own creativity – mix them up, take the elements you like or those which are right for a particular piece from each, and see what you come up with. It's all about overlaying different patterns to come up with something unique.

For this particular project, I’m using my Lavender stencil and overlapping it with my Classical Bird – an idea inspired by one of my Stockists which I liked so much I had to try out for myself!

Before I even get started on a project, I like to sketch out the look I’m going for. For this tutorial, I decided to use Duck Egg Blue from the Chalk Paint® palette as my base colour. Although it can be tempting to stencil against a white background, it can be quite stark and using a mid-tone, fairly neutral colour will make the pattern sing out, especially if you’re using Old White in the pattern, as I do in this piece.

First, I paint the chair. You’ll see I tip it upside down whilst I’m painting it, as this makes the job so much easier. I’m using the larger of my Pure Bristle Brushes to apply the Duck Egg Blue, and this helps bring out the texture of the wood.

Once the first coat is dry, I can start stencilling. I already have a good idea of where I want the pattern to be, so I rely on my judgement when it comes to positioning the stencil.

Using sponge rollers makes overlapping stencil patterns a quick and very straightforward process. (For smaller, more detailed designs, I’ll use my Stencil Brush to stipple the pattern on). I’ve just brought out two sizes of Sponge Roller and I use both in the video. Don’t overload the roller with paint, and be gentle but firm. Remember, if the finish is denser in some areas and lighter in others that can work very well.

Although I’ve a good idea of what I want to achieve, I don’t always end up following my sketch in every detail. Random can be good sometimes, go with the flow and enjoy seeing where you may end up. Once I’m happy with the design, I add my Clear Wax and that’s really all there is to it!

I've shared Part 1 of my tutorial above, you can find Part 2 on my YouTube channel.

Also - I must tell you – I’m very excited because tomorrow I’ll be doing a demonstration with Kirstie Allsopp again, at the Handmade Christmas Fair in Manchester. She’s going to be joining me at my stand where I'll be teaching how to create a very special Christmas table runner with stencils and stamps (so easy and quick and no sewing involved!). I’ll be sharing pictures and tips in a few weeks, so watch this space!

Yours, Annie

Introducing my new Stencil Collection

I've been working on my new stencil collection for some time, so I'm thrilled to finally tell you all about it! 

There are 21 stencils in the collection, reflecting a broad range of styles – from bohemian to neoclassical, vintage floral to warehouse and modern retro to French elegance. Simply use my paint, Chalk Paint®, to apply my stencils to furniture, floors, walls... and even fabric!

I've designed my stencils so that they can be used in various ways – on their own as a simple design, repeated to make a pattern, or used to create a border. I love to create random, overlapping patterns with my stencils – this is so easy to do and looks effortlessly elegant.

Stencilling is very easy, and little equipment is needed. Some people use masking tape and tape measures, but I don't tend to, I just use my hands to hold the stencil in place, and position them by eye.

My stencils will be available at participating Stockists shops throughout Europe, North America, Australia, New Zealand, and Canada. 

I can't wait to see your stencilling projects. Post them on social media with #AnnieSloanStencils to share them with me!

Yours, Annie

Janice Issitt's Chinese Inspired Wall Art

The second project from Painter in Residence, Janice Issitt, is this Chinese-inspired wall art, painted in my paint, Chalk Paint®.

This is actually one of the last projects that Janice completed during her time as a Painter in Residence. Janice had lots of leftover paint that she had mixed up for previous projects and decided to "chuck it at the walls". Here you can see Provence, Greek Blue, and Old White – all thrown at the walls and rolled out wet.

Janice tells me that she likes something handmade to look hand made, and that she doesn't like perfection. Therefore, why should a wall look completely flat and even? Something I totally agree with!

The stencilled images are of Chinese cherry blossoms, flowers and birds. The branches and flowers are painted in Old White, Primer Red, Barcelona Orange and Emperor's Silk. The leaves are Antibes, and the birds are Napoleonic Blue.

Janice has loved stencilling ever since the days of Jocasta Innes. Every time she has a new job she thinks about how she can incorporate a stencil.

To finish this project, Janice rescued an old side table painting it in Emperor's Silk to echo the Chinese look of the stencilled wall.

The inside of the cupboard is painted in Florence and the edge has been gilded using Annie Sloan Gold Size and Brass Leaf. The whole cupboard has been finished with Annie Sloan Soft Clear Wax.

So what do you think? Have you stencilled with Chalk Paint® before?

Yours, Annie

Follow this blog for exclusive pics from Janice's residency and follow her on Instagram, Facebook, and her blog:janiceissittlifestyle.blogspot.com

And remember to follow #PaintersInResidence on Instagram and Facebook, as well as my Painters in Residence board on Pinterest.

Bookmarks (1)

For those of you who’ve just discovered my paint, Chalk Paint®, and think I might be new on the decorative painting scene (well, there might be some!), let me rekindle the book that really launched me all the way back in 1988.

  

It’s not the finish, it’s the start that counts

But first a bit of background. . . After studying for a degree and a Masters at art college, I moved to a small village in Oxfordshire with a young family, getting commissions from clients to paint murals and other finishes, and running courses and workshops. I learnt on the job, got my hands dirty and experimented with all sorts of weird and wonderful decorative techniques then in vogue – blocking, sponging, ragging, stippling, colourwashing, dragging, combing, flogging, spattering, marbling, tortoiseshellling, woodgraining, gilding, stencilling, and sgrafitto, to name a few. . . 

I relied on my art training, my passion for colour, my unceasing enthusiasm to experiment with different pigments and finishes, and a lot of trial and error. Having extensively researched the history and application of decorative painting, I realised that for such a wide subject there were very few accessible books around. That changed, as did my fledgling career, when I sat down to write The Complete Book of Decorative Paint Techniques.

This is me being presented to my new readership for the first time inside The Complete Book of Decorative Paint Techniques. I was still learning my trade. 

No flash in the pan

This exhaustive (and exhausting) title was my first published book, back in 1988. I’m pleased to say the result were well worth it: The Complete Book of Decorative Paint Techniques sold in the hundreds and thousands, was translated into 13 languages, and it really launched 'Annie Sloan'. 

Looking back on it now, I am still amazed at how comprehensive it was. I especially like the colour inspirations with the strong blues (see page extract below), reds, and greens etc.. These show how my background in colour – and hence part of this blog’s title – goes back such a long way. I also loved putting the objects and materials together to be shot – creating these montages for inspiration – long before the days of Photoshop!

My co-author, Kate Gwynn, had a design and print background and went to the London College of Printing. She understood how you put a book together – not just the visuals but the presentation of written material and information with images. At the time, it was very new to me. This is Kate (below) in the book.

Kate and I lived in the same Oxfordshire village and her husband Stanley Smith was a painter at the Royal College of Art. He knew that Mobius – a newly set up book packager (production company) at the RCA – were looking to produce a new title. So that’s how the whole thing started (you can see Mobius’s input on the imprint page below).

Many of the interiors shown in the book were mine, such as this kitchen scene (below). We begged and borrowed all the other house settings. 

In pages like these and below I can see both my apprenticeship on show, but also something of the direction I was to take – and a bit of my personality starting to come through.

Blockbusters

We did the book using oil paint, because that’s traditionally the paint everybody used. Back then I thought it was the only way I could get that translucency. It may look a bit dated now – and fashions change – but I’m still tremendously proud of it. 
The ‘Blocking’ section (below), for example, is really ‘me’ and very jolly and done with artists' water based paint acrylic paints. 

As is this tree print project (below) for the kids’ playroom, and yes I did use real pears and swedes.

Colour all the way
One innovative feature we added to this book was the use of colourways at the edge of every right hand page in the ‘Basic Finishes’ section. Here’s an example using Dragging. . . 

This helped us get over people’s common objections to a particular technique based on colour i.e. “I don’t like that because it’s in yellow”. By showing a finish in other colours we could overcome those barriers. 

My back pages
Researching and writing The Complete Book of Decorative Paint Techniques and its success meant a sequel was needed (which I’ll post about soon). It also spurred me on to develop my own paints as I became more and more absorbed by what paint is and how it works. 

So looking back over a quarter of a century of apprenticeship, application and experimentation (when many of my stockists hadn’t even been born!) you can see that Annie Sloan and Chalk Paint® come with a history, a heritage.

Chalk Paint® can applied to so many techniques – its versatility is the name of the game – and it’s as versatile as my approach to painting. With Chalk Paint® you'll find my whole history of mixing and colour mixing . . . in a pot. 

Yours, Annie