I love all the amazing Annie Sloan Chalk Paint®; I have been selling Annie Sloan Chalk Paint® in my store, Not Too Shabby since July 2010, and I am completely addicted to how creative you can be with all of the colors, waxes, and techniques.  I have been painting furniture for over 25 years, and I've tried lots of different kinds of paint, finishes, and styles.  I have had the store since 2005, and have continued to refine my painting style and technique with various products, trying to get that amazing patina found on vintage pieces that have aged naturally. Since I have started painting with the Annie Sloan Chalk Paint®. I am smitten!  I really think these are the best paint and waxes in the world for painting furniture!

Because so many of you first timers come into the store looking for this fantastic paint I thought we could start with some information about each of the colors, a little history, examples, and inspiration.  Lets start out with Antibes Green.

Antibes Green is a bright happy apple green.  You can't help but smile when you see this color.  According to Annie's blog "Antibes Green comes to our palette from two sources - the neo-classical palaces, such as the Fontainebleau Palace and in Schloss Charlottenburg in Potsdam, and from the villages around Provence where countless artists have been inspired by the colours of painted furniture, shutters and doors."  Picture from www.anniesloanunfolded.com


We have used Antibes Green as an accent with Napoleonic Blue, mixed with Paris Grey, and accent trim with Scandinavian Pink.  Here's a great piece painted by Forget Me Not Furnishings in Venice Fla.  (check them out at http://www.facebook.com/ForgetMeNotFurnishings)



Here's a great folk-made cabinet we painted Antibes Green:


Here's some variations on Antibes Green when added to Old White:

Don't be afraid of using this color as a statement on a focal piece. One of our Beginning Chalk Paint® workshop Graduates painted her entry piece in Antibes Green - and it is simply beautiful!



What have you painted Antibes Green?

Bobbi

This is a fantastic article about our fearless leader, Lisa Rickert, and how she started Annie Sloan Unfolded.


Check out http://junkbonanza.blogspot.com/2012/09/lisa-r-story-of-annie-sloan-unfolded.html

I love her kitchen cabinets painted Paris Grey, they really look amazing and should give all of you confidence since Lisa painted them with Chalk Paint® decorative paint while she was 7-1/2 months pregnant!

Enjoy the read, I hope it inspires you to paint more, experiment more, and above all have fun!

Bobbi

Today marked the end of a huge emotional project.  I finally finished my antique hutch.  Just a little history on this piece, I bought it from the estate of my friend who was an amazing wood worker.  He passed away from cancer over 5 years ago and his wife sold me his 'pet' project.

I bought the hutch knowing full well that it was beyond my repair capabilities, but I could see how fantastic it would be and I knew I had to 'save' it.  For those of you who buy furniture you share my disease! 

The hutch was missing pieces but had amazing bones and I knew if I didn't get it I would regret it for a long time.  So, I bought the hutch, got it home where my family thought I was crazy.  The way the pieces were joined, and the details made me think the hutch was over 300 years old.  So I got it home and tucked my treasure into a spot in the garage.

For this project to be successful I needed several things to come together - lots of expert old fashioned wood repair, locating replacement pieces (preferably old wood), and the right paint.

Here's what it looked like before:

Final day of the paint convention and after a fantastic breakfast at Cafe du Monde (Beignets and Chicory Coffee - YUMMY) we got down and dirty painting.  We practiced gilding over Provence, loved the result, especially after waxing with dark wax.

Did some more work with the craqeluer, combined over decoupage, and some 'water-painting'. 

My favorite piece was stenciling Annie's way.  Annie loves using the same stencil and over-laying it over and over across the same piece.  I loved the result, it resembles painted damask, it will be perfect on drawer fronts, or a smaller pieces.

The best part of the painting was sharing information with everyone, learning other techniques, short-cuts, and favorite Annie Sloan Chalk Paint projects. 

After a creatively filled day, a few of us took off for dinner in New Orleans.  We ended up at a fantastic restaurant called Huck Finns.  I loved the BBQ Shrimp served over grits - still tasting it!  And BBQ would not be the way I described the meal, more like a piece of heaven!  http://www.huckfinnscafe.com/food-menu/
Although you might not get to Cafe du Monde or Huck Finns within the next week, you can take a fantastic paint class from Annie.  She'll be in San Francisco teaching painting techniques on Monday, March 19.  There are still a few spots left, go to https://www.anniesloanunfolded.com/event/ for more information and register before it's too late.

Bobbi

After our first day at the paint conference, we all joined Jolie Design and Annie Sloan at the Historic Van Benthuysen - Elms Mansion for a wonderful cocktail party. 
This extraordinary historic mansion, built in 1869, was beautifully set-up with food and cocktail stations throughout the home, allowing all of us to tour the entire house and grounds.  The house was recently repainted (historically matching in most cases), and the colors so reminded me of all the fantastic Annie Sloan Chalk Paint colors like Antoinette, Duck Egg, Paris Grey, and French Linen.  Check out http://www.elmsmansion.com/history.html for more pictures and information.

We enjoyed champagne, tapas, alligator sausage, and some unbelievably delicious bananas fosters over white chocolate vanilla ice cream!  The best thing was the espresso at the end of the night - I'm still lusting after that! 
The night wrapped up with a traditional New Orleans handkerchief dance to some fantastic live music!  Back at the hotel to get ready for our second day and painting with Annie!

There are still a few spots left in the San Francisco leg of the Annie Sloan North American Tour, Monday, March 19.  Go to https://www.anniesloanunfolded.com/event/ to register. 
If registration has closed, you can come down and register in person starting at 8:00am, Monday, March 19.

Bobbi

Just got back from 3 fantastic days in New Orleans - What was I doing there?  Well, I went to my first ever paint conference, and it was AMAZING!  People gathered from all over the United States and Canada to share painting ideas, techniques, and (best of all) learn from Annie herself!

Annie was so patient going over color techniques, sharing her waxing style, and then we did some gilding, decoupage, and crackling with the amazing craqeluer.  Since the room was full of paint 'professionals' it got kind of loud, kind of like herding cats, and Annie stayed calm.
Annie's knowledge of painting and decorative techniques is awe-inspiring, you can check out her blog on color at http://anniesloans.blogspot.com/.

I can't wait for you to experience a class with Annie herself in San Francisco!  There are still a couple of days to register (not too many spots left) for the San Francisco Event.

Don't get left behind, go to https://www.anniesloanunfolded.com/event/ and register today!

Bobbi

One of the most common questions I get now that we are selling the Annie Sloan Chalk Paint, is 'how does this paint hold up?"

Well, Annie has shared a picture of a piece she did several years ago. 

She did this piece in 3 colors, using a potato stencil for the design.  Primer Red, Aubosson Blue, and a yellow.  Annie uses this piece as kind of a 'collection cabinet' which holds, string, keys..., all those things you need but don't really have a home for, fit into this cabinet so it's touched daily. 

The point is that the paint and wax finish hold up to normal wear and tear, beautifully.  I find that the patina just gets better and better.

Enjoy!
Bobbi