Annie Sloan’s Painter in Residence Girl in Blue Designs painted this drop-leaf table with a realistic ivy design using Chalk Paint®.

Before starting on any detail work, Charlie Massey of Girl in Blue Designs created her backdrop using Chalk Paint® in Emperor’s Silk as a base, wet-mixing in Barcelona Orange in parts for vibrancy and texture. She also added low lights of Graphite at the bottom of the table leaves, moving up to highlights of Old Violet.

She then used white chalk to outline her leaf shapes, before filling in with Antibes Green. Amsterdam Green at the corners and edges of the leaves gives shading and creates dimension – emphasised further with highlights in the middle of each leaf in Lem Lem. Leaf veins were added in Old White and Lem Lem using the smallest Detail Brush from Annie’s Detail Brush Sets. Charlie recommends printing off a photo of leaves as a rough guide; but not pressuring yourself to create a photorealistic rendering.

Finally, she sealed her work in with Clear Chalk Paint® Wax.