Inspiration

Purple Nostalgia Chalk Paint® Chest of Drawers

by 84 Square

This beautiful purple piece is the second instalment from our Painter in Residence, 84 Square, and is an ode to the moody, shadowy paintings of the Dutch Masters. Colour mixing, Decoupage application, and the application of colour washes are key techniques making this project suitable for Intermediate level painters.

Annie Sloan Painter in Residence 84 Square Chalk Paint Chest of Drawers
Annie Sloan Painter in Residence 84 Square Chalk Paint Chest of Drawers Decoupage Close Up

Step 1: Chalk Paint®

This rich, plum purple, nostalgic chest of drawers is a fabulously glamorous, ostentatious, Rococo transformation. 84 Square made use of the easy-to-mix qualities of Chalk Paint® to create the exact deep purple she required for her makeover. Mixing 2 parts Graphite with 1 part Capri Pink for a kind of dirty, industrial, aubergine. She used this colour to create a thick and textured base.

She then mixed Capri Pink with Antibes Green and used this grungy hue to paint the middle section, front, and sides. She blended these sections using her trusty water mister to give an uneven ombre (click here for more on creating an ombre) and then left to dry completely.

Once dry, 84 Square diluted the Capri Pink and Antibes Green colour mix with lots of water and applied a wash all over the furniture. As a guide, the wash should be the consistency of water, allowing the paint to drip and run authentically. She created a similar consistency wash using Chalk Paint® in Graphite and applied this to the top of the piece and the inside of the drawers, before wiping back with a dry cloth to give a dark wood stain effect.

Annie Sloan Painter in Residence 84 Square Chalk Paint Chest of Drawers Close Up
Annie Sloan Painter in Residence 84 Square Chalk Paint Chest of Drawers Decoupage Close Up

Step 2: Decoupage

The final touch was to Decoupage the inside of the drawers using the Annie Sloan Decoupage Paper Collection with RHS (Royal Horticultural Society) in Formal Garden. To apply Decoupage Papers apply a coat of Image Medium to your surface then lay the paper over the top and allow to dry. Using Decoupage inside drawers creates a delightful surprise every time you use the furniture and is a traditional high-end furniture painting technique. It’s this extra eye for detail which aligns this piece so brilliantly with the work of the Golden Age Dutch Painters.

Step 3: Wax

Finally, the whole piece has been given a coat of Clear Chalk Paint® Wax to finish and protect. Please note, when using Image Medium there is no need to Wax or Lacquer after use as the Image Medium has Lacquer-like properties which will protect as well as seal the design.

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Annie Sloan Painter in Residence 84 Square Chalk Paint Chest of Drawers Decoupage Close Up
Annie Sloan Paint Swatch Graphite

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Annie Sloan Paint Swatch Capri Pink

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Annie Sloan Paint Swatch Antibes Green

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RHS Decoupage Paper Formal Garden

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Clear Chalk Paint® Wax

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