I JUST discovered The Sea Rose Cottage last week, while Googling for painted antique furniture (I was looking for ideas to restore an old buffet that has been patiently "sheltering in place" waiting for a decorative paint job.) I went to the website "Pinterest" which had gazillions of pictures of painted furniture. Many of the pieces were covered in "Annie Sloan Chalk Paint", a product which I was surprised I had not heard of since I pride myself on staying up to date with interior decorating and crafty news. It is the brainchild of Annie Sloan, a British artist and decorative painter. It's been around in England for at least twenty years, but only in the States for about three. There are only a few "stockists" in the US and only one in RI - that would be Nancy Chace of The Sea Rose Cottage, a lovely paintshop-cum-workshop-cum interior design shop which sells Annie's paint, as well as 'milk paint' from a woman who owns Mustard Seed Interiors. Luckily for me, and quite serendipitously as well, Nancy was holding what might be her last Chalk Paint workshop in 2013. It was scheduled for two days hence, and there was only one spot left in the class - FOR ME!
This was my first venture to Bristol, on the other bay (the East Bay), being a died-in- the-wool West Bay gal myself. Bristol, RI seemed like a long ride (fah!) and I did get lost a teensy bit, arriving about ten minutes late and the class was in full throttle but I caught up quickly. Each class participant was given six decorative pieces of wood, and the access to any of the paint colors we wished. Nancy is a fabulous teacher, very articulate, very well-informed (she has been taught by Annie Sloan herself!) and has assisted Annie on several of her visits to promote her paint on this side of the pond. In other words. learning with Nancy is like learning from Annie. We learned (in what was to have been a four hour course, but went over to almost 5) how to do twelve different paint finishes, as well as how to use the paint and learn of its properties. The class was so much fun, and the paints are just so fabulous: In addition to the fairly large number of paints that are in the Annie Sloan collection, there must be hundreds - perhaps thousands - of other colors that can be made up simply by mixing this color with that color, or adding a little - or a lot - of white paint to produce variations on the original color. I wanted ALL the paints! But each quart was rather pricey (there are smaller sample paint jars available at a lower cost, however, they were almost sold out and the new selection was not to arrive til January). First I picked one color, then another (to purchase) but then I changed my mind and switched them out for two different colors. Then I went home and changed my mind again - so I went "all the way" back to Bristol and made more exchanges, plus purchasing an additional can of paint and two of the samples. As Nancy says, it's like a candy shop, and you just want ALL of them. It's true. I wanted each and every one of the beautiful paints. ALL of them. But I am starting out with just three colors - Olive, Duck Egg, and Old White. I also bought an Annie Sloan official painting brush, two cans of wonderful wax (clear and dark) which works beautifully with the paint, and some gilding cream. My buffet has been emptied out, the floor clothes and newspapers are down, the paints are out. I am now off to begin this new adventure. BTW Nancy also sells a small variety of vintage and antique items for the home, she sells stencils from Royal Stencils (Google them - their stencils are nothing less than amazing), and she carries the Dash and Albert line of rugs - they're gorgeous, and not too pricey; and I believe she also custom paints her clients' furniture, to order, when she has the time. When Nancy is not selling paint, teaching painting workshops, painting other people's furniture, and out scouting for antiques, she also is a blogger, a wife and a Mom. She also manages to fit in organizing special little parties at her shop to showcase artists and bloggers. I strongly recommend you check out this shop. You'll need to check her website (www.searosecottage.com) where you'll find her hours, as well as her blog and a few blurbs about the two types of paints she carries, and her workshops. Nancy is a lovely person and an excellent instructor - also quite a thoughtful hostess, providing coffee, cider, bagels and cookies (including gluten free!!) to her students.
Annie Sloan Chalk Paint is very cool, it goes on SO easily and it can be watered down or thickened to get various finishes. Don't paint your old desk until you visit Nancy at Sea Rose Cottage! read more