Tutorial - Quick and Easy Marble Finish

This was a finish I have been meaning to post for a while and I took stage by stage photos while I did it especially so I could do a little tutorial but it has taken me an age to get round to it.
Those that read my blog or follow Carte Blanche on Facebook (http://www.facebook.com/carteblanchedecorativepainters) or follow me on Twitter (@paintycait) know that I am in San Francisco now teaching a class in graining and marbling on the first leg of my US tour. I am having a wonderful time with Lynne Rutter and her husband Erling who are the most marvellous hosts.
For those that can't be with us in class here is a real money-maker marbleize to keep you busy. Here was the furniture set we did for a client in this Italianate style marble and it was so quick and easy. This could be done in any colour combination. Here I used Raw Umber, Burnt Umber and Paynes Grey on an off white eggshell base coat.

The furniture before it left the workshop

The process was to apply the clear glaze - we used Ratcliffes Acrylic Scumble which is available in UK but you could use Faux Effects Faux Creme or Proceed.

I added in the colours in swathes across the surface loosely blending them -  this could be done with a scenic fitch, a chip brush or a decorators brush

 Then use painter's plastic dust sheet and press it into the paint and do this in a linear fashion to create marbly shapes

Look for shapes like this

and patterns like this

 Using a badger softener soften some of the shapes out but make sure not to lose patterns like the one above. You need to move quite quickly to get the whole area softened before the Ratcliffes Glaze goes off, but Proceed Glaze and Faux Creme will give more open time

Secret Weapon

Next comes the veining and I have found a very nice cheap synthetic veining brush that you can buy in most art stores the Daler #2 liner.

this is the type of vein I think works well - a white one

a darker one too.....soften these with a badger

veining

 and VOILA

Annie Sloan Chalk Paint People

Love this bureau painted by Moira at Rustiques Annie Sloan Paint in Arles stencilled and crackled

I have had a lot of time away from our ever dampening workshop...we are moving by the way...news of that coming soon
So since I haven't painted anything groovy recently, nor run a class I reckoned it would be cool to let you see some Annie Sloan Chalk Paint People...those that stock the paint and/or paint with it.

I was on my travels - delivering paint around Scotland because being the Scottish distributor of Annie Sloan Paint means we get out and about to see our stockists when we have larger orders and I really wanted to show you something of Rustiques - the Annie Sloan Stockists for Aberdeenshire that is owned by Moira

Lots of new paint stock waiting to be unpacked

I love Moira's display

Moira always has extras to buy like these fabulous handles and blanks for painting projects

who needs a paper colour chart when you have this!

Lots and lots of lovely gifts and home accessories

 After I left Moira having had a jolly good gas and put the world to rights I headed back to Perth via Coupar Angus and nearby Eggshell and Chalk at the Bothy - Gillian has a lovely little shop converted from one of the spaces in their farm buildings - this is the first time I had visited and it is trully delightful. Gillian has always used a lot of Annie Sloan Chalk paint to upcycle her furniture with - it makes the work less arduous and means that she can keep labour down and therefore keep costs reasonable. Gillian has great flair and combines her own painted and vintage items with those of other local craftspeople. Why not visit her during Perthshire Open Studios - she is not always open and so if you want to visit make an appointment first - West Balgersho Farm, Coupar Angus PH13 9LW
Gillian Morris: Tel: 01828 670628 / 07719 920074
Email: morris.balgersho@virgin.net

lovely home wares and a print by Marliese Richmond

Gillian...caught her unawares

Soft furnishings

Online inspiration can be got by liking Annie Sloan Paint on Facebook where Annie and fans post regularly their Chalk Paint projects - Annie is doing a series of bedside tables just now, each in a different colour and they seem to be appearing daily....new combinations you would never think of using.
Facebook and Blogs seem to be a wealth of inspiration - those using the paint uploading regularly their triumphs with the paint - one of my favourites recently was produced by the very talented Kathy Wear 

Crusty Corbels

Head over to Maison Decor Blog to check out the painting process of this piece

Maison Decor hop over and have a look at some of her fabulous paint projects

I had the pleasure to meet Sarah, the owner of Modern Country Style - she was a fellow student with me in Annie Sloan's Class in Oxford and she had a wonderful Painty Link Party on her blog recently where lots of paint projects were linked to - scroll to the bottom of her post about painting a table and find a myriad of inspiring blogs to visit

Sarah's Modern Country Style painted table

I hope all this has inspired you to buy, use, visit, peruse more Annie Sloan Chalk Paint - don't forget that you can buy it on-line from Carte Blanche and that you can pick it up and start painting - no stripping required!

PaintyCait On Tour - Classes in USA

It's some time since I have visited the Good Old U.S. of A. and I am so excited about my rapidly approaching trip. Some will have seen my classes advertised on my website and on my hosts' websites; on Facebook and Twitter and for those that haven't take a peek at where and what I will be doing. First stop will be at Lynne Rutter's beautiful Studio for a 5 day Marbling and Graining Class in San Francisco.

Lynne's beautiful airy studio - a first time visit to San Francisco for me

This class will concentrate on traditional materials - linseed oil and beer and water glaze, making the glazes from scratch. The techniques are the much the same whatever the material but this is how I started - with old fashioned materials and all the alchemy that goes with it.

Next stop "THE Studio Destin"

and Florida is a first for me too

THE Studio Destin is owned and run by two seasoned faux finishers and teaching professionals - Krista Vind and Cindy Everett of Ufauxrea.

The Showroom and entry to the classroom at Studio Destin

THE Studio's Lounge

 THE Studio has a website but lots of information on the company's Facebook page where my two 2 day classes are listed - the Marbling Class and the Wood-graining Class
This class will concentrate on off-the shelf glazes and mediums from a number of manufacturers, they will all be water based and we will look at building layers quickly and efficiently to maximise profit in a way that was previously easier to do with oil finishes.

So what kind of things will I teach - I have done a little collage of  some of the samples done completely in water based

water based marbles and woods

and here I am teaching in Mississippi some years back teaching the White Veined Marble - this is a Calacatta

teaching at the Southern Institute of Faux Finishing

and here I am teaching in traditional oil based materials in Maine

Burr Walnut in Maine

and a pop-up class in Pittsburgh organised by my wonderful friend Elaine Castronovo of Creative Lane

Crotch Mahogany and Satinwood in both oil and water

and what do my students say?
Well have a look at my website and you will see
TESTIMONIALS

Come and join us - there are I think 2 spots left at each venue

I DID IT!!!

Those that have been following the blog know that every now and again I create a post called "If I post it here I will HAVE to do it" to try and get me to focus on a particular project. The last time I did this was with a mural - the mural was fraught with problems...every time I got to the point of being able to start it or progress it something got in the way.

 Here is the post "If I post it here I will HAVE to do it"


Finally....finally finally we are done and installed...

This is how you first see it

Closing in

Square on

Detail

Before it left the studio

So what slowed me down. First the medium I decided to use was very difficult to work with. The Golden Gac 200 I used in order to make the mural very hard-wearing, it made the paint very slimy and it took me a full week to get my head round it once I was used to it it was fine but I still feel it makes the paint very clumsy to work with and I wouldn't use it out of choice. The problems I mentioned in my last post with the studio leaking caused as many of the problems as anything...days when nothing would dry so I could only work up one area at a time. Another thing I have found is that as I get older is that I need peace to be able to concentrate; so if the studio is a hive of activity with kitchens being painted and the phone ringing off the hook I find it really difficult to focus. This meant that I needed to fit it in at evenings and weekends otherwise I was making mistakes that had to be done over.

Big thanks goes to my wonderful e-friend Pat Strong. Pat who lives in Texas and I met on a faux painting message forum about 10 years ago and we have conversed on-line for all this time. She is a brilliant artist and a really very good friend to have....she literally nursed me through the last stages of this when I had a fillet of fish instead of a hand....and a lot of weeping and gnashing of teeth was going on and she saved my sanity. Thank you Pat...one day we will meet.

Welcome Home

It is lovely to be away especially in France but we did miss home - son James said he even missed rain. I thought I did till I saw what it was doing to our studio back home

Here is what my darling husband has been coping with in my absence.....a drenched studio, buckets everywhere and everything stuffed anywhere where it won't get wet. The studio situation that has been dire for so long and is now not tolerable.....time to find a new studio.

There have always been problems associated with our studio and some have got worse over the years

• it has always been a bit leaky
• it is shared with our landlords so we have to clear the floor once a month for them to have a meeting
• we have mad neighbours - they believe they own the road (they don't) and don't want anyone parking outside; they have thrown out items left at our door by clients; they block up the fire door; they need to get a life
• the access isn't brilliant especially if you can't park outside, we have to walk through said neighbours garden

So why have we stayed there for 10 years.....it's cheap

Poor Gibson was deeply depressed by the whole thing, desperately trying to paint in these conditions and no news of the new roof - although planning permission has at last come through we have decided to move and hope to have exciting news soon.

So coming home from France felt a bit flat and I had to try and remind myself of why I love home. It wasn't hard. Firstly I adore the light...there is nothing quite like the Scottish light and at this time of year it is so soft and mellow and with the cloud and mists it is heartmelting

Late afternoon

Dawn

Low cloud on Craig Rossie

One of my favourite things about this time of year is to see the tall pink spikes of Willow Herb - the prettiest weed ever. It blushes our drive and all down the edges of the fields with it's delicate pink blossoms that will turn to white cotton wool fluff seed formations soon

our drive

up close

And the food in France is wonderful, all the lovely markets, the fresh bread and lovely cheeses but we do some pretty amazing food here too. We often forget what wonderful raw materials we have to work with and here is a seasonal best...our own Scotch Lamb

this was fresh, light and fabulous with just some garden Rosemary and Granny's Redcurrant jelly to serve