I wanted a rustic design for this country-cottage table. I tried painting the table with Country Grey, but the result did nothing for me. However, as I began washing off the paint with a sponge and water, I noticed that the table looked good and so I left it mainly painted, but with some wood showing through in places.
I wanted to add a large design to the table, based on the idea of cut-out paper because, as a child, I had folded paper and snipped out shapes, delighting in the wonderful, doily-shaped snowflakes that were revealed as I unfolded the paper. These paper designs remind me of Eastern European paper cutouts and the inventiveness of Polish cut paperwork in particular. My interpretation of this paperwork is inspired by the simple, flattened silhouette designs that the technique requires.
I used dancing “girls” as the main design, opting for a figure at each end of the table, and added other shapes around the edge. The result is a unique table that I definitely want to keep.
YOU WILL NEED
• Chalk Paint® in Country Grey, Antibes Green, Aubusson Blue, Provence, and Greek Blue
• Large sponge
• Tabloid-size/A3 heavy card stock/cartridge paper (100 lb/220 gsm)
• Pencil
• Strong scissors
• Small flat brush
• Large stencil roller
• Small stencil roller
• Large artists’ brush
• Coarse-grade sandpaper
• Clear wax
• Small wax brush
• Clean, dry, lint-free cloths
1Paint the table in Country Grey. Once the paint is dry, take a damp/wet sponge and rub away some of the paint to expose the surface beneath.
2Take a piece of card stock (cartridge paper) and fold it in half, then draw half the design on the paper, using the photos (on the previous page and above) as a guide. Using the scissors, cut out the design while it is still folded in half.
3Fold the paper again along the front and sides of the dress shape, and cut out more shapes. Here, I cut out a series of rectangles and some arrow shapes. I also cut out a right-angled triangle at the bottom of the paper to create the feet of the figures.
4Use the flat brush to mix Antibes Green and Aubusson Blue, softened with some Provence, but not too perfectly so that the color will be a little varied when you roll it out.
5Position the paper figure at the top of the table so that the feet are in the center. The idea is to block out the Country Grey with the paper figure. Load the green paint mix onto the large roller and cover the card design so that there is a small border all around the edge. Repeat with the paper figure at the other end of the table. Use the roller to paint the rest of the table, leaving a circular border of Country Grey around the edge.
6To bring out the pattern of the dresses, load the small roller with Greek Blue and carefully place the cut-out rectangular stencils over the matching shapes on the table top, then cover in Greek Blue. I also used the Greek Blue to fill in the diamond shape at the top of each figure. Use the small roller loaded with Country Grey on the rectangular and arrowshaped stencils to add patterns by the sides of the two dancing figures.
7Use the lid from the can of wax as a circular template, tracing around it with the artists’ brush to paint the rim of the table with Provence randomly mixed with Antibes Green and Aubusson Blue. This helps to create depth. Paint a mix of Provence and Antibes Green with a little Aubusson Blue around the molded edge of the table and then distress the edge a little with the sandpaper. Finish by applying clear wax to the table with the wax brush. Use a cloth to remove excess wax and also to polish the table, if you wish.
