Distressing paint gives a feeling of age and history. At Blue Sky we love to play with color and texture. For this sample board, we put away the sandpaper and crackle mediums and opted to simply use a putty knife to achieve a rustic look. The colors used are regularly associated with Gustavian style –muted, dusty grayish-blues, and beige tones.

• The entire piece was painted with Country Grey Chalk Paint and allowed to dry.
• A layer of clear wax was applied to the whole piece.
• Next we layered Paris Grey with intermittent, subtle streaks of Louis and Napoleonic Blue Chalk Paint. All three colors were applied together while still wet. This layer of color streaks was allowed to partially dry.
• Then we rubbed the putty knife over the partially dried paint. Areas where the paint was still wet lifted up easily and created the effect seen in the picture.
• The sample was sealed with one layer of Artisan Enhancements Clear Topcoat to keep a flat, no gloss finish.

This technique celebrates imperfections in color variation and texture.  It can be used on an otherwise lackluster furniture piece to achieve a striking finish.