What story would you tell?

Premium Chalk Paints has always held a special place in my heart, it's been my go-to for creating all types of bespoke decorative paint finishes “creating stories on furniture”, softly aged, rustic, old worldly looks, a piece with colour & interesting depths all with the freedom of drawing colours from a clients space and amalgamating it onto a piece furniture to create a soulful character piece that would perfectly slide into place like it was always meant to be. It’s what I’ve been known for, what started this journey for me, it’s what allowed me to do what I love for over a decade and is what’s led me here today to be behind the Artisan company Paints & products.

Premium Chalk Paints and coloured waxes were designed to have that versatility allowing you to create all types of paint effects, transforming or resurrecting pieces to fit into all types of different interior styling… an opportunity to express yourself and your vision on furniture without the need to sand or prime, that freedom to paint straight over varnish, veneer, glass, almost any surface. With a super fast dry time and the ability to allow you to layer colour upon colour to create beautiful complex looking finishes, that would normally take weeks and make it all possible within in a matter of hours… sometimes minutes . 

It’s about using your piece of furniture as a blank canvas to tell your story ; whether that story be of an age, an era, or through layers of time…something completely bespoke, unfound allowing you to individualise the pieces in your home the way you want. Drawing colours from your surrounding or within your home to create something holding that artisanal beauty; I feel very privileged to have the stories I have told on furniture treasured in homes across NZ as one off bespoke hand painted pieces. 

I know first hand how important it is when you go create a piece, that the paint is of quality, a rich full bodied, highly pigmented artisanal paint that allows you to manipulate, create textures, lightly sand for a smooth finish, over brush for rustic textures, add colours and layers, metallics, waxes for that creative artisanal freedom… that when you go to touch that family heirloom that the paint is worthy…that it will sympathetically and authentically create a look and finish that will stand the test of time and make the piece be treasured for many more years to come…

The heart of Artisan Paints and products lies in the love of decorative painting. It's about creating a paint system that builds trust in the quality of the paint and its performance, so you can focus on bringing your creative vision to life. 

Complex looking hand painted finishes can be done as a DIY, quickly and easily with just a little know how…. And when it comes to knowledge it all starts with “THE BLUEPRINT FOR DECORATIVE PAINTING” workshop, a hands on painting workshop that is held exclusively through Artisan Retailers…a workshop I’ve designed, trialled and perfected over time and proven to get people understanding the idea behind our Premium Chalk Paints, coloured waxes & our world of decorative painting. It's about providing both knowledge & the confidence to create not just one finish but a myriad of different finishes and having these skills to transform anything from decor, to furniture. The possibilities then become endless, making people value, think and see things completely differently and our retailers do a fantastic job in running these workshops in different parts of the country.

I’ve spent the last few years trialling and adding more to the Artisan Paint collection, the things I’ve always wanted like Velvet Luxe, Stone effects and metallics that work in the way that I’ve always dreamed… the space is changing and there is now so much more you can do now creatively through whats available, the experience is even more enjoyable and instantaneous. …. but I do still have many more stories to tell and this year I hope to spend more time in the studio so that I can share new stories, new ways and more inspiration around the things you can do… after looking at this sneak peek work in progress shot , I’ve also made a personal note to try and not use the back of my hand as a paint palette, even if it is low in VOCs - Dorophya x