BRUSH STROKES

Chalk Paint inventor, interior designer and author Annie Sloan invites us into her charming Victorian townhouse in Oxford

- MEGAN CONWAY

After training as a fine artist in the 1970s, Annie Sloan turned her skills to decorating, painting murals on commission. But when she couldn't find a paint to achieve the many effects she wanted, she turned inventor and, in 1990, created the revolutionary Chalk Paint.

This unique, water-based formula, with its velvety matt finish and ability to stick to any surface without the need for priming or sanding, became a global phenomenon and is now stocked in almost 1,500 stores.

It has also made 74-year-old Annie a worldwide name in the world of colour, and this year she was recognised in the King's first Birthday Honours with a CBE for services to interior design. "To be given the CBE is just extraordinary and is the best acknowledgment of my life's work I can imagine," she says.

Here, Annie opens the doors to her Victorian townhouse in Oxford, where she lives with husband David Manuel, to tell us how she uses her kaleidoscope of colours...

Tell us about your background, Annie...

"I am a painter and colour expert, but I see myself primarily as an artist: somebody who loves colour and creates artwork with furniture and living spaces rather than on a canvas.

"I studied fine art for seven years and grew up in a very arty household, so I've always felt confident in my ability and my right to create."

What inspired you to launch your company, Annie Sloan Interiors?

"When I invented Chalk Paint, I immediately had friends, acquaintances and fellow interiors professionals asking me for my recipe all the time. It was just not possible that I was going to get away with not bringing it to market. Chalk Paint being such a brilliant product, it sort of started the brand itself under its own steam. I was just there for the ride."

How did it feel to be recognised in the King's first Birthday Honours?