I am an Annie Sloan Retail Partner!

Amy Chalmers and Annie Sloan by Janet Metzger

"Annie you must let me sell your fabulous paints!!"

And so she agreed~

and we all lived happily ever after!

Well it wasn't quite like that, but pretty darn close~

Lisa Rickert of Jolie Designs, Jami, Freckled Laundry, me, Patty Seaman of Classic Wall Finishes NJ, Shauna of Perfectly Imperfect blog and Karen, Patty's talented and hilarious sister and partner.

You could say it happened when I booked

 a ticket to the Annie Sloan Boston workshop~

and that is really when the last 20 years crystallized.

 I decided that this career move felt perfectly right.

When I walked into the convention I saw a surprising display of pretty fabrics.

I had come for paint after all~and here was a new line of  AS fabrics...

And then listening to Annie talk about her paints

and color theory and the way she started this business~

well something happened~I was quite entranced by her,

and really was caught off guard as I had no hero worship

or any opinion for that matter on Annie~all I knew her to 

be was simply  the creator of the chalk paint I loved.

But she was so much more than that~

 it is hard to describe one of those monumental moments in life

when all of a sudden you just know you are supposed to do this!

(after a whisper from Jami, see more below)

Yes!! I was going to do this!

 I was going to  have a store where 

I could expand my online sales and have a 

showcase for beautiful french draperies and custom painted 

furniture, all with the shabby french flavor that I love.

Listening to Annie that day awakened a new desire

and ever since I have not stopped...not slept...

not blinked....not worried....not questioned....

But how does that happen in one moment?

Well it happens over time, and for me it was the culmination 

of where my blog has taken me in the last two years and

 my  years of design and custom curtain background

and it all built up to a point

where this was the most logical and mandatory step to take!

I just knew~being part of the Annie Sloan network was going to be incredible.

Next year I'll be yucking it up with the rest of the crew~

this is a company I am so excited to be a part of~

I have only worked for myself really~so to be part of something

bigger will be a new thing for sure.

I had nice talks with every single one of these ladies (except the one kneeling)

You can see Lisa Rickert next to Annie, who was sooo helpful

and encouraging to me to get this deal inked,

 and Annie is touching my friend and supporter Janet Metzger,

and next to Janet is Nancy from Rhode Island, and behind 

her are both the lovely Stephanie from New Jersey and 

Tricia from the Painted Purple Lady.

I  now have my own territory as an Annie Sloan Stockist

and I will be servicing my area which is the north/west Greater Boston area.

As soon as I come back from my formal training classes

I can be open for AS business~but all things in my shop

must be ready and I hope that will be mid May~!!

I am so thrilled~I can't wait to meet all the devotees of the paint

and as soon as the fabrics become available this summer I will

 be making beautiful things out of that too. 

You know sometimes it is an obvious choice~but in this case

it didn't really occur to me to be a retailer of the paint I love...

until Jami whispered in my ear

during the convention~ "why don't you be a mini-stockist?"....

huh? I just had been doing what I do...my own thing...

decorating, blogging, painting..

but not thinking of partnering up in any official way with a store! 

But when Jami asked me that, I immediately thought~

oh yes, I want to know more..

what is involved....so thank you so much Jami!!

 I immediately spoke to Lisa Rickert of Jolie Design who handles all the US distribution

and stockists....and then I spoke with Annie, and she said to me in her lovely 

Australian accent " Oh, we'd love it if You'd do it darling"...

and so I did.

As I descended on the escalator at 5 pm I phoned my husband,

and said, "Dave, I want to open a store that sells 

my stuff and Annie Sloan chalk paint."

And he said, "That's great honey, go for it!"

yup, he really said that...no hestitation or ummming...or what???

just GO FOR IT!!!!

Me and Annie Sloan~

She's high on my list of people I admire~

I know my little shop will make her proud~

my whole family is behind me 100% in this venture

and it is an exciting time in my life~!

Being the mom and the wife for so long I am used to 

fitting my job in and around everyone else's schedule...

but these days, my team is behind me, and it is the best

feeling in the world~

So thank you for reading my blog~all of your comments and supportive

niceness has taken me to this place in time....without the blog

I wouldn't be doing this...I totally understand that....

Blogging is powerful, for both writer and reader,

and I love it!! Even with the new store I will be blogging my heart out,

sharing my life inside that big studio with bead board walls,

 making things pretty and giving inspiration.

So please visit me if you are ever in the Boston area~

I would love to show off my shop when I open my doors~

hopefully in 3-4 weeks!