A new Annie Sloan colour, inspired transformations and a beautiful story

Since the beginning of October 2017 we have felt a stir among those who are passionate about paint transformations Annie Sloan. An event was announced on the 12th, the name Lem Lem was being bandied about, but without many details. This enigma caught our attention and made us all anxious. Annie Sloan distributors around the world were announcing special workshops and inviting anyone interested to attend. All this excitement made me curious and I admit I was anxiously awaiting the 12th. But it was worth it because the event was full of colour, spectacular furniture transformations, excitement and hope. Why hope? You'll see in a moment.

Lem Lem is a colour, a pleasant, soothing green in which you feel white, but also a fine layer of dust on top. It's born out of Annie Sloan's collaboration with Oxfam, a poverty eradication organisation based in Oxford, Annie's 'home'. But Lem Lem is more than just a colour. It stands for hope, smiles, flourishing, transformation and solidarity at the same time.

Oxfam is a global movement that believes that, in a world full of resources, poverty must disappear. It began in Oxford in 1942, when a group of people prompted the relaxation of the wartime blockade to bring food to starving people in Greece and Belgium. Action continued after the war, with Oxfam gradually becoming a global organisation fighting poverty in all sorts of ways.

Annie Sloan has always wanted to be part of a project that helps the world. That's how she started working with Oxfam, and this year, as part of the Ethiopian Seed Project, she visited Ethiopia. Through this project, Oxfam supports women in Ethiopia by giving them free plant seeds and helping them to grow and use the harvest. Arriving there, she saw the allium fields in full bloom. Allium is the Latin name for bulbous plants such as onions, leeks and garlic, which flower in their second year of growth, forming a white globe-like inflorescence. The combination of green leaves and white flowers was the inspiration for the colour. The name - Lem Lem - has been heard hundreds of times by women farmers. It means "blossom" in Amharic, the language spoken in Ethiopia, and represents the hope that the work was not in vain, the seeds in turn making seeds.

But let's go back to the launch. On 12 October everyone announced the launch of the Lem Lem colour, and the event was supported, of course, by transformations. Everything that could be painted was painted: wooden furniture, metal furniture, flower pots, cushions, armchairs, lamps, even boots.

Distributors from all over the world competed to make the event as beautiful, as special as possible. And we were no slouch. There were workshops, there was colour, there were transformations. All in the name of hope, colour and solidarity.

The colour is great for creating a retro 50s look. It fits well with the vintage floral style. Different shades can be created by mixing it with other Annie Sloan colours: Old White, English Yellow, Giverny, Henrietta or Amsterdam Green. No matter how the transformation is done, Lem Lem will bring colour to any object, brighten the home and bring smiles.

There have been noteworthy transformations. It turned out that those who went on distressed method made a good choice. Applied on a reddish-garnet, dark or light blue background, sanded more or less discreetly on the edges and then fixed with transparent wax, Lem Lem transformed ordinary pieces into special furniture.

The colour is also suitable as a support for painted floral elements. Shades of purple go surprisingly well with this pretty green, but so does Amsterdam green or Givency blue.

I noticed a very inspired transformation. An old armchair left without a seat became the support for a floral arrangement with cacti and flowing green plants. The white fabric of the armchair was painted with Lem Lem, becoming the backdrop for the painting created by the plants.

A desk that looked just right to put on the fire was transformed after painting, like Cinderella, into a beautiful desk, where the Lem Lem green blended beautifully with the walnut hue of the countertop. Although you could swear it's walnut stained wood, the top is painted Honfleur and then finished with Dark Wax. So, with new clothes, the office has become the favourite place to chat in the new distributor from Miercurea Ciuc

And the black plastic chair from IKEA has come to life painted with Lem Lem. The beetle on the seat, made with Amsterdam green by the distributor in Bucharestmakes it really interesting.

The examples could go on and on. And no wonder because it was still a global event. All the transformations were beautiful and interesting. But the most beautiful is that every can of Lem Lem paint sold brings funds to the Ethiopian Seed Project, continuing the fight to eradicate poverty in the world.

Interesting to see which colours the big paint companies choose to present ascolour of the year 2018 in furniture and interior decoration