Paris Grey - This is a soft and slightly bluish grey, and is the colour most associated with painted furniture in an elegant French château and of an old Swedish manor house. It works like a dream with Old White of course but it looks great distressed over the lavender blue of Old Violet and one of our other favourites is Paris Grey over Cream or for something a little stronger try it over Arles! Add a touch of gilding, and the look is complete.

A simple classic side table painted in Country Grey with Aubusson

Cream underneath Paris Grey is a very gentle and sophisticated colour combination for the distressed French look.

In contrast to the lightness of Cream on the left, the Old Violet used as a base makes Paris Grey look much dark. This is enhanced with dark wax