A table covered with sets of matching objects - trays and mats, sofas piled with colourful cushion covers? a set of African themed objects catches the eye. One cushion cover is an imitation of mottled giraffe skin, another is a typical African scene: zebras, giraffes, rhinoceroses, and gnus in beautifully natural detail. A matching ashtray with an elephant design is tastefully placed next to the covers. Joan Danton has transformed her sitting room into a showroom for the afternoon.

Joan specialises in découpage, ?the art of cutting out paper designs and applying them to objects.? This may sound easy to do, but, apart from being time-consuming, she uses special techniques to stylise her works of art. She works with various materials - wood, plastic, ceramics, glass and cloth but the technique is the same. She produces personalised objects or can redecorate pieces of furniture. They are all heatproof and waterproof.

She patiently and neatly cuts out her paper designs. This part, which is very finicky to say the least, has become a ?habit? for her. ?Any spare moment I have is spent cutting paper!? she admits with a laugh. Once she has collected all the designs she wants for the series, she can start the long job of applying them to various objects.

As the object must be free from any varnish, she sands it if ever that is not the case. She paints the background to fit in with the theme, and can even, using a special technique, ?age? the object to give it a crackled antique finish. A deep blue bowl covered with butterflies has been decorated in this way and the effect is impressive.

?Gluing an image is easy but I make sure the image actually sinks into the background.? She applies layers of various products and between each coat she methodically sands them. For one product, she applied 20 to 25 coats of varnish. ?It?s a very interesting, but lengthy job!? Joan comments as she paints a layer of varnish onto a glass cylinder containing candles. Once the candle is lit, the opaque blue background lights up and the dolphin looks as if it is jumping out of a moonlit sea.

A jewellery box stands out in a corner of the sitting room. The design on it is fascinating: women dressed in pale pink Chinese clothes adorn this mauve box. What is intriguing is that the decorations are embossed. ?That?s my secret,? Joan says simply, running her fingers over the cover of the box.

?All this started as a hobby really,? recalls Joan, ?since the South African firm I was working for closed down.? A friend gave her a decoupage kit and she tried it out to ?keep my sanity!? She found it interesting and took evening courses to learn more. Then after 15 years living in South Africa, she decided to come back here. ?At first I decorated objects for friends and as gifts but, when I saw how much they appreciated my products, I tried placing them in a friend?s shop.? She hopes this will be the first step to finding a permanent clientele.