diff --git a/docs/charts.md b/docs/charts.md
index 638b12387..414f80bf7 100644
--- a/docs/charts.md
+++ b/docs/charts.md
@@ -306,44 +306,44 @@ helm install --set tags.front-end=true --set subchart2.enabled=false
 
 In some cases it is desirable to allow a child chart's values to propagate to the parent chart and be 
 shared as common defaults. An additional benefit of using the `exports` format is that it will enable future 
-tooling to introspect user settable values.
+tooling to introspect user-settable values.
 
-The keys containing the values to be imported can be specified in the parent chart's requirements.yaml using 
-a YAML list. Each item in the list is a key which is imported from the child chart's `exports` field. 
+The keys containing the values to be imported can be specified in the parent chart's `requirements.yaml` file 
+using a YAML list. Each item in the list is a key which is imported from the child chart's `exports` field. 
 
 To import values not contained in the `exports` key, use the [child/parent](#using-the-child/parent-format) format.
+Examples of both formats are described below.
 
 ##### Using the exports format
 
-If a child chart's values.yaml contains an `exports` field at the root, it's contents may be imported 
+If a child chart's `values.yaml` file contains an `exports` field at the root, its contents may be imported 
 directly into the parent's values by specifying the keys to import as in the example below:
 
-````
-# parent's requirements.yaml
+```yaml
+# parent's requirements.yaml file
     ...
     import-values:
       - data
-````  
-````
-# child's values.yaml
-
+```
+```yaml
+# child's values.yaml file
 ...
 exports:
   data:
     myint: 99
-````  
+```
 
 Since we are specifying the key `data` in our import list, Helm looks in the the `exports` field of the child 
 chart for `data` key and imports its contents. 
 
 The final parent values would contain our exported field:
 
-````
-# parent's values
+```yaml
+# parent's values file
 ...
 myint: 99
 
-````
+```
 
 Please note the parent key `data` is not contained in the parent's final values. If you need to specify the 
 parent key, use the 'child/parent' format. 
@@ -357,42 +357,41 @@ values (`parent`).
 The `import-values` in the example below instructs Helm to take any values found at `child:` path and copy them 
 to the parent's values at the path specified in `parent:`
 
-````
-# parent's requirements.yaml
+```yaml
+# parent's requirements.yaml file
 dependencies:
-      - name: subchart1
-        repository: http://localhost:10191
-        version: 0.1.0
-        ...
-        import-values:
-          - child: default.data
-            parent: myimports
-````
+  - name: subchart1
+    repository: http://localhost:10191
+    version: 0.1.0
+    ...
+    import-values:
+      - child: default.data
+        parent: myimports
+```
 In the above example, values found at `default.data` in the subchart1's values will be imported
 to the `myimports` key in the parent chart's values as detailed below: 
 
-````
-# parent's values
+```yaml
+# parent's values.yaml file
 
 myimports:
   myint: 0
   mybool: false
   mystring: "helm rocks!"
   
-
-````
-````
-# subchart1's values.yaml
+```
+```yaml
+# subchart1's values.yaml file
 
 default:
   data:
     myint: 999
     mybool: true
     
-````
+```
 The parent chart's resulting values would be:
 
-````
+```yaml
 # parent's final values
 
 myimports:
@@ -400,7 +399,7 @@ myimports:
   mybool: true
   mystring: "helm rocks!"
 
-````
+```
 
 The parent's final values now contains the `myint` and `mybool` fields imported from subchart1.
 
diff --git a/pkg/chartutil/requirements.go b/pkg/chartutil/requirements.go
index 31e4d255a..54088f98e 100644
--- a/pkg/chartutil/requirements.go
+++ b/pkg/chartutil/requirements.go
@@ -62,7 +62,8 @@ type Dependency struct {
 	Tags []string `json:"tags"`
 	// Enabled bool determines if chart should be loaded
 	Enabled bool `json:"enabled"`
-	// ImportValues holds the mapping of source values to parent key to be imported
+	// ImportValues holds the mapping of source values to parent key to be imported. Each item can be a
+	// string or pair of child/parent sublist items.
 	ImportValues []interface{} `json:"import-values"`
 }
 
@@ -315,7 +316,7 @@ func getParents(c *chart.Chart, out []*chart.Chart) []*chart.Chart {
 	return out
 }
 
-// processImportValues merges values from child to parent based on ImportValues field.
+// processImportValues merges values from child to parent based on the chart's dependencies' ImportValues field.
 func processImportValues(c *chart.Chart, v *chart.Config) error {
 	reqs, err := LoadRequirements(c)
 	if err != nil {
@@ -327,7 +328,7 @@ func processImportValues(c *chart.Chart, v *chart.Config) error {
 		return err
 	}
 	nv := v.GetValues()
-	b := make(map[string]interface{})
+	b := make(map[string]interface{}, len(nv))
 	// convert values to map
 	for kk, vvv := range nv {
 		b[kk] = vvv
@@ -348,21 +349,25 @@ func processImportValues(c *chart.Chart, v *chart.Config) error {
 					// get child table
 					vv, err := cvals.Table(s)
 					if err != nil {
-						log.Printf("Warning: ImportValues missing table %v", err)
+						log.Printf("Warning: ImportValues missing table: %v", err)
 						continue
 					}
 					// create value map from child to be merged into parent
 					vm := pathToMap(nm["parent"], vv.AsMap())
 					b = coalesceTables(cvals, vm)
 				case string:
-					nm := make(map[string]string)
+					nm := map[string]string{
+						"child":  "exports." + iv,
+						"parent": ".",
+					}
+					/*nm := make(map[string]string)
 					nm["child"] = "exports." + iv
-					nm["parent"] = "."
+					nm["parent"] = "."*/
 					outiv = append(outiv, nm)
 					s := r.Name + "." + nm["child"]
 					vm, err := cvals.Table(s)
 					if err != nil {
-						log.Printf("Warning: ImportValues missing table %v", err)
+						log.Printf("Warning: ImportValues missing table: %v", err)
 						continue
 					}
 					b = coalesceTables(b, vm.AsMap())
diff --git a/pkg/chartutil/testdata/subpop/charts/subchart1/charts/subchartB/values.yaml b/pkg/chartutil/testdata/subpop/charts/subchart1/charts/subchartB/values.yaml
index aba524d97..6d9f9c677 100644
--- a/pkg/chartutil/testdata/subpop/charts/subchart1/charts/subchartB/values.yaml
+++ b/pkg/chartutil/testdata/subpop/charts/subchart1/charts/subchartB/values.yaml
@@ -22,16 +22,14 @@ exports:
       SCBexported2A: "blaster"
 
 global:
-    kolla:
-        nova:
-            api:
-                all:
-                    port: 8774
-            metadata:
-                all:
-                    port: 8775
-test:
-  dummy: 1
+  kolla:
+    nova:
+      api:
+        all:
+          port: 8774
+      metadata:
+        all:
+          port: 8775
 
 
 
diff --git a/pkg/chartutil/testdata/subpop/charts/subchart1/values.yaml b/pkg/chartutil/testdata/subpop/charts/subchart1/values.yaml
index 4b5bd6bd9..72d3fa5c8 100644
--- a/pkg/chartutil/testdata/subpop/charts/subchart1/values.yaml
+++ b/pkg/chartutil/testdata/subpop/charts/subchart1/values.yaml
@@ -48,8 +48,8 @@ SCBexported1A:
   SC1extra7: true
 
 exports:
-    SC1exported1:
-      global:
-        SC1exported2:
-          all:
-            SC1exported3: "SC1expstr"
\ No newline at end of file
+  SC1exported1:
+    global:
+      SC1exported2:
+        all:
+          SC1exported3: "SC1expstr"
\ No newline at end of file