A Sampler Of Faux Finish Techniques

While Grandma’s quilts showed off a sample of her pretty bits of fabric and her skill with many different fancy needle stitches – imagine what she could have done with a pot of glaze along with a sponge. That’s right.  As artistic and skilled as Grandma was she most likely would be right at home with faux finish paints, too.

You will find so numerous options available to today’s homeowner when it comes to choosing options to traditional flat paint.  There’s absolutely no reason to hold onto that dull tried-and-true white (or taupe, taupe, taupe) painted in every room all through your house. Explore your options.  Look in magazines for rooms that interest you.  Architectural Digest, Southern Accents, Veranda and others all frequently feature homes which have faux finishes on everything from walls to furniture.  Designers love to alter the feel of a space with color and textures, painted faux finishes are an easy first step in that direction.  You are able to do the same thing, too.  Faux finishes can be applied to almost any surface.  From walls, ceilings, cabinetry in the kitchen and bath, floors, to all kinds of solid furniture as well.  Styles of finishes can be really simple and subtle, to way, way over-the-top fantasy finishes, based on your personal taste and wallet.
For the walls, here’s something to think about — a faux wall finish can provide an uplifting and smooth alternative to wallpaper.  Seamless.  No peeling or splitting.  Just a beautiful hand-painted unique finish individually crafted for you alone.A skilled faux finish artist can produce a look just for you that the wallpaper manufacturers would love to copy and mass-market.  Some of the more popular looks for walls consist of:
• Color washes – ragged, bushed, sponged single glazes over solid paint, the work-horse of faux finishes
• Multiple glazes – layered over solid paint, provides fantastic depth
• Faux leather looks – terrific in a study
• Faux suede – stipple glaze over solid paint
• Stencil over-all patterns – antique damask or simple borders
• Venetian plasters – lustrous stunning plasters 
• Tuscan old-world plasters – troweled on plaster, chipped, cracked and aged to perfection
• Faux stone effects – limestone, fieldstone, slate, cut and fitted patterns
• Faux brick looks 
• Faux wood – faux bois, antiqued, distressed, burled, bamboo
• Faux metal – brilliant metallic glazes, antique iron, verdigris
• Tissue paper – textured paper, paint and glaze
• Stripes – glazed or just painted, always classy

On columns, trim, doors, crown molding, fireplaces and art niches there are a number of cool faux finishes that may enhance the architecture of any room.  Classic looks feature:

• Marble – from travertine to Rojo Viejo, the choices are wide open
• Granite – mimic your countertops
• Fantasy stones, like lapis and malachite
• Gilding – any metal leafing, gold, silver, copper
• Strie – fine dragging of colored glaze over a solid paint
Antique or distressed faux finishes are fantastic choices on cabinetry and furniture.  Adding a couple of worn edges and some crackled paint to those old, tired kitchen cabinets can give them a fresh new “old” look.  Think Provence.

It’s easy to expand your options.  Change your mind about what’s appropriate for your sweet house space.  Play a bit with something fresh and new.  Remember, changing the dynamics of your house is easy with the assistance of a skilled and skilled faux finish artist.  Always go to a pro who has a track record and samples and clients who adore to tell you about the artist’s work that was produced just for them.  Then let him produce a unique room just for you.  

He can guide you to faux finishes and colors which will be suitable to your style, your furnishings, and your wallet.  Consult with a trained professional artist and get the best look for your home today.

Oh.  And keep in mind, if you’re tired of that old chest-of-drawers and thinking about tossing it out, maybe all it needs a great old-fashioned antiquing.  A dab of glaze here, another dab there.  Just right.  Grandma would approve, no doubt.

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Go here: Ultimate Iron Works