Faux Painting Techniques

One of the best ways to give your home a new look is to paint it. However, instead of giving the room a coat of plain paint color, how about using some interesting painting techniques? Faux painting is a technique of applying paint in such a way, that it gives a unique texture and look to the material it is applied on. There are many faux painting ideas that you can choose from and some of them are so easy, that you can do it without any professional help. By faux painting the walls of your home, you can make an otherwise drab and boring room into a spectacular one. Faux painting is not just limited to the use of walls of a home. Faux painting for furniture has also become quite popular nowadays.

Faux Painting Techniques for Walls

Color Washing
Some faux painting techniques are very good for walls of a room. One such faux painting ideas is the color washing technique. It is a very easy painting technique and all you need is a good understanding of color schemes. For this particular technique, the first thing that you need to do is to select two paint colors. One paint color should be a darker shade and the other a lighter or a pastel one. You can choose any two such colors that are harmonious and goes well with each other. Now apply the darker paint color on the walls with a brush and allow it to dry completely. Now dip a clean rag into the lighter paint color and apply this on the recently painted wall. Create a swirling pattern or a half-moon pattern with your hand and dip the rag into the color again and again as you keep on working. When you are done, allow the paint color to dry. This is a good interior painting idea for bedrooms and bathrooms since it gives a very soft look.

Sponging
Sponging is another technique that looks very good on a wall. For this faux painting technique, you can choose any number of colors you like. First give a base coat of paint to the wall with a brush and allow it to dry. Now take a natural sponge and dip it into the paint color of your choice, squeeze out any excess paint from the sponge and start dabbing the sponge on the wall with a constant pressure. When this particular paint color has dried, dip the sponge into another paint color and start dabbing the sponge on the wall. Once this color is dry, you can use another color for sponging if you like.

Faux Painting Techniques for Furniture

Distressing
If you want to give your old wooden or metal furniture a new lease of life, then one of the best and easy painting techniques is distressing. Distressing gives furniture an aged look which makes it look like antique furniture. To do this faux finishing at home, all you need do is rub the piece of metal or wood furniture with sandpaper or steel wool. When this is done gently, it will lighten the color of the existing paint or stain making the furniture look aged.

Tortoise Shelling
Tortoise shelling is a beautiful faux painting effect that replicates the look of a tortoise shell on furniture. For tortoise shelling, you need to paint a coat of clear glaze over the furniture piece. Now use an oil painting brush to paint the furniture piece, over the glaze in short narrow brush strokes. You can soften the brush strokes by gently dabbing the paint with a crumpled newspaper or a of sponge. Finally, dip an old toothbrush in black oil paint and flick droplets of paint over the furniture piece.

These were some painting techniques that you can use for walls and furniture. Faux painting tips and ideas will help you to make the walls of your home more interesting.