Faux Wood Painting

The world of interior design has been constantly evolving. Interior decorators are always ready with unique interior design ideas that can help you create great looking interiors. Faux painting is one such popular painting technique which is used for creating various decorative patterns and finishes for furniture and walls. The look or texture of materials such as wood, marble, granite and brick can be replicated by using faux painting. Many people are now using this painting style to make the walls and home furniture look aesthetically pleasing. If you wish to create a lavish look to your home using wood paneling and furniture, but don't wish to shell out a lot of money on exotic varieties of wood, creating a faux wood grain finish by painting surely emerges to be an ideal choice. This is a cost-effective home decorating idea. Let's find out more this painting technique.

Advantages of Creating a Faux Wood Grain Finish

Though faux painting techniques can be used to mimic different types of materials, it is popularly used for creating the feel of exotic varieties of wood. It is also referred to as wood graining. Most of us have wooden furniture in our homes. Wood has been used for creating lavish home interiors for ages, but some of the varieties of wood are extremely expensive. If you don't wish to spend money on buying expensive wood, all you need to do is get a faux wood look. You can also repair scratches on wooden furniture by creating a faux wood grain finish that replicates the look of that particular variety of wood. Doors, walls and furniture made from less expensive wood can be coated with such finishes and given a great texture. Whether you wish to create a rustic or a contemporary look, all is possible if you use faux finishing techniques correctly.

Faux Wood Painting Technique

First of all, you need to decide the variety or type of wood you wish to imitate. Look at the pattern properly. Do select the painting colors properly. Make sure that you get hold of the correct tools. The tools that you would be needing depends on the pattern you wish to create on the surface. You might need different types of brushes, graining combs, graining pads and graining rollers. After you have gathered all the tools, you need to select the base coat color and the tint glaze color.

The selection of the color of the paint is very important. If you wish to create a faux wood paint finish, make sure that the color of the base coat is the lightest shade that is available in the wood sample. The glaze color, on the other hand, should be the darkest shade in the wood that you are trying to mimic. After applying 1-2 coats of primer to the surface, you need to apply the base coat. Allow it to air dry. Once it is completely dry, take a damp clean rag and apply a thin coat of whiting. Now dip a brush into the glaze and apply it on the surface. Use a graining comb or graining rocker over the wet surface. You can create different types of patterns by moving the graining comb in different directions. Once you are able to create the pattern, allow the paint to air dry. Lastly, apply a coat of polyurethane sealer.

You can create oak wood, mahogany, maple, cherry wood, rosewood, ebony and various other types of paint finishes for wall paneling or furniture. Though you could get this job done from professionals, if you like doing things on your own, you could get hold of faux painting kits. These kits are easily available in the market and come with instructional DVDs. These kits also provide you with the tools that you would need for this project.

Faux painting allows you to replicate the look of almost all the types of wood and the best part is that it's easy on your pocket. If you don't want to shell out money on costly wood items, you can use faux painting ideas to beautify your home interiors. You can replicate the look of expensive wood in your home without shelling a lot of money. Isn't that great!