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The following faux painting technique is perfect for any area of your home where you want an antiqued, old-world appearance. The parchment-like finish it creates calls to mind ancient maps and tomes, and so is perfect for the walls in home libraries or reading rooms.
This faux painting technique is much easier to pull off than you might think, and requires only a few basic materials and application tools.
The materials you’ll need include 1-2 gallons of creamy/warm white latex paint (in a satin finish) for the base coat, one quart of beige latex paint (matte finish), and one quart of light brown latex paint (flat finish). It's important that you get the paint with the recommended sheen level (satin, matte and flat correspondingly) - these sheens will make the application process easier, and look more authentic.
You will also need untinted/clear glaze (sold in most home improvement centers and paint stores), 2 synthetic bristle paintbrushes (3-4" wide), a roller frame and 3/8” roller cover, cheesecloth, and a roll of 2” blue painter’s tape.
Before you begin the actual painting, you’ll need to tape off the windows, doors, and other areas you don't want to get the paint on.
Next, apply 1 coat of the white paint to your walls using a brush (for cutting in) and a roller (for filling in) and let it dry for at least 8 hours.
Note that depending on the existing wall color, you might need to roll on a second coat of white (usually you'll only need to do that when the existing wall color is very dark/deep such as navy blue, chocolate brown or burgundy). But don't strive for perfection at this step - it's ok if the walls look a little blotchy. In fact, this light blotchiness might even add to the authenticity of the finish.
Measure and mix well one part beige, one part glaze, and one part water in a small bowl. Repeat this step for the light brown color in a different bowl.
You’ll need to use a separate brush for each color. Working in a 3x3 area, load each brush with the colored glaze mix and make two one-foot squiggly lines on the wall about 6-10” apart (you can paint them on as vertical, horizontal, diagonal or even crossed lines). Take the cheesecloth and ball it up in your fist, then pounce it to blend the two squiggly lines together. Use a figure-eight type motion - you want a random, blurred result.
When the cheesecloth becomes clogged with paint, rinse it off with warm water, squeeze it out well, and resume the blending. Do the entire wall in one go, so the glaze doesn’t dry until the entire wall has been completed (or you may get demarkation lines).
While the glaze is still wet, carefully remove your painter’s tape.
And voila - when the paint dries, you’ll have instant old-world elegance!
Yelena Kublitski is the editor of www.HousePaintingTutorials.com On her website, she writes about decorative painting ideas, choosing interior paint colors and creating room color schemes.
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