Nancy Golden shows how she transformed a small, sterile family room (figure A) in a newly built home into a room with the look of an English cottage. On a scale of 1 to 5, with 5 being the greatest degree of difficulty, this project rates a 2. It took 14 hours over two and a half days to complete it, and the total cost for materials and accessories was $1,050. The first step in any type of project of this sort is to measure the room carefully and construct a floor plan sketch either freehand or with a computer program. Materials:
Prepasted wallpaper
Sponge
Stencil
Stencil brushes
Tape measure
Water
Spray mister
Rag
Glaze
Paint tray
Paint roller
Painters tape
Rubber gloves
Paint stick or stirrer
Spray adhesive
Preparation: - Paint semigloss base coat on walls. Let dry overnight.
- Remove switchplate covers and outlet covers.
- Cover molding with painters tape.
Aging the Walls The type of paint technique Golden chooses for this room is called a Mediterranean paint technique (figure B). Achieved entirely with glazes, the technique derives its name from the fact that when it's dry, it mimics the appearance of an aged wall whose colors have been baked, faded and warmed by the hot Mediterranean sun. Safety tip: Glazes can be messy, so it's a good idea to use rubber gloves when painting. To achieve the desired type of aged look using the Mediterranean paint technique, choose glazes that are analogous, not complimentary, colors. Analogous colors are typically three colors close to each other on the color wheel. For this project, Golden chooses the glaze colors of gold, raw sienna and burnt umber. - Pour a basic glaze into a paint tray. The basic glaze color is typically white.
- Drizzle the three analogous colors into the basic glaze (figure C).
- Take a paint stick or stirrer and divide the paint tray into four quadrants ( figure D).
Note: Work with one quadrant at a time to prevent the glazes from bleeding together. - Dip a paint roller into the first quadrant (figure E). Don't load the roller with paint. This will make the colors blend, which is not the desired effect of this paint technique.
- Roll the paint roller onto the wall (figure F), painting in a random order. Make sure to work in small areas.
- Dab the wall with a rag (figure G).
- Mist all four sides of the small area with water (figure H) to keep the paint from drying.
Expert tip: It might be a good idea to invite several friends over to help, especially if the project includes painting an entire room with this technique. - Allow paint to dry overnight, and the final result (figure I) is a texture-filled room, simply by mixing three analogous colors.
RESOURCES :
Faux finishing and decorative painting
Painting Skills
ISBN: 1842154109
Author: Mike Lawrence
Order this title from Amazon.com.
Creating With Paint: New Ways, New Materials
ISBN: 1564773205
Author: Sherrill Kahn
Order this title from Amazon.com.
Martingale & Co. / That Patchwork Place
Website: www.martingale-pub.com
Debbie Travis' Decorating Solutions: More than 65 Paint and Plaster Finishes. . .
ISBN: 0609602519
Author: Debbie Travis
Order this title from Amazon.com.
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