As
reaction to the sameness of mass builder homes and cookie cutter
factory made furnishings, about 15 years ago there was a resurgence of
time-honored European techniques for finishing - and frankly faking -
the new to look like the old. (Some even think it was resurrected a
At any rate, the
"These walls have
a character, ambiance - each has a look of history," says ASID
interior designer Janie F. Ellis of Anything But Plain. "They
create a textured effect that says 'have culture, taste, money.'
"That makes one
remember an anonymous passenger in the next seat on a New York flight,
confiding about spending $10,000 (some 10 years ago) on painting her
apartment walls - and that did not include every room.
"It's prestigious," residential pain
"It's hand-done.
Itıs a different look than wallpaper." Besides, even with
high-end wallpaper, one can see that elsewhere. It's this difference -
a custom, one-of-a-kind look - that makes faux finishing so trendy.
"Faux" simply means a fake version of something that is
real. An illusion.
While faux effects can
be done by amateurs in its simplest forms such as sponging, thereıs a
mega leap into greater sophistication with granite, tortoise and wood
finishes, crackle woodwork, and even murals and frescoes.
It goes from crafts to artistry depending on the skill of the person
manipulating the paint. "A
The how-tos for some of
these techniques are shown on Fresh Paint, the PBS Saturday morning
show starring Florida artisan - no, artist - Glenwood Sherry. He makes
it look easy - even the painting of clouds on ceilings and colorful
Toucan birds on vine-covered murals. But it also makes one realize
that this is indeed work for artists and professionals.
Whoever does it, it all
starts with a good, solid-color, rolled-on base foundation upon which
to build the desired finish. Water-based or oil-based paints can be
used, but not together. Water-based paints dry faster, and the
clean-up is simple, thus making it ideal for the beginner. Oil-based
paints take longer to dry. This is useful for more complex techniques
such as combing and glazing and is often the choice of professional
wall artists. But the final effect is most important, whether one
wants a transparent illusion (oil-based) or a powdery one as in
Pompeian frescos (latex).
SPONGING is considered
the simplest of techniques. It also covers a multitude of sins on
not-so-perfect sheetrock and textured walls, or even tightly adhered,
painted-over wallpaper. After the solid color base coat dries, a
second, and even third and fourth color is applied by hand: a piece of
sponge is dabbed into paint and applied randomly to the wall.
A slight twist of the
wrist keeps it from looking too uniform. A natural sea sponge, rather
than cellulose, is recommended. Sponges are $11.79 at Southland
Hardware. Free how-to brochures are available through Sherwin-Williams
and Martin-Senour paint dealers.
If you want a buddy to
help with the project, that's fine, but interior designer Cynthia
Cannizzaro of Chase Enterprise says " one person should do
a whole task. Each personıs touch is different." And practice,
practice, practice beforehand. She uses foam core board in class when
she periodically teaches faux finishing classes at North Harris
College ($49 for three lessons).
A second, slightly more
difficult technique, is called RAGGING. One makes a dabbing
"roll" from plastic, terry, sheeting, burlap, whatever. The
material determines the final result. Cannizzaro shared this project
with her husband. He rolled on the color coat (after a white-out
primer) and she went "swish, swish, swish" with a scrunched
up plastic garment bag (from the dry cleaner) right behind him,
creating a textured effect similar to panne velvet. She said a 12x14
room took about four or five hours of "fun" to do. Remember,
drying time between coats is extra.
COMBING involved a
squeegee with "teeth" cut into it that is dragged through
the top color from ceiling to floor in one swoop - without stopping.
It can also create squiggly, wavy or checkered effects. This works
better with oil-based paints, as it canıt be done correctly if the
paint dries too fast.
GLAZING is the finish
of high-end decorators at the moment, says Reohn. Zeleznik of the
Painted Lady Studios. Located in the Resource Center, the school draws
students from interior designers and professional artists to eager
amateurs, offering a two-day, 16-hour program for $300, including
glazing.
Glaze is not a
technique; it is a product which suspends pigment in a transparent
medium that is applied in multiple layers in multiple coats. Zeleznik
says that the latest technique is to use water-based polymer than an
oil-base. Glazing can go anywhere from three to 30 coats, and can have
50 to 100 appearances depending on the result one wants. Layering dark
over light, or light over dark, depends entirely on the furnishings of
the home and the designer's concept, says general contractor Ross
Reynolds.
There is no particular
trend in Houston. However, Zeleznik says we are some years
behind East Coast and West Coast decorating where metallic glazing is
the ultimate. He says todayıs addition of Mica powder is much safer
than the toxic metallics formerly used. T
Then there's
TROMPE-L'OEIL (fool-the-eye) finishes of granite, stone, wood, marble
and tortoise. Granite and stone basically use the sponging technique.
When it comes to
marble, Cannizzaro says to have a piece of the real thing in front of
you as a sample, so one is duplicating "what you really see; not
what you think it is." Marble and tortoise need an even
more advance skill where feathers or little brushes are needed to
create the veins. "And when an artist starts hand-painting
cracks, weeds and bugs..." says Ellis, that's another dimension.
Okay, so how much does
all this professional expertise cost? Zeleznik, whose studied art in
Europe, says murals are not cost-effective because most clients are
not willing to pay the artist for the time needed for the project.
Ellis agrees that good artists do not work for $10 an hour, rather
it's $500 a day and up. In general, prices for wall art go something
like this:
