Faux finishing is almost as simple as repainting furniture. However, unlike simple painting where you just change the color, faux finishing adds a little more detail to your furniture. It will not only give your furniture a new look but it can also add character to it. There are many ways to faux finish furniture. Listed below are just some examples.
Rustic Antique
Using this faux finishing technique, you will be able to give your furniture a cracking effect. To do this, clean and sand your furniture and prime it using a water-based primer. Choose two colors, one for the base coat, which will be the one showing through the cracks, and one for the topcoat. It is advisable to use contrasting colors, but you may choose any color you wish. Paint on the base coat once the primer is dry and then apply a crackle medium when this is dry as well. Paint one coat of the top color immediately after and allow it to crack.
Marbling
This type of faux finish is best used on table or counter tops so that they look more realistic. To do this, sand and coat your furniture with primer and then apply a black base coat once the primer has dried. On a separate container, swirl around 2 colors of paint with white paint but be careful not to blend them. Using a sea sponge, tap random patterns onto your furniture until it looks mottled. Mix white paint and glaze on another container and then use a feather tip to make shaky lines on the dried furniture paint. Let it dry and then apply a clear sealer to make it shine.
Faux stone
Like the other two, the first thing you need to do is to sand and prime the furniture you are finishing. When dried, paint on a layer of medium gray paint. Mix glaze with a lighter shade of gray in another container. Use a sea sponge to pat the glaze mixture on the surface. Make sure not to cover the base coat so as to give the image of stone. Let dry and add another layer of lighter gray but more sparingly.
For your project to look just the way you want it to, you’re going to have to practice first. You can buy poster boards from office supply stores and try the different techniques on it before actually using them on your furniture.
Like all other do-it-yourself projects, safety is very important. When you faux finish furniture, make sure that you’re working in a well-ventilated area. Gloves are also a good idea.
Is There Such A Thing As Faux Finish Paint?
The above-mentioned ways to faux finish furniture are actually the best ways to give your furniture a new look. However, not everyone has the time and effort to do this. Fortunately, there are some brands that offer faux finish paints. One brand that offers such paint is Sherwin-Williams®, which offers many kinds of paint for different faux styles.
There are a lot of other ways to faux finish furniture, including sponging, stippling, rag rolling, and dragging. Any technique will work fine as long as you follow the instructions above. If you are not the do-it-yourself type you can always use a faux finish paint instead.
