Lime Paint

Tired of plain, boring walls? Faux finishes are a great way to
jazz up your space with little cost or effort. Here are a few of
the most popular finishes.

Lime Paint: Sponging: Of all faux finish techniques, sponging is the
easiest, even children can do a somewhat messy reproduction of
this technique. In order to sponge, you must first paint the
entire area one base color. After this coat dries, then you can
take a sponge or even a plastic bag, dip it in paint, and apply
the paint randomly to the walls. Although this is a random
process, you want to be careful not to get any one area of the
wall extremely dark or leave it extremely light or your eye will
be drawn to that spot immediately. Sponging is very easy, and
for all supplies usually costs between $50-$100, which may also
include classes if you want to learn from the professionals.

Lime Paint: Combing: Combing is a little more difficult. When combing, you
use a squeegee with teeth to comb through the top layer of
paint. As with sponging, you want to have a bottom layer so that
when you comb there will be a matching layer beneath it. Using a
combing technique is also very inexpensive, and you can use the
squeegee to make wavy, zigzags, and other designs on the wall.

Lime Paint: Glazing: Glazing is actually the product that you put over your
first coat of paint. In order to glaze your walls correctly, you
should take a class. You may be able to find a home improvement
store that offers glazing classes or you may need to talk to a
local interior decorator about classes, although these will
likely be very expensive. Glazing places a transparent coat over
the base coat of paint, making the wall look a bit shiny and
transparent. You can use as many coats of glaze as you want to
get the desired look.

Lime Paint: Trompe-L'oeil: Trompe-L'oeil is French for "fool the eye." This
finish fools the eye into thinking that the wall has a marble or
granite finish. This is probably the most difficult finish to
accomplish on your own. For creating the marble finish, you use
a technique very much like sponging, but this one takes a bit
more talent. Visit local stores to see if they have classes or
tips on achieving this style.

These are the four primary types of faux finishes. The first two
are fairly easy, while the latter two are significantly harder.
Before attempting any of these, plan well so that you can
estimate the cost, and visit your local hardware or design store
for classes or helpful hints. Having a buddy to take classes
with you or practice with you will make the experience more fun.
You can even do one room in your house and then decorate a room
in your buddy's house; the fun never ends!

© 2005, Kathy Burns-Millyard. This Lime Paint article is provided courtesy
of The Do It Yourself Home Decorating Network - http://www.diyhomedecorating.com
- a large and growing decorating and decor website
featuring articles, tips, advice, and popular decor shopping.