Paint Effects
This is a quick simple introduction to paint effects. It is aimed at people who have not used paint effects before, ie most DIYers.
Once you've tried the effects and want more in depth information, there is plenty of in-depth advice online.
Woodgraining
- Imitates wood grain
- Woodgraining is still very popular, but is usually now done with plastic veneer rather than painted, mostly with popular chipboard furniture.
Ragrolling
- Produces a strongly patterned effect.
- Non-contrasting colours make this a reasonably soft effect.
- Contrasting colours can create a harsh effect
- A similar but not identical effect is obtained by dabbing the rag instead of rolling it.
- Paint background colour
- Apply 2nd colour by rolling a crumpled rag over the surface, after rolling it on a paint roller tray
Spotting
- Apply base colour
- Flick spots of a few different colours onto the surface using a paintbrush. Take care to get an even distribution of spots, and protect against overspray.
- This effect works well on top of a ragrolled finish.
Marbling
http://en.wikibooks.org/wiki/Do-It-Yourself/Faux_marbling
Sprayed fades
These are rarely used in domestic paint schemes. Fades are created by holding the sprayer relatively far from the wall, or by using a mask held away from the wall.
Colourwash
- Apply white paint.
- Apply a coat of well diluted colour by dabbing it on with a rag bundle.
The result looks somewhat texture-like, and the colour is to some extent uneven.
Fibres
Short coloured fibres can be mixed in with paint before painting as normal to provide a little colour and texture to the surface. 6mm is a good starting size.
Fibres may be bought, or made by finely shredding cloth or cutting rope.
Camouflage
Maximum camouflage of dirt & defects can be obtained by using the following effects together:
- ragroll
- spotting
- coloured fibres
This is sometimes used to disguise temporary surface dirt, such as in toilets in high price stores