Turn to glaze to create faux stone
There’s nothing like wainscoting in a bathroom to promote the ambiance of a historic country style. The casual, homey feeling takes us back to a summer cottage or farmhouse where decorating is basic and fresh. A faux-stone paint effect applied over the wainscoting enhances the ageless charm. You might think that the look of stone blocks would be cold and not suitable for interior walls, but with the right choice of sand tones, warm beiges and grays, the opposite is true.
Faux-stone blocks are an imaginative design for an entrance hall, a European-style bathroom (seen here) or a focal wall in an Old World kitchen or dining room. There are many ways to get the desired effect; you might want to experiment on a board with different color combinations until you like your personal application. Once you have the technique, the painting moves very quickly.
The most time-consuming part of this project is the measuring and taping. It’s important that the blocks of stone are the right size for the room. For a large room, 18 inches by 14 inches is a good size; for a smaller space like this bathroom, 16 inches by 12 inches will do.
Use a metal-edge ruler and a pencil or chalk line to draw out your pattern of blocks, and a spirit level or T-square to make sure the lines are straight. Stagger the blocks as you would when building a real wall. Cover the lines with 1/4-inch masking tape. If you can’t find this size, then cut the width you can find. This is going to be your grout line, so it doesn’t matter if the edges are perfectly even.
The base color that is on your wall prior to taping will be the color of the grout. Off-white or gray is realistic. Choose your stone shades; we used a sandy brown and pinky beige. Mix two colored glazes, equal parts latex paint and water-based glazing liquid. Lightly brush on the sand-color glaze, simultaneously dabbing out any brush strokes with a folded rag. Apply the pink glaze sparingly using the same method. Each stone should be slightly different. Tiny flecks of white and gray can be applied with a sponge, but don’t overdo this step, or the overall effect will look muddy. Remove the tape to reveal the design. Any leakage adds to the realistic effect of the rough stone.
DEAR DEBBIE: We are fixing up the back garden and wondered if it is possible to paint a cement patio. I’ve heard it will chip off. — Franklin.
DEAR FRANKLIN: Paint will chip over time; however, there is another option, which is to use concrete stain instead of paint.
Whether it’s paint or stain, the most important step is the surface preparation. If the cement is smooth, you must etch it to roughen it up so that paint will adhere and stain will be absorbed. The surface must also be clean and dry. Your hardware or paint store will have products meant to perform these jobs effectively.
Once the area is etched, neutralized, clean and dry, it’s time for the fun part. Start with a base coat that completely covers the surface. Then you can tape off square-shape blocks, or make rounded stones in random shapes. You can use a stencil pattern instead of taping. The best for this purpose are adhesive-backed stencils. Apply colors with a sponge for a mottled-stone look.
If you prefer solid color, then use a brush or roller.
Debbie Travis is a columnist for King Features Syndicate. E-mail questions to her at house2home@debbietravis.com.