How to Paint a Faux Finish Over a Flat Paint Base Coat
One of the questions I am most frequently asked is: "Is it possible to faux paint over a flat base coat?" While the most common response by professionals is "No!", I faux paint over flat base coats all the time and it works perfectly fine.
However, there are a few characteristics of the process that need to be taken into consideration.
The first thing to remember when applying a faux finish over a flat base coat is that the base coat will tend to "grab" the paint and want to soak it into the surface as soon as you apply it.
This is why keeping your rag wet, using only a small amount of paint and keeping the rag in constant motion minimizes this problem.
The second thing to remember is that once the paint has dried it's virtually impossible to remove or lighten it without affecting the base coat - one of the main reasons most people don't do it.
You need to be practiced and confident you know where you want to put the paint and how to make it look the way you want it to before you start.
The second main reason this technique is not often used is that applying the paint in thinner layers to combat the over-saturation problem can take longer than applying a stronger mix over a surface with a sheen.
The third thing is that only thinned flat paint will give you a flat finish so you have very little open time if you're using latex paint.
If you use glaze instead you will get a low sheen finish.
And unless you apply it evenly and with a consistent pattern and rhythm, regardless of the color, you will get a surface with uneven flat and shiny areas.
You can eliminate this by applying an additional final finish coat such as Modern Masters' Dead Flat Varnish.
The number of colors you use will depend on the effect you're trying to achieve and whether you want to change the overall color balance of the area being painted.
If the base color is in the right color range or neutral enough I often find that one color is sufficient, particularly if you want a subtle finish.
As a beginner though, taking a bit longer and using 2 or more colors might be easier.
With one color there's no margin for error.
With 2 or more colors, if you make a mistake with the first color you can usually eliminate the mistake with subsequent colors.
And if you want a particularly aged or weathered look then 2 or more colors will probably be advisable.
It's always worth bearing in mind that the worst that can happen is that you mess up the faux finish and have to paint over it.
This is what's so great about working with paint, you're just one coat away from being able to start over.
I've been doing this for over eighteen years and I've not yet had to do that.
But treating every project as an experiment and knowing that imperfections are part of the process makes painting so much more fun and stress free.
However, there are a few characteristics of the process that need to be taken into consideration.
The first thing to remember when applying a faux finish over a flat base coat is that the base coat will tend to "grab" the paint and want to soak it into the surface as soon as you apply it.
This is why keeping your rag wet, using only a small amount of paint and keeping the rag in constant motion minimizes this problem.
The second thing to remember is that once the paint has dried it's virtually impossible to remove or lighten it without affecting the base coat - one of the main reasons most people don't do it.
You need to be practiced and confident you know where you want to put the paint and how to make it look the way you want it to before you start.
The second main reason this technique is not often used is that applying the paint in thinner layers to combat the over-saturation problem can take longer than applying a stronger mix over a surface with a sheen.
The third thing is that only thinned flat paint will give you a flat finish so you have very little open time if you're using latex paint.
If you use glaze instead you will get a low sheen finish.
And unless you apply it evenly and with a consistent pattern and rhythm, regardless of the color, you will get a surface with uneven flat and shiny areas.
You can eliminate this by applying an additional final finish coat such as Modern Masters' Dead Flat Varnish.
The number of colors you use will depend on the effect you're trying to achieve and whether you want to change the overall color balance of the area being painted.
If the base color is in the right color range or neutral enough I often find that one color is sufficient, particularly if you want a subtle finish.
As a beginner though, taking a bit longer and using 2 or more colors might be easier.
With one color there's no margin for error.
With 2 or more colors, if you make a mistake with the first color you can usually eliminate the mistake with subsequent colors.
And if you want a particularly aged or weathered look then 2 or more colors will probably be advisable.
It's always worth bearing in mind that the worst that can happen is that you mess up the faux finish and have to paint over it.
This is what's so great about working with paint, you're just one coat away from being able to start over.
I've been doing this for over eighteen years and I've not yet had to do that.
But treating every project as an experiment and knowing that imperfections are part of the process makes painting so much more fun and stress free.
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