Some Excellent Tips For Faux Finish Painting

Here are some excellent tips for making some awesome faux finishes:

1.  Start off with just a small space to get the hang of things before trying to tackle an entire room.  If you are new to a specific technique, it will be a lot easier to cover up any mistakes on a smaller surface.

2.  Always make sure that the workspace that you are using is neat and tidy.  Nothing worse than trying to do some work in an unorganized space.  This includes things like neatly taping non painted areas.  This is especially important when you are doing this type of painting for a living or side job and are working in a client's home.  You want to at least give the appearance that you are well organized and know what you are doing.

3.  When doing a faux finish to a room, always tape off anything that is not going to get painted.  You should also use the best painters tape that you can find.  The cheap painters tape tends to stick poorly and can cause the end result to not be as tidy as you would like since paint can sometimes leak under the paint.  A good quality painters tape can and will prevent this from happening.  Also, always remember to wait until the paint is completely dry before even attempting to remove the tape.  There's nothing worse than ruining an excellent paint job because the tape was removed too soon.

4.  When you are starting to try a new technique for a faux finish, try getting samples of the paints first and do some on small practice pieces of wood or foam.  Do the exact same thing as you would if you were going to do an entire wall, just do it at a smaller scale.  This should give you lots of practice on the technique for the finish and give you more confidence when you do the real thing on a wall.  Another good reason to doing samples like this first is to be able to try different colors and make sure the colors that you pick go well together and look good.  Many times you can choose two or more colors thinking that they will work great together only to find that they clash when they are used in a faux finish application.

5.  When shopping for glaze, buy the best that you can afford.  If you can afford not to skimp, don't!  Also make sure that the glaze can be used with the paint that you are using.

How to Decorate Your Kitchen On A Shoestring Budget

Copyright 2006 Monique Hawkins Kitchen's can be one of the most expensive rooms in the house to remodel and decorate. However, there is a way to do this without spending tons of money. You can decorate your kitchen on a shoestring budget! With patience, persistence, and a little time, there is one place to find decorative items for mere pennies. Where is this "magic" place? Yard sales! Granted, this will take much more effort than walking into a "Kirkland's? or "Country Treasues's" store at the local mall, but the money spent will be so much less. Plus, some really interesting and unique pieces will be added to your house. It is amazing what items can be found at yard sales that will go with any kitchen décor under the sun. If you love a country style kitchen, search for baskets, pitchers, and pottery. These items can be placed above cabinets, as centerpieces for the kitchen table, or filled with fresh fruit or wildflowers and then placed on the counter. If you love the retro style kitchen, yard sales are fantastic shopping spots. It is easy to find many kitchen items from the 1960's-1970's in good condition. While some are excellent collectible pieces, others can be purchased for sheer fun! Some cool pieces to look for old breadboxes, canister sets, and wall clocks. If you your taste runs back to the 1940's era, finding vintage pieces could be a bit more of a challenge. However, once items are found, they turn out to be well worth the time it took to hunt for them! Kitchens from the 1940's call for vintage linens, which can be used as tablecloths or displayed by hanging from the store. Some of the lines have bright colors and designs which add warmth and cheer to any home's kitchen décor. Since some of these old tablecloths are really collectible items and can be quite expensive if purchased in an antique shop, finding one at local yard sale for mere pennies would be fantastic! When it comes to the modern and contemporary style, most yard sales offer almost new items. If you check out the yard sales in the pricey area of your city or town, you can likely find some expensive items at cheap prices. At times, antique and collectible decorative items can be found at yard sales as well. If you are one who prefers collecting items such as certain types of china, vintage linens, or a hutch, it might help to do some research on the subject. This will help you spot a great piece. Who knew decorating a kitchen in your home could be done so cheaply? Why not start checking out those yard sales today?