When we started doing faux finishes “sponge painting” was the all the rage. We took training and practiced a lot so that we could produce quality faux finishes with a sea sponge. And we saw a lot of other people’s finishes that were just ugly. Even faux finishes that use simple tools have to be done with skill and an artist’s eye. We saw faux finish trends change and evolve over the years. And we’ve worked to stay ahead of the faux finish trends. Usually by the time a faux finish trend became the hot new thing in Kansas City we had already been doing it for months.
This week Brenda is painting over a faux finish in a powder room in an Overland Park, KS, neighborhood. It was a faux finish that was popular 10 years ago or so.
Brenda painted the ceiling gold and is painting a red base coat over the old faux finish. The next layer is Luster Stone rolled on. Brenda says that the process looks deceptively easy because it uses a sea sponge roller. However, if she doesn’t use the right touch the Luster Stone will go on the wall in blobs rather than the random pattern she needs.
She has 2 more layers to complete. This layer looks like the old sponge painting we used to do, but the pattern of this layer will add subtle variations in the final look. The next 2 layers will be a troweled finish using red Luster Stone. Luster Stone is a metallic plaster product that has a slight, soft shimmer and a smooth, soft finish to the touch. It is super durable and sticks to almost anything. We’ve used it on floors and counter tops. With this kind of durability I’m sure that the final finish will be looking good even into the next faux finish decorating trend. Perhaps we’ll be around to re-faux this bathroom again.