Wall patina - decorative technique

Any room in the house will look more interesting if you finish the walls with the method of patination. Although “patina” refers to plaque formed on copper or bronze with age, they began to use the same term to describe any surface, which over time becomes more beautiful. Patina will give the interior the style that standard painted walls lack. For old houses or "antique" decor, this decoration will be the perfect accent detail.

Lacquer

Although it is not easy to work with oil paints, oil varnish dries more slowly and gives enough time for work. Therefore, to create the effect of aged plaster, it is worth using oil paints and varnishes. But latex varnish is also suitable if you have mastered this technique well. Remember only that oil varnish cannot be mixed with latex paint and vice versa. There are colorless varnishes on sale, and you need to mix them with pigment to give the desired color.

Color palette

The colors of paint and varnish should blend well with each other. Yellow varnish will look great on top of white or red paint, blue - on yellow, and dark gray - on light gray.

If you are new to wall patina, practice first on a sheet of cardboard or plywood, choosing the result you like. It costs an excessive consumption of paint and varnish.

If you have never tried decorative painting techniques before, the easiest way to choose a color palette is to stop at three different shades. Choose a base color, and take a tone shade lighter for the base paint. The second color should be a shade darker than the main color.

Equipment

When the base coat of paint dries, cover the area with sides of 1.5 m with clear varnish with a piece of gauze. Apply the first layer of colored varnish with a round brush for varnishing, in diagonal cross-wise movements. To do this, you can use a sea sponge, but moving it not crosswise, but simply touching it to leave an imprint.

Around the cruciform lines will remain empty spaces. You need to cover them with varnish of the second color, again, drawing intersecting lines. Then, with a dry textured brush, lightly touch the varnish and perform rotating movements. Start work from one side of the wall and advance until you reach the end.

After blot the surface of the wall with crumpled gauze in the same rotating movements. When the fabric is saturated with varnish, replace it with another piece of gauze. Using a soft-bristle brush, soften the sharp lines left by the varnish by blending the two colors.

Patinated Copper Effect

To get a real look of aged copper, you need to apply turquoise, aquamarine and green varnish on top of the copper or bronze base layer. Such a technique will take time to coat the surface in equal proportions with the varnish of each of the three colors on top of the base paint.