Making Paint Look Like Wood
Sam Lutz • May 12, 2015
So, you painted over that old wooden table with a solid paint color and now you regret it. Or you found a piece of furniture at a garage sale and it would be perfect…if only it looked like real wood. Whatever your reason, sometimes having the ability to paint faux wood can come in handy. This tutorial will take you through the process of painting a faux wood finish step-by-step.
Materials
- Sandpaper
- Flat wood varnish
- Foam roller
- Chip brushes, between 2 and 4 inches in width
- Glazing medium
- Warm brown acrylic paint
- Mahogany acrylic paint
- Dark brown acrylic paint
- Cheese cloth wadded up to look like a pom pom
- Sealant
Process
- Lightly sand the surface of the furniture you’ll be painting to look like wood. This will prepare the surface to accept paint.
- Roll varnish onto the sanded surface.
- Use a paintbrush to lift some of the varnish off of the surface of the furniture piece. Remove the varnish in the direction of the would-be wood grain.
- Allow the varnish to fully dry.
- Mix glazing medium and warm brown acrylic paint in a ratio of 1 to 6.
- Paint the warm brown acrylic glaze onto the varnished surface. Use the chip brush to drag the glaze on in the direction of the wood grain.
- Use a chip brush to dab splotches of mahogany acrylic paint onto the surface of the wet acrylic glaze.
- Apply your cheesecloth pom pom to the surface of the piece of furniture and drag the mahogany paint over the varnished and glazed area. Move the cheesecloth in the direction of the wood grain.
- Wait for the mahogany paint and glaze mixture to dry.
- Paint over the varnished and glazed area of the furniture with a thin layer of dark brown paint applied with a chip brush. Again, move the brush in the direction of the wood grain.
- Seal the faux-wood painted table to protect the painted finish.
This entire process is documented on this blog.
Alternative Methods
Of course, there are other methods for painting faux wood grain onto a piece of furniture. This Old House
has an amazing method for creating extremely realistic looking faux wood grain. A less realistic looking but still compelling faux wood finish can be found on this page.
Before you can get started on this process, you’re going to need the supplies mentioned above. We sell products for this project and others at Ace Paints and Unfinished Furniture. If you live in the Pittsburgh area and will be attempting to create a faux wood finish, stop in any time. We’ll recommend some of our favorite painting products and give you advice if any is needed.
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