Fauxing A Faux Fireplace

2010-04-24T18:47:00.001-04:00

One of the coolest things about decorative finishes is the ability to fulfill unusual requests and think outside the box. The owners of this fabulous post and beam contemporary inherited this lifeless looking cultured stone fireplace. The cold uniformly light gray cement color looked like just what it was, cement. This seemed a little "off" when compared to the natural wood tones of the floor and ceiling. The "stone" being very rough and porous, painting it would have been much too labor intensive and not give the greatest results. The option demolishing and rebuilding the fireplace was expensive, messy and time consuming. What to do?

Well.. we used zero voc powdered Earth Pigments diluted in water and "washed" them into the stone, layering and blending the colors as we went. We then sealed our work with Faux Like A Pro dead flat varnish, added some whiting while still damp, and viola field stone! The whole project took us 3 days start to finish.

"Leather" finish family room

2008-11-26T09:34:00.000-05:00

This family room is the center of activity for this active family of five. In an open floor plan like this one, it can be a challenging decision figuring out how to use color to define different areas without losing the "flow".

A warm terra cotta colored plaster finish with the look and feel of antique leather was applied to the walls in 3 layers. Notice how this color brings out the beauty in the field stone fireplace.

Color was used around the entertainment center and up the fireplace wall to add warmth and define the "family room" as an inviting space. We did not carry the bold color to the second story walls as this could feel top heavy and overwhelm the space. By using color on just three of the walls, we have created a cozy place to relax and entertain while still keeping the "open" feel of the floor plan.

If Walls Could Talk

Fauxing A Faux Fireplace

"Leather" finish family room