False Graining Techniques

Graining with paint offers an expressive way to transform any plain surface with textured and stylized veneers. This practical introduction to a unique folk art includes six easy projects with vivid, step-by-step color photos. The authors provide all of the information you need to get started, with handy tips on tools, materials, and techniques. Try your hand at making rich wood grain designs with unconventional tools, such as corncobs, rubber combs, foam brushes, and even your own fingers! With textured and styled veneers, graining with paint is an expressive technique to alter any simple surface. In the 18th and 19th centuries, grain painting, the ornamental skill of replicating wood grain, was highly appreciated among American colonists. Paint graining provided a cost-effective technique to aesthetically convert inexpensive materials, such as poplar, pine, and maple, into costly hardwoods. What began as a basic imitation developed into a beautiful and expressive folk art. False Grai