Old World decorating styles like Tuscan or French country have several defining features, including stone-textured walls. In Europe, these walls were created from actual stone and plaster, but for modern homeowners, these materials aren't always feasible. However, that doesn't mean you can't have the same look. Making faux textured walls in the Old World style is quite simple. It requires a bit of paper, some glue and a few coats of paint.
Instructions
1. Prepare the brown paper. You want the kind that resembles the paper from which brown paper bags are made. To prepare the paper, tear off the edges so that the paper will have "jagged" edges. Tear it with your hands instead of cutting it with scissors. Leave some pieces with one flat edge to use at the corners of the walls and ceiling.
2. Crinkle up the paper. Wrinkle it into a ball. The wrinkling creates the texture for the walls. You'll probably have to really work hard to wrinkle the paper quite a bit since brown bag paper tends to be quite thick. Unwrinkle the paper and smooth it out with your hands. Do this with all the sheets.
3. Make the sponge brushes damp. Squeeze out all the excess water. You don't want the brushes to be too wet, because it'll ruin the paper. However, you do want them wet enough to work with the glue.
4. Add glue to the wall using a sponge roller; this won't leave brush hairs in the glue.
5. Apply the wrinkled paper to the glue.
6. Smooth out the paper with your brush. Allow some of the wrinkles to remain in the paper, because this gives the wall its textured look.
7. Add more paper to the wall and allow it to overlap some of the edges of the piece you just applied. Do this with all of them. Repeat the smoothing process with all of them as well.
8. Let the glue dry according to the instructions on the bottle.
9. Apply the base coat of paint. Use the lighter color for this, because you want it to look like rock peeking through the paint.
10. Allow the paint to dry according to the can's instructions.
11. Mix up the darker colored paint with the glaze --- about half and half.
12. Dab the glazed paint on with an old towel and then wipe away the excess. Do this a number of times until you get the look you desire.
