I have my walls in fairly good condition, now what should I do? I want to give them a small texture, by hand, an easy one. I’m not sure what that should be. I don’t want to rent pressure equipment, I figure brush, trowel, or roller application will be the easiest (for me). Should I apply mud first and texture it, and then paint over that? I’m not sure which way to go. But it can’t require too much skill (of which I don’t have much yet).
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By all means, when you mud make a design that you like. Practice on apiece of old word or heavy cardboard, or a piece of left over dry wall to see the effects you like the best. That is how we done the walls in the new rooms. We took a trowel and swooshed it this way and that. This left the areas with different textures, smooth, rough, bumpy and it was exactly the old building like look we was seeking for. Roughed and it speaks for itself. Then I dried brushed, with the acrylic paints, to get the reds, copper, and when it was to bright I tones it down with some left over eggshell. When it was done we stood back and dabbed whatever we thought one color should be dominant over the other. Then I took the gold art-glitter, in a spray can, and I put it on in layers, for a 40-foot wall I think we used 4 cans. After this dried, and I wanted a little more. I took the acrylic gold glitter and again touched the wall lightly by using a dry brush. I would put some on the brush from the little bottle, and whipped it ever which way. AT night with the flood lights, when we sit these on the floor behind the furniture it will really sparkle. Even now with just the ceiling lights on, we can notice it. Yesterday at the Indoor sale, people admired this room. This one man went nuts over the walls. He asked if we hired a pro to d them. As we talked, he didn’t think himself or his wife had that knack! OH yes anyone can do this. So he may now try it. He also liked the ventilators we were working on, with the stones in the can. When he seen this one table, he just couldn’t believe this was done from a spray can, but he watched as we done the vent, and could easily see how easy that was. I tell you we could become a salesman for this company that makes it. Maybe we should hire our self out, and go to people’s homes to do this for them. Only draw back, this man lived out of state, or he would have hired us out he spot. He wants to come back next year to see our other rooms and progress. He said we should to be in Better Homes and Gardens. Or better still work for them. We had to laugh as one time we were mentioned in the book when we had other business. Right now soon as I give the say so, we have a lady and her husband wanting to come to get a story on us again as to how we remodeled this old Inn, and brought it back to life again.
They were here in 1982-when we had just then opened the store front and they liked those rooms…. then we told them,”wait until you see those same rooms now. We have redone them last in the past ten years. It is now our one main private living space. With two kitchens and two large living rooms, dinning, and nooks. And we still have more ideas to decorate every area, soon as we get the master bedroom, and bath on the west wing done. We would like to go into the Roman era, and whatever else comes along, that will blend with the pioneer to the one kitchen. It is going to take some planning, but will not be as hard as this other west wing has been to do. One reason, because over there, the drywall has been done, painting and wallpapering. We will re-wax the hardwood oak floors, and possibly do other window treatment. Once the furniture is arranged, we will see the new formations taking place. The one room with the Murphy bed may also become my office there again. That is where I had it when we had the store. Secluded from everybody going in and out. The old kitchen is our everyday one, and the new we put in a year ago, is for guest, when we entertain. Our cell-groups will be using both sometimes and will depend on how we set up to eat. Buffet style is always our best.
So never be afraid to try this idea that you are wanting to do. GO for it. Don’t work try something else until you are well satisfied. After all you are the one that has to live with it everyday. I have an idea we will be wallpapering and painting again, in 5 to 7 years..It will depend on our age and how much these bones can handle. Right now my husband is to have a knee replacement, and I have arthritis bad..so we are almost sure our days are being numbered. BUT we are not sitting back on a sofa all day and twiddle thumbs, we love to be up and about. We do not watch much TV, and luckily to find the time to read the news paper. Those are winter projects. WE know however this winter we will be kept busy..right into next year at this time, no doubt, because there is still the landscape our son wants to start this coming next spring. JOY unspeakable and we are full of Glory..to where we sometimes even amaze ourselves. The motto is this. “Never put off until tomorrow, as today is here, so get too it.”
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Thanks so much for your stimulating reply. I enjoyed hearing about how you changed your surroundings. If you do know, should I texture it with drywall mud first and THEN paint over that? That is kind of what I want to know.
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Dry wall mud yes is recommended. Either apply it smoothly or as rough textured, as you desire. Soon as I have a little more day light I will go to the west wing, and show you how we done this wall with the trowel, by putting a gob of mud on and slap it directly to the wall. Then swoosh it one way and another. Get the next gob, and don’t worry if they overlap, that is where you get the raised effect. Now if you don’t like this, then carefully smooth this out. Don’t wait too long as this dries fairly fast. Buy the compound-mud that is ready to apply; it saves not having to mix it. When you first see it in the 5-gallon bucket, (or what ever it comes in) it will have a wet-gray tint. When this is on the wall in a bout an hour it begins to get snow-white. Now there are tints that can be added to this, but we never have used it, since we know that we will be painting the rougher surface. The smooth surface.before you paint or wall paper. Has to be primed, especially for when applying wallpaper. (Sizing) then is used just before you apply the ready- pasted paper. We have learned over the years, the primer is best to do; otherwise, if you ever remove paper, you will take the top surface and more of the dry wall with it. (You do not want that) Here in this old INN, the walls had been done with horsehair, plaster with the lye in it. It has the designs we wanted in some areas, but that is how we now get it by using the ready mix. My parents done plastering for a living, and they were so often burned with lye. They had many scars. And my father was rushed to a hospital twice when it splattered into his eyes. My mom still has scars on her arms. They had wished the ready-made was available them, that was back in the 1940’s before the better ideas in decor came along. They had found ceilings the hardest to do as the stuff, splattered every which way. They also had laid down floors that took glue-oh that stuff was the worse smelling I can still imagine it as I type this. I remember my father one time, got himself cornered and couldn’t get out. Mom standing there laughing her head off. He had forgotten to lay the planks down, to back out on. And he got his shoes, stuck instantly. He had to wait till she got another board, for him to step upon. He had to then stand on the plank, and with another sharp tool, loosened the shoes. This glue came along with them, like sticky taffy strings. WE never left him forget that day. And he never did this again either. He learned to be more careful. I grew up learning from them the good and the bad mistakes. I have pulled and straighten out more nails than Carter has Liver Pills. My family was house builders. Dad would tare down an older house, so use the best of that structure to build new homes. He salvaged as another part of his living. He paid us children and neighbor kids, a penny for so many nails we pulled and straightened. As we done each one, they had to be dropped into a bucket of oil. Then the messy job came along in our spare time…with rubber gloves we had to take out nails, and wipe them back down, and again store into another container to be used. The oil kept the iron nails from rusting. So I have seen in my day all kinds of nails, and there proper uses. Dad would never allow a staple to be use, when he had a nail still good to hammer in. He never owned a nail-gun. He was a crowbar, and hammer man. Himself and his father would go out and search the woods, and pick the building timbers. Grandpa could stand back always (feet from the tree) and with his index pointer finger measure off the height and width of a tree. He knew how many would be needed to bring back and dry, to build a two or four bedroom house. People hired him all the time for his occupation knows how. He taught me to water-witch. But there was the know how he done in how far down to dig, I never mastered. But I could get the willow to bend. Later I used the metal rod another friend made for me. I have them somewhere in storage. I would need to practice again to get them to move. I helped when we done our own well digging, to find water. I was learning then, so it was something I really never kept right at. It was really a good vain we hit, and the water was always so cold and refreshing. In fact the line-vain was exactly where the bathroom was built, and we had like ice water to drink from there. There were other times we would go searching for water, to find nothing. BUT go back a few feet on the property and hit a good well. Once it was on the neighbor’s property, right at the boarder line, and the two owners had to learn to share it, because they both wanted to build a house to live in. That worked out for years. We have had wells to go dry, and then had to try for another system. When we had the farm, the barn and house were on two different vanes. Happen the barn had more pressure too, then at the house. We had artesian in the pasture valley, we hauled water many times to use in the fields and the laundry. That was before we owned an automatic, and would haul water by the drum full on washday. And put this over an open fire-pit to heat, to then put into the wringer washer. WE are so spoiled today with all the modernistic ways to survive. I wouldn’t want to go back, but at least if I had too I would know how to do it.