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Ageing and Distressing
Painted furniture and joinery almost always show signs of ageing. This is a naturally occurring process resulting from exposure to light, dampness, dust, dirt and general wear and tear over the life of the object. The paint on these objects will fade, darken, flake or craze and can be chipped or scuffed. It's condition largely depends on the conditions under which it is kept and maintained. The fact that the paint work on an 18th or 19th century provincial chest of drawers or chair may be damaged does not automatically render it undesirable. In fact, the aged effect is often aesthetically pleasing and often adds to the value of the piece. It is not surprising that painters and decorators have shown great interest in this look and have devised various ingenious techniques for artificially ageing new paint work.
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One of the simpler methods for ageing paint is to apply an oil based antiquing glaze suspended in a clear medium of transparent oil glaze and mineral spirits. The glaze darkens the surface of the paint, simulating the dirt and grime that naturally becomes embedded in the surface over years. To increase the authenticity of the effect, greater concentrations of glaze are applied to the recesses of moldings. Conversely, raised sections of moldings are wiped down with a rag to leave the barest trace of glaze on the paint. Additional signs of ageing can, of course, be created by spattering small flecks of glaze at random over the surface in order to simulate the presence of insect infestation.
Another simple but effective technique for
ageing paintwork is to rub it down with sandpaper or steel wool. Gently
done, this will lighten the color and simulate the effects of exposure to
light. For a more authentic looking finish, some thought should be given to
composition - areas exposed to direct sunlight will have faded more than
those in the shade. Heavy rubbing back with a coarse grade paper or wool may
expose underlying coats of contrasting color.
Aging: Dark green base coat - wall paper paste - off white latex
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Sand the surface and apply a water based color over the entire surface
area. Allow to dry for 24 hours. Once dry, apply a thick coat of wallpaper
paste and gum Arabic and leave it to dry.
Apply a coat of off white latex or other desired light color over the paste
mixture.
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Once this coat has been applied, dry the whole area with a hair dryer on maximum heat. Cracking should appear quite quickly.
Mix a small quantity of raw sienna and raw umber acrylic paint with a little water and paint over the surface, making sure to get it into the cracks.
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Using a clean dry brush, brush in more aging color and, if desired, rub other areas smooth with fine sandpaper or steel wool to reveal the darker color underneath.
Mix a little raw umber with water and use an old tooth brush to splatter the whole area at random. Do so lightly.
To summarize:
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This
elegant effect simulates the fine crackling seen in the varnish of old
paintings or on old base coats. The look is often a result of age and of
stress caused by humidity, unstable substrates or incompatible mediums.
There are many ways to obtain the crackling, but the basic rule is that you
are putting a fast drying paint or varnish over slow drying paint or varnish
that has not yet cured. In this case, the crackle effect occurs because the
gum Arabic or shellac dries and cures very quickly, but the oil dries more
slowly; hence the upper layer is stretched and will crack as the lower layer
continues to dry. Ready made crackling products are sold at art supply and
home decorating stores. Different products will produce different types and
degrees of crackling, as will the thickness of application and the
temperature. Experiment to find the effect you want.
Tip: Try a section of the surface you want to complete with a sample of all the layers, exactly as you would apply them over the entire wall. This provides the opportunity to make changes to your colors before committing to the entire room or wall.
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