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Faux Dragging
The faux painting dragging effect creates a feeling of elegant silk fabric or wallpaper, which can be applied on most reasonably smooth and properly prepared surfaces. Refer to our Surface Preparation page for more information on how to prepare your surface. The faux finish dragging is among the easier faux painting techniques to learn, yet it yields stunning, classy finishes.
Learn some great Faux Painting Techniques!
The Learning Faux downloadable e-book (fully printable) was written with one goal in mind. This is to introduce the beginner faux painter to the most popular faux painting finishes.
The faux dragging effect can be created using a variety of different glazes, and even by using regular latex paints. However, as with most faux finishes, we recommend an oil based paint or glaze, as it will allow more play time before it dries to the point where you can no longer manipulate it. This technique works on walls, wood work and even on furniture.
To create the dragging effect, you can use a paint brush, stipple brush, an old comb, a small whisk broom or any other implement that will create the uniform lines you are looking to create.
Start at the very top and drag your implement down to the very bottom. Then drag up, easing up pressure and lifting the implement off the wall as it passes the area already dragged. As you work, vary this halfway point so the look is smooth and uniform across the entire wall.
Keep the brush as dry as possible, as it will absorb the glaze/paint very quickly and you do not want to apply too much material on the surface. If you prefer to have a looser combed look, just hit the wall at random as you work down.
The toughest part of creating this effect is keeping the drag lines uniform. We recommend that you take a section of the wall and play with the effect before attempting to create the final finish.
Dragging:
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Apply the glaze evenly in manageable sections. Take a firm brush or other dragging implement and drag down from the top to the bottom. Then lightly drag up to lift the build of glaze or paint.
When working on a door, repeat the steps on the middle of the panel. This helps to create a natural looking finish.
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The dragging technique has been applied to this wardrobe, while the main panels have been ragged. These two finishes work well together.
Although dragging can be subtle, the walls in this room have been dragged using sunshine yellow glaze. Teamed with darker woods and soft inviting sofas, the room looks very relaxing.
To summarize:
This technique can be used to portray a
luxurious look in the bedroom, an elegant living room or a sophisticated,
formal dining room. The effect is achieved by pulling a dry brush or combing
device through wet paint to reveal fine lines or pinstripes of the base
color. It is extremely versatile and used on walls, moldings, doors and
furniture.
Additionally, the faux finish dragging effect is very effective when teamed with other finishing
techniques, such as ragged walls and dragged baseboards, dragged walls with
stenciled borders, and others. You can make the effect appear very subtle by
selecting similar hues or more dramatic by opting for contrasting colors.
Test your selection on a large poster board beforehand. It can be tricky to
keep the striations even and straight. Again, practice beforehand.
Faux dragging offers an easy method to add color, style, and texture to a
variety of surfaces. Don't be afraid - jump right into the faux painting
dragging finish!
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