Faux Graining

Faux graining is a historic technique that uses pigment and thin glazes to imitate the beautiful colors and grains of expensive and exotic woods on a cheaper substrate. This type of finish was very popular in 19th-century interiors, although the art of faux finishes is ancient and still practiced today.

The following images display some of the common tools used for faux graining.

Some of these modern tools like the flogger and badger (in the previous image) have changed very little over the centuries. Other tools like the combs are now made of plastic when they were previously made of metal or gutta percha.

Example of flogging motion (beating like a drum) used in early layers to establish the base grain by thinning out the wash with long horse hair bristles.

Example of using the "wavy mottler" to add cross grain and that iridescent look present in quarter-sawn natural wood due to ray cells.

Example of using the badger brush to soften and feather out the lines applied to create a more natural appearance of the grain.

A didactic panel I produced for the Winterthur Paintings Studio, which exposes the multiple glazing layers needed to achieve different wood finishes. (Left to right: oak, mahogany, walnut, maple, cherry)

Explanation of the materials and key tools used to imitate each grain on the didactic panel. The trompe l'oeil boarder was achieved using a modern acrylic paint system.

Faux Graining Portfolio from a workshop with Master Instructor Decorative Painter, Ross O'Neal, Spring 2015.

All of the graining was completed on plastic sheets using dry pigments, and traditional oil and/or water mediums. Trompe l'oeil work was completed with modern acrylic paint systems. A protective polyurethane coating was applied to all of the finished panels.

Funding to complete this course was provided by Bob and Mae Carter and the WUDPAC Professional Development Fund