Faux and Trompe L'oeil

Two words are taken from the French to define artistic wall finishes: Faux (pronounced "fo" - not "fox" or "foo") means "false." Trompe L'oeil literally means "fool the eye" and is pronounced "tromp louie." In other words, you can create the illusion that something is more than it appears. Theme parks do this all the time and you'll often see it in restaurants and resorts.

But, it can be done on a budget too without appearing that it was. The opening picture at the top of this site is a faux granite in a master bathroom. Three layers of color glaze over a solid base, plus several industrial high gloss top coats create the illusion of stone. Were the wall not textured, this illusion would be even more convincing. (Scroll the screen to the right to see the faux wall.)

In the pictures that accompany this entry, four color glazes were used over a solid base coat to create a natural stone appearance; the cracks and grout lines were hand-painted in two colors giving the appearance of age and organic growth in the more porous surfaces. The addition of aged urns and silk greenery complete the look and give dimension to the surface.

Kids' Rooms

Rooms
for kids can be a lot of fun - both for them and me! In these instances, two of the boys were huge Harley Davidson fans while the other was a John Deere fan.


In the John Deere room, I drew the plans and made the bed from lumber readily available at the box stores. The headlights, which are activated by a wall switch tied to a switched outlet, are standard track lighting while the reflectors are adhesive available at Wal*Mart. The flooring in both rooms is a garage-grade material intended for vehicle traffic. I figured if it could stand up to cars, it could survive boys. The faux barn doors grace the window while vintage signage, parking meters, and potato sacks adorn the walls. The bed has plenty of storage beneath and the wall cabinets hold games and other boxed toys. Finally, a chrome shelf on casters holds all manner of books, musical keyboards, and models. Even the toy box, unpictured, is a truck storage box to lend to the theme. The picnic basket atop the tractor was conceptualized from the lyrics to a Kenny Chesney song.


The Harley room was even more fun; the mirror is made from an old motorcycle tire set inside another tire. Seats from a 2004 Sportster fill the plant shelves over the cabinets while a bunk bed/futon provide two boys with ample sleeping and reading space. A garage drop light serves as a reading light that can be pulled to either part of the bed. The eight foot stainless-laminate counter floats atop two tool chest/cabinets available at Sears. The tool cabinets proved economical and durable, and also completed the overall theme. The drawers are filled with pajamas, underwear, and socks; the large stand-up cabinet holds all manner of clothing on four shelves. Various Harley Davidson licensed accessories fill the walls and a galvanized trash can with "Dirty Rags" serves as a laundry hamper. Switch plates and outlet covers are chromed in classic Harley style.

No detail was spared yet neither room was particularly expensive to decorate. More importantly, this incredible form also boasts significant function.

Simple Charm

Many first-time home buyers, as well as those of us on modest incomes are limited to condominiums, townhouses, or tract homes. And while a new or newer home is always nice, they sometimes lack the charm of an older bungalow or the elegance of an impressive beach mansion.

This dilemma can be solved with one or more of these techniques.

Front Doors

Tired of that old steel or fiberglass door that graces your entry way? Lacking the thousands of dollars, time, and aggravation that it takes to select and have a new one installed? The front door says a great deal about you and your home. What does a bold and beautiful door say that a dull, dirty one cannot?

In these photos, the hardware was updated and the sidelight and door were re-painted with an exterior semi-gloss paint. Then, I mixed a variety of colors on-hand and made a glaze that I then wood-grained and coated with a clear industrial gloss finish.

The result is a door that makes a dramatic statement; I love to hear the neighbors ask about the cost and species of our new wooden door. They are amazed to walk up and discover that it's the exact same door that was installed when the house was built.

Renewing Furniture

Taking old (or older) furniture and making it into something new is often the most creative and least expensive solution to keeping what you have and making it work with a new theme or decor. In these examples, you will see wood end tables, night stands, coffee tables, and store-front counters made of very old and worn formica laminate being renewed into something entirely new and refreshing. Imagine taking your structurally sound, but outdated laminate cabinets and counter faces and making them look new! This can be done for a fraction of the cost of replacing them.

With some vision, elbow grease, and the right tools and paint, I can take what worked for your decor yesterday and tailor it to what you want tomorrow. In a few years, if that proves dated and you want to change it, we can do it again.