Decorative work is a different trade from flat painting. Limewash and Venetian plaster are applied and worked in layers, metallics and pearls show every inconsistency in the surface beneath, and a glaze or colour wash is built up until the depth is right. The skill is in the hand, not the product.
We work out the finish with you on a sample board or a small area of the actual wall before committing to the room. Decorative finishes look different at scale and under the light in your own space, and a sample is the only honest way to judge.
Common requests are feature and accent walls, fireplace surrounds, dining rooms, powder rooms, ceilings and coffered panels, plus faux wood graining and marbling on trim and columns. Surfaces still need the same preparation as any other paint job, and sometimes more: a decorative finish magnifies whatever is underneath it.
What is included
A sample board or test area before the room is started
Limewash, Venetian plaster and mineral finishes
Metallic, pearl and glazed finishes
Colour washing, rag rolling and strie
Faux wood graining and marbling on trim and columns
Full surface preparation, because a decorative finish shows everything
Questions about faux & decorative finishes
Can you match a finish I have seen in a photograph?
Usually we can get very close, and we will tell you plainly when we cannot. Photographs flatten texture and change colour, so we work from a sample board you approve in your own light rather than from the picture alone.
Is a decorative finish more expensive than regular paint?
Yes, per square foot. It takes more coats, more hand work and more drying time between stages. That is why it is usually used on one wall or one room rather than throughout a house, and we price it by the area.
Ready for a free estimate?
Tell us about the job and we will arrange a time to come and look. No charge, no obligation, and a written price you can compare.