Product of the month: Resene FX Paint Effects Medium

17 Apr 2023

Sometimes more than just a paint finish is required! If your clients are looking for something a little different, or unique, Resene FX Paint Effects Medium can help you to create that. Create some drama or interest in a client’s home, restaurant, art gallery or hotel lobby, there are endless options.

You can capture a mood, create an ambience and transform the mundane into something special. Paint effects are also designed for durability giving you confidence that the look you create for clients will continue to look good.

Some techniques also have the extremely practical benefit of disguising less than perfect surfaces. In fact, imperfections in the surface can add to the overall impact of the effect.

“You can use this product to create some amazing special effects for any space,” Amanda Greenslade says, Architectural & Specifier Services Representative at Resene. “One of my favourite ways to use it is to create a limewash effect as this product allows two colours of your choice to be blended on one area, creating a concrete look that is completely unique.”

There are a wide variety of paint effects techniques that you can use to achieve highly professional results, but here are a few of the techniques most commonly used:

Colourwashing

Soft delicate colours through to strikingly rich colourways are easily obtained by using the colourwash technique. Colourwashing is a two-step process where a basecoat colour is washed over with a stronger colour reduced with Resene FX Paint Effects Medium to produce an effect made up of different tones and textures.

Traditionally, a white or off-white colour, such as Resene Pearl Lusta, was used as a basecoat; however, interesting effects may be obtained by using lighter shades of the colourwash colour, such as Resene Egg Sour colourwashed with Resene Corvette. More striking effects may be obtained by using contrasting shades, such as Resene Patina colourwashed with Resene Astral.

If you prefer paint over paper, take your cue from this subtle ombre wall, created using a colourwash technique with Resene Half Raven, Resene Grey Chateau, Resene Double Concrete and Resene Half Concrete. We love its dreamy effect. Project by Claudia Kozub, image by Wendy Fenwick.

Limewashing

The washed-out fresco and the soft painted look reminiscent of Mediterranean and Adobe architecture may be accurately reproduced by using the limewash effect. The limewash effect is ideal for any cementitious surface or as an effect to enhance a specialist finish, such as Resene Resitex or Resene X-200.

This technique could be great for restaurant décor or for those clients wanting a euro touch to their home. The mood and effect created by limewashing lends itself equally well to both interior and exterior situations, particularly where a traditional or aged finish is desired.

The key difference between Colourwashing and Limewashing is the colour selection. Limewashing generally uses a lighter basecoat and a darker wash colour of a related colour (e.g. light blue and purple), while colourwashing effects are usually created using a darker basecoat with lighter washes.

This tone-on-tone wall is a limewashed modern take on rag-rolling. A wall in Resene Duck Egg Blue is topcoated with Resene FX Paint Effects Medium mixed with Resene Rolling Stone, the coat rack is Resene Dark Slate, sideboard in Resene Inside Back, chair in Resene Gull Grey and floor in Resene Half Villa White. 

Ragrolling

Impress your clients with subtle or bold textured effects reminiscent of marble and crushed velvet. While ragrolling (also known as ragging) is one of the most time consuming paint effects, it can replicate the appearance of marble and crushed velvet, creating the subtle or rich finishes normally associated with the most expensive wallcoverings. The effect is achieved by using a bunched rag or cloth that is rolled or dabbed over the still wet medium, leaving random patterns as it distempers the surface.

Wall painted in Resene Anglaise with Resene FX Paint Effects Medium mixed with Resene Calico ragged for a textural effect. Floor in Resene Calico with layers built up of Resene FX Paint Effects Medium mixed with Resene Cobblestone and Resene Half Karaka.

Sponging

Create a gently speckled or cloud-like effect with harmonising colours. Sponging is probably the easiest technique to master and depending on the type of sponge, there is an infinite variety of effects possible. Furnishings and fabrics are easily coordinated by harmonising their hues, layer upon layer into the final sponged effect. In this way the neutral toning of a carpet may be coordinated with the rich colouring of curtains and fabrics. Alternatively strikingly original combinations of colour and texture may be obtained with experimentation and imagination. For example, a darker colour sponged onto a lighter background will bring the walls in, while a combination of pale colours used over a darker background will give a cloudy or shadowed look.

Other techniques include dragging, stipple, sparkle, shimmer, texture and touches of gold. Check out the Resene FX Paint Effects Gallery for more ideas.

The French wash technique: Wall painted in Resene Double Alabaster, with Resene FX Paint Effects Medium mixed with Resene Silver Chalice.

Tips and tricks to get started

• Agree on a sample area first. This is especially important when ragging or sponging as the end result is dependent not only on the colour chosen, but the mix ratio and the style of technique. Remember that first efforts can be hidden by repainting with the basecoat and then restarting the effect as your paint effects expertise develops.
• Use the sample panel as a reference for the whole project to make sure the finish agreed on matches what is achieved.
• Ensure the painter keeps notes of all recipes when creating intermixes or dilutions, as reproducing an exact colour match at a later date may be difficult. Add the colour in small increments for best control over the final colour.
• Coverage varies greatly and is dependent upon the technique used and the substrate.

A range of paint effects colour combinations are available online to help you decide the effect that suit your client’s needs. A good idea is to prepare a sample panel for your client and agree on that as your standard before the job starts. This way, all parties will know what the finish will look like. If worse comes to worse and the final finish is not what you had in mind, you can always create a new paint effect by reapplying the basecoats and Resene FX Paint Effects Medium topcoat/s.

Get more inspiration with the habitat plus – paint effects book – view it online.

Published: 17 Apr 2023