Ralph Lauren Suede Paint Techniques

Choosing Which Room to Paint

• Painting with suede is suited for any room where you would paint a flat finish, especially bedrooms. Be aware that suede scratches easily. Choose rooms that have a large amount of natural light, because the light plays off the naturally occurring areas of light and dark. Painting with suede is the perfect solution for walls with defects, as the shadows of the suede mask the defect. Walls with texture look especially good because the suede paint catches in the grooves, adding yet another dimension.

Choosing Suede Colors

• Choose suede colors based on the use of the room. Pick a dark color, like red or brown, for an office or den; pick lighter colors for bedrooms. Be aware that some colors, especially the darker ones, are hard to touch up, so beginners should start with lighter colors. Suede paint doesn't go as far as regular paint; 2 gallons are needed to cover approximately 300 square feet of wall space.

Painting the First Coat

• Move the furniture to the center of the room and cover it with protective plastic. Lay drop cloths down to protect the flooring. Protect trims and fixtures you don't want painted with painter's tape. Use a 2- to 3-inch flat-edge brush and cut in all your edges and corners that cannot be painted with a roller. Use an extension pole attached to a 9-inch roller cover (any nap is fine) and roll from ceiling to floor. Keep painting in this fashion until the room is finished. The first coat will not look good because suede paint adheres best only to itself. Allow the first coat to dry.

Painting the Second Coat

• Practice painting the second coat on a sample board and let it dry so you can see the finished result. Practice until you feel comfortable with the technique. Apply the second coat with the same brush used to cut in. Start at the ceiling and work down and over in variously sized sections. Random sections and strokes are essential to mimic a suede-like appearance. Use 6- to 9-inch strokes in an X-type shape in a random pattern while covering the first coat. Start a new section while randomly and slightly painting into nearby sections already painted.

Suede Painting Tips

• Stir the suede paint often to keep the plastic polymers that give the paint its texture suspended in the paint. Think amoeba shapes when second-coating a section; don't paint in square, circle or definitive shapes. Continuously vary your wrist and hand motions as well as the length of the strokes. These hand motions generate some paint splattering. Paint one complete wall at a time, allowing your brush to stroke into the adjoining wall. Repaint an entire wall if you made a mistake; it's easier in the long run than trying to touch up. Painting a ceiling requires you to paint in the same direction from one end to the opposite end without rotating your ladder.