How to Create the Look of Wood Over White Paint

Make a test board by applying a coat of the same color and sheen of white paint as the piece of furniture or woodwork on which you will be painting your finish. Use a 12-inch-long piece of lumber at least six inches wide. Apply the paint with a brush in long, straight strokes with the grain and allow it to dry completely.

Pour a small amount of the white, a light gray and a little black into a pan. Use semi-gloss latex interior paints. They will adhere to most surfaces, are easy to work with and clean up, and do not give off toxic fumes.

Dip the end of a 1 1/2-inch soft-bristled sash brush in a pail of water. Drag the bristles across the edge of the container to press most of the water out, until it stops dripping. Load the end of the brush with white paint, up to about one inch from the end. Dip the end into the gray and dip just the tip of the brush into the black.

Work in long, straight strokes to apply the paint to the surface of the wood, pressing the brush a little to get all three colors working. Drag the brush back over the stroke, so that you are painting with a back and forth motion. Apply paint to sections about the size of your test board, one at a time.

Go back over the section, adding whatever colors are lacking. You want the surface to appear 1/2 white, 3/8 gray and only 1/8 black. The gray and black should appear as streaks, or blended lines. Consult your wood sample to see if your work is matching it and experiment with the blend until you get one you are happy with.

Use a small brush to paint in grain lines with the gray and a little black. Mimic the grain lines in the wood sample you chose, remembering to add a little curve to the lines. Make the darker grained areas pop by adding a thin line of white along the edge to highlight it, creating a deeper shadow effect.

Drag back over the surface with a clean brush. You can rinse the sash brush and use it, or work with a wider three inch brush for the dry brushing. This heightens the grain effect by blending it slightly to keep it from being too distinct. The goal is give the impression of wood, without it feeling painted on.

Continue adding grain and highlights across the surface, always working with the grain. If you are painting furniture, or trim, make sure your grain lines alternate in the same way they would with the actual boards or pieces. For example, if the grain in the wood actual pieces meets at a 90 degree angle at a corner, then paint the grain on the adjoining piece perpendicular to the first piece.