Faux Denim Painting Technique

Choose Your Colors and Prime

• Choose your color and buy enough paint to complete your project. Jeans come in all different colors; you can create faux denim in light green, pink, yellow, black or any color you want. The base coat must be lighter than your glaze, however. Before you start painting, prepare the surface by cleaning it and applying a coat of primer. Let the primer dry before moving on to the next step.

Base Coat, Panels and Glaze

• Apply your base coat and let it dry. Measure off 4-foot wide, floor-to-ceiling panel sections with a pencil. Apply blue painter's tape over the pencil marks, running the length of the wall. Create your glaze by mixing one part paint with four parts clear glaze.

Keep a Wet Edge

• Use a paint roller to apply a section of glaze at the top of one panel. Brush over it with a linen brush from left to right, and back again over the same area. Next, create vertical lines through the glaze, brushing lightly. Repeat this process until the whole panel is complete. Skip the panel next to it, and apply the glaze to the third taped-off panel. Apply glaze using the same brush technique to this panel, and continue in this way, glazing and brushing every other panel. Remove the painter's tape and allow the glazed sections to dry overnight. Erase the pencil marks.

Next Day

• The following day, apply the painter's tape to the dry edges of yesterday's glaze to prevent overlapping it with today's glaze. Fill in the remaining panels, applying glaze and using the technique described above with your linen brush. When you remove the tape, you should have no overlapping sections and a thoroughly glazed faux denim surface.