Can I Glaze Over a Wall That I First Dry-Brushed With an Oil-Base Paint?

What is Glaze?

• Glaze is a translucent paint medium that extends the drying time of a paint application, making it possible to work in some decorative paint techniques. Glazes have liquid to gel-like consistencies and are available in water- and oil-based formulations. Glazes are tinted with color or mixed with paint to create a desired paint finish, and are applied with brushes, sponges or rags.

What is the Dry-Brushed Technique?

• Dry-brushing applies paint to a wall or surface with a minimal amount of paint. After dipping the paintbrush into the paint, the excess paint is squeezed out of the brush, and the brush is wiped. The dry-brush strokes then leave little paint on the wall. A successful dry-brush finish coordinates the base paint color on the wall with the paint color used in the applied technique, combining complementary or contrasting colors whose tones work well together. Lighter colors applied over a darker base lightens and softens its appearance, while a light base highlights a dark, dry-brush overlay. The dry-brushing technique uses both oil-based and water-based paints.

Oil-Based Paint and Glaze

• Selecting the right glaze for the project determines whether it binds well to the underlying surface. This is why an oil-based glaze must be selected for an oil-based painted wall. An oil-based glaze binds to any paint or stain finish, while a latex glaze is suitable only for the water-based -- or latex -- painted surfaces. There's a possibility that a water-based glaze will adhere to a dry-brushed oil-based painted wall since this technique leaves some of the underlying wall exposed through its finish. Test an inconspicuous section of the wall to determine how well the glaze product works over the wall.

Selecting Colors

• Looking at the paint colors selected for the dry-brush technique and the base paint, the third color added by the glaze can either directly coordinate with one of these colors as a lighter or darker tone, or you can introduce a whole new split-complementary color that gives the finished wall a multicolored appearance.

Applying the Finish

• Glaze works right over an existing smooth and shiny finish, so the dry-brushed wall doesn't require any preparatory work prior to applying the glaze. Apply a generous amount of glaze over a small area, wipe away some of the glaze and work the glaze with a rag, brush or sponge in back-and-forth or swirling strokes until the desired look is achieved. The combing technique drags a combed tool through the glaze, while pressing wrinkled sheets of plastic into the glaze, then pulling them away, yields an uneven, worn leather look. The application of glaze over the dry-brush finish may require several attempts or layers to perfect the look. The layered effect of the glaze over the dry-brushed finish work in unison as they unveil a wall rich with dimensional interest.