Shabby Chic finish

[Julia]

Hi All,
I've been asked for a very wide white/shabby chic moulding for a particular job (although I haven't seen the item to be framed yet). As I can't quite find what I'm looking for I'm going to experiment joining some bare wood frames together and then hand-finish. Grateful for any advice on the best way to finish in order to achieve the shabby chic look - mainly white with some texture/discolouration coming through. i'm guessing using a colour first (not sure which), and then using a white paint(?) over the top and then some rubbing down?

Many thanks for any assistance!

[prospero]

That's pretty much the idea Julia.

Grab a bit of wood and any paint you have lying around. Start with a complete coat and then apply different colours in a haphazard fashion. Even splash patches and spots on.

You can distress the wood in-between coats by attacking it with a wire brush or add a few dings and scratches. Finish off with a coat of white for the weathered look, and then get some clear wax on some coarse wirewool and give it a good scrubbing. Finish with a buffing with a soft duster.

Getting just the look you want might take a bit of experimentation. Best not to think about it too much. Just dive in.

[Tudor Rose]

Great advice from Prospero, but don't forgot to also jot down what you do on each stage otherwise you will get a perfect finish and then have forgotten exactly how you produced it!

[prospero]

That's half the fun!

[Julia]

That's great thanks! I guess painter's acrylic paint is ok to use, as I have lots of different colours of those?

[markw]

Various ways to age mouldings to get a shabby chic look - one i like is to use a blow torch on a barewood pine - you can use a wire brush to bring out the grain before - or after burning. liming wax applied to the burnt finish can give a nice aged look. painting bare wood and then applying a 2 coat crackle finish - with a wash of a contrasty colour to bring out the crackle can also give you a nice shabby chic finish.

[Not your average framer]

one i like is to use a blow torch on a barewood pine

Blow torch finishes rock! Ever so easy to do, and the scorched wood looks different to the surounding wood when a wash is applied, due to changes in the surface absorption.

[prospero]

One technique that is a lot of fun is to use a thick coat of paint and blast it with a heat gun while it's wet. The paint blisters into little bubbles. when it's dry, pop all the bubbles and you are left with a nicely pitted surface. You can repeat this as much as you like on subsequent coats. Go over it with a dilute wash and then wax. A few scratches and dings add to the effect. A heavy-bodied paint is best for this (Wickes ripple?)

Not so much shabby as scabby.