The best stone walls are made with large stones, so look for a very large stencil. Sometimes, though, it can be impossible to find just what you want. If you can't find the right sort of stencil you can still make a faux rock wall. The painting technique is the same.
If you cannot find a stencil, lay painter's tape horizontally along your wall every 8 to 10 inches in height. Lay tape vertically at random intervals, splitting horizontal sections. Avoid having vertical tape cross horizontal tape lines. Where vertical tape lines meet the top of the wall tape across the wall so grout lines continue. Keep rock size at base of wall larger. You can split some of the horizontal areas a second time to create thinner stones. Below is an outline of how a rock wall should look.
Choose an acryllic paint suitable for concrete in a beige or gray. You want to mimic rock that is available in your area. Paint the exposed concrete with a roller and allow it to dry. Pour 1 cup of the paint into another pan and dilute it with 1/2 cup of water. Add a very small amount of artist color to it to darken the paint. You can use any color as long as it is found in the type of rock you want to mimic. Dip a natural sea sponge into the diluted paint, squeeze it out and sponge the mixture over the rock areas allowing more than half the area to remain uncolored. Reload the sponge when needed. Make a second diluted mixture of paint and add a color to lighten it. Sponge it over the first sponging allowing some of both the original and darker paint areas to show through. The intent is to create shadowed areas (hollows) and bright areas (bulges). The difference in tones should be very subtle. When the rock looks right to you, remove the tape from the wall. You can add depth to the grout lines by using a dry-brush technique to add shadow under rocks where they meet horizontal grout lines. The color is darkest against the rock and fades as it moves away from the rock.
Somehow my house and garden got tiny gnats that killed my fuchsia plant and fly everywhere. I have tried ALL the Web recommendations - soap and oil dishes, sand in th...
See more
Growing our first garlic, should we wait until the leaves are drying out before we pick it? Husband picked first one today along with our first potatoes.
Hi everyone, I have mice in my garden destroying my vegetables and I have also noticed them in the barn and shed. Please can someone tell me how to prevent them from ...
See more
Just moved into a new home. There was a huge thorny bush dragon devouring the mailbox. I slayed the dragon but it is trying to rise up again. How can I make sure it's...
See more
We have the worst neighbors ever! They complain about everything! They hate dogs so they complain every time our dogs bark one time (not exaggerating) they have fabri...
See more
The best stone walls are made with large stones, so look for a very large stencil. Sometimes, though, it can be impossible to find just what you want. If you can't find the right sort of stencil you can still make a faux rock wall. The painting technique is the same.
If you cannot find a stencil, lay painter's tape horizontally along your wall every 8 to 10 inches in height. Lay tape vertically at random intervals, splitting horizontal sections. Avoid having vertical tape cross horizontal tape lines. Where vertical tape lines meet the top of the wall tape across the wall so grout lines continue. Keep rock size at base of wall larger. You can split some of the horizontal areas a second time to create thinner stones. Below is an outline of how a rock wall should look.
Choose an acryllic paint suitable for concrete in a beige or gray. You want to mimic rock that is available in your area. Paint the exposed concrete with a roller and allow it to dry. Pour 1 cup of the paint into another pan and dilute it with 1/2 cup of water. Add a very small amount of artist color to it to darken the paint. You can use any color as long as it is found in the type of rock you want to mimic. Dip a natural sea sponge into the diluted paint, squeeze it out and sponge the mixture over the rock areas allowing more than half the area to remain uncolored. Reload the sponge when needed. Make a second diluted mixture of paint and add a color to lighten it. Sponge it over the first sponging allowing some of both the original and darker paint areas to show through. The intent is to create shadowed areas (hollows) and bright areas (bulges). The difference in tones should be very subtle. When the rock looks right to you, remove the tape from the wall. You can add depth to the grout lines by using a dry-brush technique to add shadow under rocks where they meet horizontal grout lines. The color is darkest against the rock and fades as it moves away from the rock.