What do you want to see when you look up?

Most ceilings are white.  Who started this trend?  Paint a wall red, and add a white ceiling... before you know it, something is amiss.  It's amazing, when I see how most clients are afraid of color!  The majority of people were raised to believe... accepting a white ceiling is as commonplace as accepting peanut butter and jelly!

Oh,  how we miss the boat!  Think warm, enveloping tones with "out of the box" finishes.   Live your style, and step out of safety.  Would you be satisfied, with your wardrobe, if everyday you had to wear a white shirt?  Let your passion run wild!  I always find myself wondering... if I looked into the nights sky, to find only black abyss,  what would become of our world?

Today I created a ceiling with a giraffe crackle border.  I am continually amazed when I realize a ceiling can be as sexy as seeing a voluptuous woman, in a low cut blouse!  How can you make your home sexy?  Stay tuned, for the transformations to follow.

FAUX HISTORY

Faux finishing has been used for thousands of years, from cave painting to Ancient Egypt, but what we generally think of as faux finishing in decorative arts began with Plaster and Stucco Finishes in Mesopotamia over 5000 years ago.

In the late 1980s and early 1990s faux finishing saw another major revival, as wallpaper began to fall out of fashion. At this point, faux painting started to become extremely popular in home environments, with high end homes leading the trends. While it can be quite expensive to hire a professional faux finisher, many faux painting methods are simple enough for a beginning home owner to create with a little instruction. People are also attracted to the simplicity of changing a faux finish, as it can be easily painted over compared with the hassle of removing wallpaper.Faux became hugely popular in Classical times in the forms of faux Marble, faux Wood, and Trompe l'oeil Murals. Artists would apprentice for 10 years or more with a master faux painter before working on their own. Great recognition was rewarded to artist who could actually trick viewers into believing their work was the real thing. Faux painting has continued to be popular throughout the ages, but experienced major resurgences in the neoclassicalrevival of the nineteenth century and the Art Deco styles of the 1920s. Throughout the recent history of decorative painting, faux finishing has been mainly used in commercial and public spaces.

In modern day faux finishing, there are two major materials/processes used. Glaze work involves using a translucent mixture of paint and glaze applied with a brush, roller, rag, or sponge, and often mimics textures, but it always smooth to the touch. Plaster work can be done with tinted plasters, or washed over with earth pigments, and is generally applied with a trowel or spatula. The finished result can be either flat to the touch or textured.

Consider your Ceiling the Fifth Wall

Is your ceiling a plain shade of White?  Most are.  Many Designers and Home Owners don't consider the impact adding color to a ceiling can bring.  A Faux finish perhaps with an inlaid design can turn an unnoticed ceiling into a focal point of the room. Recessed and coffered ceilings often scream for attention.