Polyacrylic and Flat Rag
With Cindy Martin

The following are easy instructions on how to dress up any wall in your home.

Basic equipment needed:

A: Flat latex wall paint (any color desired ,but med. to dark colors work best)
B: High Gloss polyacrylic (water base urethane)
C: lots of old rags cut into wash cloth size (t-shirts, diapers etc.) NOT towels
D: drop cloth, 2" masking tape, 2 paint pans and 1 med paint nap roller.

STEP1 : Apply the masking tape to the baseboards and joining walls as straight as possible. Don't forget to tape the ceiling off if your not going to paint it too. If you are painting a bathroom or kitchen, tape around cabinets and anything touching the wall you are painting.

STEP 2 : Apply your paint by rolling it on as you would a regular wall. Allow the paint to dry at least 2 to 5 hours.

STEP 3: To apply the polyacrylic you will need your CLEAN paint pan, and your wash cloth size rags. Pour a generous portion of polyacrylic into the pan. Saturate the rag with poly and gently wad it up in your hand. If it is dripping, squeeze some out. Cup the loosely waded rag in your hand and gently apply to the wall. If you are unsure of what pressure to apply, experiment on some cardboard by rolling on some paint, allowing to dry then practice applying the polyacrylic. When the rag starts getting flakes of dried polyacrylic, throw it away and start using a new rag. This will happen fairly quickly so have a lot of rags on hand, 1 or 2 rags per wall should be enough. When you are satisfied with your technique, apply the polyacrylic in 3ft by 3ft sections until wall is complete. After each 3ft by 3ft section you will want to re-saturate your rag. Let the polyacrylic dry about 1 hour before removing the tape

STEP 4: gently remove the tape from walls and baseboards.

This easy technique will give you a unique variation of color tone and a wonderful contrast of flat and gloss finishes with vary little time and effort on your part. remember you want to see sections of flat wall paint and sections of high gloss on the wall. These different sections of flat and high gloss should range from 1/ 4 " to 2 " . These sections will vary in size and shape. The high gloss poly will deepen the color of the flat paint just a little that is what you want. This is a subtle affect for a room and different light hits the wall you should see areas of high gloss and areas of flat.

Good luck and happy painting!!!!

Cindy Martin is owner of Murals by Martin in Austin, Texas. She specializes in custom painted murals on walls and furniture, as well as in faux finishing. She also provides on-site training and tutorials for the do-it-yourselfer! Be sure to visit her website and on-line gallery at: http://www.homeimages.com/murals