The Find
I found this discarded table lamp in the autumn (along with some others around the same time, maybe lamp season is a thing here too?). I immediately liked the classical square column, sort of obelisk-y, shape because classical forms speak to my soul, never mind the giant crack across the body....
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| Brown column table lamp laying on blue towel |
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| Close-up of the crack around the column |
The Repair
Cracks can be filled! And filling the crack is what I set out to do, using some Goodfilla brand wood filler (not sponsored, just what I used) in a few layers to try to get the fill material as deep as possible. I should also mention that I cleaned the entire piece and removed the electrical components.
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| Lamp body and wood filler |
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| Close-up of the repair using wood filler |
I fully acknowledge that the **right** way to fill this type of crack is to over-fill and then sand back. However, I hate sanding, so I try to avoid it, thus I tried to fill to the surface level and then hoped that the paint and pattern brewing in my mind would fool the eye enough.
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| Repaired crack in the original lamp body |
The Makeover
My inspiration came from alabaster and marble lamps, but of course I didn't want to pay hundreds of dollars, time for an experiment with fauxbulous finishing! There are many online tutorials and videos about faux finishing, but the key concept is layering layering layering and some special sauce in the form of scumble.
Step 1 was, of course, primer. I used Zinsser Bulls Eye Zero Primer For All Surfaces. I've had this can for a few years and it comes in very handy. I applied the primer with a brush.
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| primer |
The first coat of primer highlighted the repair more than it obscured it.
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| Repaired area after first layer of primer |
After a second coat of primer the base was looking more even, but I wasn't going for a full flat white primed based because the faux marble look is all about layers.
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| Repaired and primed |
As my base color I used a paint sample I has on hand, Behr Etched Glass, probably mixed with something else that I can't remember right now. I didn't want a stark stark white because in a natural material I would expect off-white and shades of gray to reflect varying mineral content.
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| Paint sample lid, Etched Glass |
Below is a photo of the various paints I mixed together to achieve the different layers. There are no set ratios, I just did it by eye. They included the sample of Etched Glass, a free half-used paint in the color 'Canvas' (a pale beige), and some Benjamin Moore Wrought Iron (an almost black but not true black).
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| Paints and glue |
Let's talk about scumble. Scumble is the sort of background cloudy layer that will form the base of the more distinct veining that will be layered on later. To achieve my scumble I used a mix of the paints to get a pale grey, maybe a pale grey-brown? I dabbed it on with a piece of cut up sponge (shown with the yellow arrow in the photo below) and then dabbed the excess off with a rag (shown with the blue arrow in the photo). It isn't complicated but you do need to work quickly so that the scumble layer stays faint.
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| Scumble on with the sponge, scumble off with the rag |
Here is a different side with a fainter scumble.
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| Lamp with scumble layer of faux finish |
After the faintest scumble, do another layer with a slightly darker color and less application overall. If anything looks to straight-line just wipe it off quickly and start over.
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| Scumble variation on different sides |
The veining is the last part, done with either the edge of a feather or a small paintbrush held very loosely in the hand. Follow the general direction of the scumble, usually a diagonal, but keep a very fluid line. Remember, you're mimicking geological uplifting and folding of layers of sedimentary rock, it's not going to be precise. After finishing with the paints I decided to shellac the surface to protect the paint job, but this step is optional.
Below is a closeup of the bottom part of the lamp body after its repair and faux marble finish. Does the pattern distract enough from the repair?
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| Detail of fauxbulous finish on the lamp base |
Conclusion Part 1
After all that fauxbulous painting it was time for a lie down.... with the other electrical components before being reassembled.
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| Lamp body with new faux marble finish and electrical components |
Happy freestyling, why not give faux finishing a try? You might get some fauxbulous results!
