Faux Painted Metal Garage Door

A faux painted metal garage door is a great way to achieve the look of beautiful stained wood. There are so many colors to choose from and many combinations of design. Most metal doors have a grain pattern embossed into the metal which runs horizontally across each panel. By having the grain running in one direction makes the job a lot easier, there is no taping off each piece of wood going in opposite directions for this project shown above.

The metal garage door was previously painted so I pressure washed it prior to painting.  I applied   the base coat, Benjamin Moore # 1110 exterior latex paint in satin finish with a brush and roller.
When the base coat has fully dried apply the glaze mixture of 1 part  BM - Charleston Brown exterior latex satin finish with 3 parts of glaze.  A 3 inch brush was used in the direction of the grain.

Start at the top most panel and work from one side to the other. This glaze application gives the door the different variations of undertones in wood. Let the base show threw in some areas and apply the glaze heavier in others. Once the first top panel is completed move onto the next panel and continue.
As your glazing the door glance at the other panels so you don't repeat the same variations.

The final glaze which is a darker brown is applied starting again at the top and working from one side to the other. This application will add deeper wood grain. Again, let each section have its own personality to add interest to the door. The darker glaze will also be applied lighter in areas and darker in others.

Take a look at a piece of real wood and try to duplicate the grain pattern.

Faux Painted Crown Molding

                                                        Faux Painted Crown Molding

Having very high ceilings calls for a larger profile crown molding. Here is a great trick to achieve the look of  larger crown molding and save money, two moldings were used with the trim molding applied 4 inches below the crown. The crown molding size increased from 5 1/4 in. to around 12 inches. The wall area was base coated and faux painted to give the illusion of  one large molding.

The space below the crown molding needs to have a smooth finish for the faux wood technique. The sheet rock area which is in the center of the two moldings may need to be skim coated with compound, to remove any texture which was produced by a past paint finish. Once the compound has dried and smoothed out clean all dust with a damp cloth. Apply a primer, let dry completely and apply the base coat to all pieces which make up this new extended crown.

Note: all brush strokes most go with the grain direction from start to finish. That means the primer too.

Base coat - Benjamin Moore # 1110 eggshell finish

1st glaze - BM - Charleston Brown - 1 part paint to 3 parts glaze, this glaze will be brushed on randomly applying heavier in some areas and lighter in others. I recommend this to give the look off real wood. Your brush strokes need to go left to right lot form a grain pattern.

Note: A quart of paint goes a long way especially when glaze is added.

2nd glaze - BM - # 2107 - 10  - 1 part paint to 3 parts glaze, this glaze will be applied lighter than the first keeping in mind of a flowing grain pattern.

Step 3 - This faux wood shown above has the look of deep scratches and some of the scratched areas are moving diagonally across the grain. With a 1 to 2 in brush apply the scratched areas with a dry brush and use straight paint ( no glaze ). If the lines come to heavy wipe them off with a damp rag and try using a lighter touch.  Note: Adding worm holes with an artist brush gives more realism to your work.

Step 4 - apply glaze # 2107-10  into the areas which have groves or designs in the molding. Wipe the excess off with a clean damp lint free rag. When this is dry follow last step

Last step - I use this step to give a believable glow to the faux wood. Over time the poly will age and amber. Brush on satin polyurethane with a 2 1/2 inch china bristle brush, move with the grain. Add a small amount of poly to your brush so it does not sag or run on your hard work.

I recommend practicing on some crown moldings so you get the hang of it and work out any issues
before you tackle the real thing.