Faux Wood Stained Door

Prime the door with high adhesion primer. Let dry.
Basecoat with 2 coats of dark, chicory brown latex paint.
Each part of the door must be taped off and painted separately for the wood grain to look authentic.
Collect 4 different brown glazes: a yellow brown, a red brown, and 2 mid brown shades. Mix them each with a bit of glaze: about 1 part glaze to 1 part paint.
With a 1" paintbrush dab the lightest colour over the taped off surface in random patches. Always brush in just one direction. Then fill in more empty spots with the red brown glaze. Continue with the lighter of the 2 mid-browns, and finish off by filling any remaining holes with the darker brown.
While the colours are still wet, soften and blend the colours slightly with a softener, brushing up and down at a very slight angle. The wood grain should not be perfectly vertical, but just ever so slightly off.
Using a flogger, or a brush with coarse, long bristles, slap the bristles against the surface to break it up a bit, moving downwards as you hit, along the very same angle you created with the softener. This will create subtle wood grain lines. Let dry thoroughly.
Tint a small container of water-based, satin finish varnish with a bit of burnt umber pigment, and brush it over the top with a natural bristle brush. This will add depth and soften any harshness in the wood grain technique, as well as protect your work.

Topics covered by this article include: Painting...