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Could use a little help here.
Years ago I saw a show on faux painting and they painted a concrete floor to look like a brick floor. They painted the entire floor a solid color and then took a large sponge and dipped it into several other colors and made a brick pattern. Looked very nice. I have a mud room floor that is part concrete and part wood. The wood area has been painted for years with a grey floor paint.
I was thinking I would use the grey color that I have as the base color as it would look a bit like grout but I think it is too dark. I do have a lighter gray paint that is for woodwork. It is not a floor paint but it is a latex paint same as the darker grey floor paint. I was thinking I could sponge the lighter gray over the darker to give the grout some texture. Then for the bricks a Terra cot ta and I think they used some shade of yellow in the mix and another color that I can't recall at all but think it should be a brown? I would think I would want at least 3 colors for the bricks.
As for the technique I remember that they pooled the colors in a pan and the sponge picked them up and then they patted the paint off on newspaper. I was thinking that maybe I should apply the colors separately and make gouges to the sponge between the color changes to create different patterns.
I could use suggestions on colors for the bricks, technique and any other helpful hints you may have.
Hi, HollyAnn. This would be a BIG job.
Don't short change yourself by using "what I've got". By fresh paint made for floors and a quality primer.
Thoroughly clean the floor, prime. Paint the base (grout) color then do a light sponging to give it a tittle 'texture' using a slightly lighter or darker color than the base.
Get a sturdy cellulose sponge, cut it to brick size. You need at least 3 colors to make the brick look real. An earthy red, black, medium gray and Terre cotta. (that's 4, lol)
Use an old serving tray to hold small puddles of each color, it's OK if they touch each other. Use more red and very little black.
Dip the sponge in each color and scrape off the excess on the edge of the tray. Carefully press the sponge to make 'bricks' rotating the sponge to vary the pattern.
A mud room gets a lot of abuse, good luck.
Andy P
Thanks for responding Andy I remember seeing some of your beautiful work. I'm going to start with the cement laundry room floor it is much smaller and if it goes well then I will tackle the bigger mudroom. I know that an acid cleaner is suggested for cement garage floors but the laundry room I'll start with is a pretty enclosed area and as only a washer and drier have sat on it not cars. I thought there would be soap residue but not the types of grease and oil that a garage floor would have. Would you have any suggestion on a product to clean the floor before I paint. I know that prep is about the most important part of painting.
Most laundry room gunk is water soluble, try any good floor cleaner and a stiff brush. Be sure to remove all soap residue. Let the floor dry completely before priming. Don't walk on it for 2 days after completion. (At least not with shoes.)
I strongly suggest you try my technique on a sample piece of cardboard to check colors and practice. Your first effort may frustrate you, lol.
You may want to have a smaller sponge for half size bricks along the edges.
I did this once on a wall, it looked great on my 3rd practice board.
PS, use an eggshell finish for the base and semi gloss for the brick paint.
Andy P
Thanks Andy, I thought a good regular cleaning with a stiff brush and good rinse should do the trick. Not sure when I will get to this, Ric is on the injured list and will be for awhile so that changes my responsibilities. I will post pics when I get it done. Really appreciate the help.
