Bathroom Makeover: Sponge Painting Technique
When I got home, I immediately tried the red paint on the white walls of our downstairs 3rd bathroom. Because of my lack of experience in using red on the wall, I was not too happy about the way my first coat looked; it looked uneven, not to mention, a lot of white paint were still showing through the red paint. I decided to leave it overnight hoping that when it dries it would look better in the morning. Unfortunately, when I checked the next morning, it was worse than when I left it. My husband made a joke that it looked like a couple of vampires just had a ball in our bathroom.
Undeterred, I did not show that I was panicking. Still pretending that I knew what I was doing, I told him that he had to wait for the end product, for it will be okay. I continued to apply a second coat of paint and included the ceilings. Having white ceiling in a vibrant red room did not seem appealing to me. After putting the second coat, I was still disappointed that I did not make much progress in improving the look. Almost halfway through my can of paint, I decided to do what I should have done prior to opening this can— read the instruction label. If I were clever enough to read the label even before I ordered the paint, I should have known that I needed a primer so that I do not have to end up painting several coats before I can achieve the even look that I wanted. I’ve just gotten used to painting neutral colors on the white walls not needing primer, which I thought would be the same with red or any other dark colors. It was, needless to say, a big mistake on my part.
Knowing fully well that it is already too late to buy that primer, and that I did not want to paint 3-4 more coats of the red pain, I decided to be creative. I went back to the paint store and I then proceeded to look at the section where they sell faux painting materials, like sponges, brushes, stencils, metallic paints, etc. I found a wide array of metallic hues; I chose to buy a jar of golden metallic. I also bought a sea sponge as well as sponge brush. I figured I can do a sponge painting technique using the metallic gold on top of the semi-gloss red paint.
As soon as I got home, I immediately opened the jar containing the metallic gold paint, this time reading the instruction to mix it thoroughly before pouring a portion of it on a paint tray. I dabbed the sea sponge on the metallic paint and proceeded to dab the paint on the red wall. I did not have a real system to use since this was my first sponge painting; I tried to recollect what I have seen before on a home improvement and design show. I used a big sponge on majority of the walls, I dabbed on the parts that showed uneven reds and camouflaged the white paint. I dabbed lightly, avoiding dragging the metallic paint. I applied the same technique on the ceilings. I cut out small pieces of the sponge to use at tight corners and near the moldings.
Since the bathroom is small, the white door did not look good next to a red wall, so I decided to apply red paint on the door as well as the door frame and molding, and then I brushed on the metallic gold. I did not use a sponging technique on the door so that it would still look like a door, which serves as a sort of break and not to look too busy. I was happy with the results that I also sponge painted the wall sockets and light switch for a more cohesive look. After an hour, I was done; it is amazing that the uneven reds and whites were showing through have disappeared. When my husband and daughter finally arrived home, they were both delightedly surprised. My husband later admitted that he was very concerned and that if it turned out really bad, he would help me paint over it with t a neutral color. Needless to say, we were all very happy with the look; what was almost a mishap turned out to be my first ever sponge painting success!
