| It's amazing to find decorative painting dominated by | | | | wear longer, but you might settle for acrylic-vinyl mixes, |
| women. Julia, Karen, Dee, Marcia - all women, only four | | | | or all-vinyl depending on your budget. Latex dries fast, |
| of dozens of others, each proudly showing off | | | | wears well, and can be custom-mixed to your precise |
| incredibly beautiful work samples. Why decorative | | | | color. It's available flat for a matte appearance or |
| painting should be the exclusive turf of women | | | | high-gloss for a more durable finish. |
| (relegating men to being merely house painters) | | | | Craft acrylic paint |
| stupefies. If it's any consolation, at least the Great | | | | This is 100 percent acrylic-resin paint which should not |
| Masters have all been male. | | | | be confused with the ones used for canvas painting. |
| Decorative painting is of interest to every DIY | | | | Sold in 2-oz, 4-oz, and 8-oz bottles, they come in |
| decorator for the many exciting possibilities it opens for | | | | various colors and in fluorescent, iridescent, and metallic |
| decorators looking for an inexpensive way to perk up | | | | versions. If a thinner consistency is needed, they can |
| their homes. In a sense, decorative painting artists are | | | | be diluted with water, latex paint conditioner, or acrylic |
| pushing the envelope on home decorating. Faux | | | | extender. |
| finishes from onyx to alabaster, from serpentine to | | | | Fabric paints |
| breccia are now available to the DIY decorator, very | | | | Although acrylic paints can be used to paint on fabrics, |
| handy in raising the glam factor of any home decor, or | | | | there's a paint that's manufactured exclusively for |
| in tying together the decor style dictated by one's | | | | fabrics: fabric paint. To avoid unnecessary stiffness, |
| acquisition of magnificent wall grilles and other metal | | | | remember to apply lightly. You know you're doing it |
| art. Wrought iron wall grilles, stuccoed walls, terra-cotta | | | | right when you can see the fabric's texture. The |
| and plaster pots with relief designs in faux verdigris, | | | | painted fabric can be machine-washed or dry-cleaned |
| Corinthian-capital base of a glass-top table in faux | | | | once heat-set. |
| granite-- what more can a Mediterranean style fan | | | | Ceramic paints |
| want? | | | | These are paints specially formulated for ceramic |
| If the DIY possibilities excite you well enough to want | | | | surfaces, although you can use acrylic or latex paints |
| to try your hand at decorative painting, here's what | | | | on a previously-primed surface. Subjecting the finished |
| you need to know about the different types of paints. | | | | product to hardening in low temperature improves the |
| Green concerns make water-based paints popular. Of | | | | paint's adhesion, durability, and water resistance. |
| interest to you are latex paint, aerosol acrylic paints, | | | | Aerosol acrylic paints |
| craft acrylic paint, ceramic paints, and fabric paints. | | | | This type dries quickly and covers well. Extremely |
| Latex paint | | | | handy, they can be applied quickly, and are best-suited |
| Latex paints use acrylic resins, vinyl resins, or both. | | | | for painting irregular surfaces. To be on the safe side |
| You'd want to choose latex paints of acrylic resins | | | | of green concerns, use only the type that's free of |
| because they provide an even and complete finish and | | | | fluorocarbons and methylene chloride. |