I was recently lucky enough to stay at The Hotel Za Za in Dallas, Tx with Nikki on tour. If you ever get a chance to go, do it!!! This hotel is drop dead gorgeous. The room I was staying in had these killer suede walls. They were so beautiful I had to go over and touch them, but when I did I was surprised that it was in fact paint! Not suede. So sneaky! I couldn’t believe how much it really looked like suede, they must have saved so much money replicating the suede look rather than upholstering suede which would cost a small fortune. After speaking with an expert painter friend I found out how to do it and I want to share this easy and fabulous paint technique with you! Nikki and I recently moved and will be using this same technique for our bedroom walls.
The suede paint finish provides the soft, grainy visual texture of real suede and makes any room feel very cozy. Suede-finish latex (water based) paint contains a special additive that produces a grainy appearance. If you want to go with a more traditional suede appearance it’s great to pick a color with earthy tones like browns, creams, tans and reds. I love the look of sided walls in libraries, offices, bathrooms, dining rooms and even bedrooms. With this technique you really feel like you’re getting the steal of the century because it looks exactly like suede without the hefty price tag.
Here’s what you’ll need:
Painters tape
Drop cloths
Primer, tinted to the top coat color
Paint roller with tray
Suede finish latex paint
Small paintbrush for cutting in
A Foam roller
A 4in paintbrush
*All available at The Home Depot
1. Prep the walls for painting. Make sure they are clean and tape off all of your edges with your painters tape and lay your drop cloth.
2. Apply the tinted primer to all of the walls and let dry completely.
3. Using your small paintbrush and the suede paint cut in around the room. For a video tutorial on how to do this click here.
4. Using your roller and tray cover your walls rolling in a zig zag pattern working in 2 ft by 2 ft sections.
5. Continue onto the next 2ft by 2 ft area and repeat the process until the wall is filled with your beautiful suede paint.
6. Using your foam roller dipped in paint slowly go over the painted section making sure it’s nice and smooth.
7. Repeat until the entire wall is covered and allow to dry completely.
8. Using the 4in paintbrush, apply a second coat of paint in crosshatch stroked along the entire wall beginning at the upper corner working from the top to the bottom, then left to right.
This technique will give you the soft shading look on the wall.
9. Let dry and that’s it. You’re all done, such a super simple painting project with amazing results! Enjoy.
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