What is the easiest way to texture a wall prior to painting?
go to lowes or hd, get a bucket of premade light weight joint compound, it makes less of a mess. take a dry wall knife, about six inches and coat wall is a three by three area about an eighth of an inch thick. the thicker you make it the deeper the impressions will be. take a slotted spatchula and smack around on the compound going in different directions, it may sound weird, but i have done this, it works lol give it a few minutes to dry. then take another dry wall knife, ten inches or less, and do X strokes lightly over the area you used the spatchula on, don’t be afraid lol most people are when doing projects like this. continue on in three by three areas until finished. allow to dry for fourty eight hours. paint with a base primer color close to what the top color will be. this will give you a beautiful texture. i have it in my hallway. i used ralph lauren jewel toned paints in brown, moss green and gold, it turned out looking like a million bucks. if you have a homedepot close to you, bher paint products offers a dvd or texture style and paint recommendations.
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If you want an orange-peel-type of texture, you can buy spray cans of it at paint supply places. It comes with three different diameter straw nozzles for different sized bumps.
If it’s more of an adobe look (called a knockdown), you can get a box of drywall mud, put some in a bucket and thin it out a bit with water (to the consistency of mustard), and then use a wide paint brush to sling glops of it on the wall (very messy - use lots of dropcloths). Let this dry for about an hour, so it sets up a bit. Then you go over it lightly with a skip trowel to get that adobe look. Then lightly sand it, and wipe off the dust with a damp cloth before priming and painting.
Whatever you do, I suggest you practice a bit first on a scrap piece of drywall to get the process down.
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Mix drywall mud and paint at about a 50/50 ratio. (Not critical). Mix it very, very well. A paint mixer in a drill is a good idea. Then roll it on. Experiment a bit with length of nap on the roller, how much compound you load on the roller, how much you roll it out, etc. When you find the combination you like, go for it.