Of all faux finish techniques, sponging is the easiest, even children can do a somewhat messy reproduction of this technique. In order to sponge, you must first paint the entire area one base color. After this coat dries, then you can take a sponge or even a plastic bag, dip it in paint, and apply the paint randomly to the walls. Although this is a random process, you want to be careful not to get any one area of the wall extremely dark or leave it extremely light or your eye will be drawn to that spot immediately. Sponging is very easy, and for all supplies usually costs between $50-$100, which may also include classes if you want to learn from the professionals.

Combing is a little more difficult. When combing, you use a squeegee with teeth to comb through the top layer of paint. As with sponging, you want to have a bottom layer so that when you comb there will be a matching layer beneath it. Using a combing technique is also very inexpensive, and you can use the squeegee to make wavy, zigzags, and other designs on the wall. Glazing is actually the product that you put over your first coat of paint. In order to glaze your walls correctly, you should take a class. You may be able to find a home improvement store that offers glazing classes or you may need to talk to a local interior decorator about classes, although these will likely be very expensive. Glazing places a transparent coat over the base coat of paint, making the wall look a bit shiny and transparent. You can use as many coats of glaze as you want to get the desired look.

Trompe-L’oeil is French for “fool the eye.” This finish fools the eye into thinking that the wall has a marble or granite finish. This is probably the most difficult finish to accomplish on your own. For creating the marble finish, you use a technique very much like sponging, but this one takes a bit more talent. Visit local stores to see if they have classes or tips on achieving this style. These are the four primary types of faux finishes. The first two are fairly easy, while the latter two are significantly harder. Before attempting any of these, plan well so that you can estimate the cost, and visit your local hardware or design store for classes or helpful hints. Having a buddy to take classes with you or practice with you will make the experience more fun. You can even do one room in your house and then decorate a room in your buddy’s house; the fun never ends.

Glass mosaics are decorative tiles to give a different look to a wall, bathroom or kitchen of your house. These are used as decorative pieces of tile work to add beauty and charm to a specific area of your home. There are various types of glass mosaiscs available in the market in a variety of colors and designs. These are available in different size and shapes and you can conveniently choose them according to your choice and requirement. To make a glass mosaic you have to join several pieces of tesserae to give it the desired shape of pattern. The tools required are mainly glass cutters and tile nippers of different sizes.

Generally, acrylic based synthetic adhesives are used to join together these pieces of tesserae. It requires a lot of attention and skill to prepare a mosaic work as any minor error may spoil all your hard work. There are two principal methods of preparing a mosaic work. In the direct method, you have to stick the pieces of tesserae directly to the surface on which mosaic is to be made. In the indirect method of making a mosaic, the pieces are fixed with glue to a temporary surface upside down and then these are fixed to the desired place and the temporary strata is pulled off. The indirect method is used generally in the cases where the finished surface is desired to have an extremely smooth finish.

Vitreous glass or Venetian glass pieces of 2cm. and one cm square size are used as tesserae to make a glass mosaic. Venetian glass is stain resistant, frost proof and non-porous material. It is important to use all the pieces having uniform thickness otherwise it shall not be possible to join them properly over a uniform surface. Colored glass, sea glass, glass nuggets, etc are also used in various patterns of mosaics. Glass mosaic can be made over a number of base surfaces like, wood, cement, terracotta, net, glass etc to fix in a particular pattern or design, you have to cut down the glass in small pieces. This requires a lot of attention and patience and you should perform this job with utmost care.