Basic Decorative Painting Terms
June 24, 2008 3:55 pm Glossaries, Painting, Techniques and Mediums
| These words can paint a picture for you to understand the lingo of the decorative painter and artist. A colorful palette to impress your friends. | |
| Acrylic: | as in paint; waterbased paint that dries quickly. |
| Antiquing: | technique used in finishing a painted item that gives an aged or darken look to the paint. Available in sprays and cremes. Usually applied to the wood and then rubbed off. |
| Basecoat: | color applied to an entire piece. Like a background color with other colors or detailing work is added to the piece. Usually one or two coats of paint. |
| Color: | another word for paint. |
| Dry Brushing: | technique of using a dry brush with a minimal amount of paint in it to add shading or highlighting details to a design. Brush is dipped in paint and using a paper towel most of the paint is removed from brush. |
| Fan: | brush used to create texture; bristles are shaped like a fan; used dry or with only tips of brush loaded with paint. |
| Ferrule: | metal part of a brush where the bristles meet the brush handle |
| Flat: | as in flat brush; ferrule is crimped or flat; used in stroke work, basecoating, and shading/highlighting. Various sizes available |
| Flip Float: | floating one side, flipping the brush, and floating opposite side as in pant legs. |
| Float: | one side of a flat brush is loaded with paint and the brush is stroked on palette until a blended color is achieved. Floating is used to shade or highlight. |
| Filbert: | brushes used to create soft edges, blend colors, and has the shape of a flower petal or leaf. |
| Highlight: | lighten a painted area as is the sun (light) was touching it. Gives a more realistic effect to painted piece. Color used to highlight is lighter than color being highlighted |
| Gloss: | as in finish/sealer; very shiny surface; gloss sealer is the final step to piece to protect the work from light and water damage. |
| Liner: | brush that is round used to create straight or curves lines with consistency. |
| Load: | as in load a brush; brush is dipped into paint and paint is stroked into brush |
| Matte: | as in finish/sealer; dull, non-glossy surface. |
| Round: | as in round brush; ferrule is round, brush has pointed tip, used for stroke and detail work like comma strokes, writing, vines, or eyelashes. Various sizes available |
| Sealer: | finish in spray or brushed on to seal raw wood before paint is applied. |
| Shade: | opposite of highlighting; area is darkened to give the appearance of shadow or shading. |
| Stylus: | tool to make dots of paint, emboss, or transfer a design, end(s) is small metal ball; tip end of brush can be used as a stylus. |
| Palette: | colors used to create a design; palette paper is a coated paper designed to help blend colors, make washes, and is usually disposable. Also used as palettes are plastic lids, ceramic tiles, and freezer paper. |
| Technique: | method used to achieve a specific look, texture, or feel to a piece; examples include: stripping, sponging, marbleizing, or antiquing. |
| Tint: | light, transparent color; a hint of color. |
| Tole: | painting on tin or metal. |
| Transfer Paper: | paper coated on one side with gray, black, white, blue, or red material that aids painters in transfer a design to surface. Paper is placed color side down, design is placed on top of transfer paper, and a stylus or pencil is used to trace the design. |
| Wash: | water is added to dilute paint making it lighter in color and transparent; wood grain can be seen through a wash. |
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