How to Use Amy Howard’s Glazing Techniques to Add Boho Chic Style and Texture to Your Refinished Furniture
, by Emily Gallops, 6 min reading time
If you want to add a layered, textured look to furniture or accent décor, glaze can help you achieve it. Whether you call it “boho chic” or simply “glazing” as Amy Howard does, this technique is a definite must-have in your DIY repertoire. Follow along with Amy in this free Finish Friday video to learn professional techniques for glazing your furniture.
If you want to add a layered, textured look to furniture or accent décor, glaze can help you achieve it. Whether you call it “boho chic” or simply “glazing” as Amy Howard does, this technique is a definite must-have in your DIY repertoire. Follow along with Amy in this free Finish Friday video to learn professional techniques for glazing your furniture.
Where and How to Use Glaze
Glazed Over, the water-based glazing liquid included in the Glazing Furniture Bundle, is incredibly versatile. As Amy shares in the video, you aren’t just limited to using it with One Step Paint! Glazed Over can be used in other projects with products like Mica Powder and can be applied to wood, metal, fabric, and more. Glazed Over is a wonderfully useful product to have in your craft toolkit and, in this week’s video, Amy uses it to add a shadowy, textured look to furniture pieces painted with One Step Paint.
To glaze your own furniture and to follow along as Amy creates her glazed pieces, you’ll need everything in Glazed Over Bundle, which includes:
- Glazed Over
- 2.0” round tapered brush
- Lint-free rags
You’ll also need
- Light Wax
- Dark Wax
- 2.5” flat paint chip brush
- One Step Paint in Vintage Affliction
- One Step Paint in Bauhaus Buff
- A container for mixing
Time to Prep Your Piece for Glaze
Like any project you start, make sure to clean your furniture or accent item with a lint-free rag to remove dust and residue. Then, it’s time to mix up your One Step Paint and apply it to your surface. As Amy points out in this video, in order to achieve a textured boho look, you’ll want to paint your pieces with your lightest paint first. Amy shows off a sample that has been painted in Bauhaus Buff, then glazed twice with Vintage Affliction. It’s a simple three-step process that you can use with just a few products.
Before glazing, make sure you have applied 1 to 2 coats of your lightest One Step Paint color to your piece. Allow it to completely dry before you begin glazing.
Mixing the Glaze
Once your piece is fully painted, it’s time to mix the glaze. If you decide you want a colored glaze to help with boho look, you’ll mix Glazed Over with a second color of paint. A pro tip from Amy: when you’re mixing a color glaze, it’s best to stay within 2 shades of your original color — if you stray too far from 2 shades, it will look very severe. That’s why Bauhaus Buff makes a great base color for glazing your pieces. It’s also why Amy suggests applying 2 coats of glaze to achieve a more natural, blended look.
To make a glaze, use a ratio of 2 parts glazing liquid, 2 parts water, and 1 part paint. This ratio will give you a nice thin glaze that you can easily apply to your furniture. When you mix the glaze, water, and paint together, you’ll notice that the glaze goes from white to clear. Be sure to mix enough to cover your entire piece. The sample pots of One Step Paint are enough for a fairly large piece like a dresser.
Applying Two Coats of Glaze
Concentrate on one section of your furniture piece at a time, and try not to think about the overall look. For example, if you are restoring a nightstand, glaze the top first. Then pull out the drawer and glaze it next. Lay the nightstand down and apply glaze to its side. You’ll have more control and a more evenly glazed piece when you focus on one section one at a time. This will also help you work quickly with the glaze.
Now you’re ready to apply your mixed glaze to your piece! Have one of your lint-free rags handy nearby. Load up the Round Tapered Brush with a small amount of glaze and offload the excess. You’ll want to pounce the glaze into your piece, then use quick feathering strokes to smooth it out. After that, blot and drag using your lint-free rag to soften the look of the glaze. Then, take a dry Flat Paint Chip Brush and pounce the bristles against the surface to add even more texture. It will take about 15 to 20 minutes to dry to a matte finish, and then you’re ready to move to the next step.
The second coat of glaze will add a gorgeous shadowed effect around the edges of your furniture piece. Once your first coat of glaze is dry, you’ll add more glaze around the edges using your Round Tapered Brush. To get a naturally faded look, you can then come back in with your Flat Paint Chip Brush and feather the glaze towards the center. Finally, blot the surface using your lint-free rag to soften it a little.
Using Wax to Finish Your Piece
Once your second coat of glaze has dried, you can apply a coat of Light Wax to add depth and patina. Load your Flat Paint Chip Brush with a small amount of wax. Use light feathering strokes to apply it to the surface of your furniture. Allow it to come to tack, then if you like, apply a coat of Dark Wax. Be sure to let the first coat dry so that the colors don’t blend, which might ruin your hard work! Light Wax can be used on its own, but Dark Wax must be used after Light Wax.
Finally, after your final coat of wax has dried, use a bunch of lint-free rags to buff any excess out. Buffing will soften the look and make it look more authentically antique.
More on Next Week’s Finish Friday
Tune into Amy’s next Finish Friday project by following and liking the Amy Howard at Home Facebook page! Amy shares tips and tricks for refinishing projects every Friday at 12 noon Central.
