How to Texture Walls

When texturing a wall, you can either add physical texture or create a faux finish with paint tools and supplies that mimics the look of a textured wall. Both wall styles are attractive and can hide small defects, but physical texture on the wall is denser, adds a layer of protection and can dampen sound. To add a physical texture, you will need to know how to texture walls with paint additives or a pre-textured paint.

Texture grades range from very fine to coarse. While many textured paints can be used on both walls and ceilings, some are designed specifically for one or the other. Below are the types of texture styles you can choose from:

• Smooth texture paint: Despite its name, smooth texture paint is not smooth. It has a light texture that is much subtler than other types of textured paints. It does not contain sand or other materials to create a rough, grainy appearance. Instead, it is thick and heavy and mimics the appearance of stucco or plaster. Because of how thick it is, smooth texture paint needs to be applied with a trowel or putty knife.
• Sand texture paint: Sand texture paint features an extra-heavy bodied finish that can be used to add a gritty texture to both walls and ceilings. While you can purchase paint pre-mixed with sand, you can best control the amount of texture by using a silica
  sand additive in regular paint.
• Knockdown texture: You can create a knockdown texture by applying joint compound (also known as drywall compound or drywall mud)
  to your walls or ceiling, then smoothing the stalactite-like peaks down with a knife. The result is a marbled texture that can then be painted any color. Knockdown texture is most popular as a ceiling texture.
• Popcorn texture: Also known as acoustic drywall texture, popcorn texture is a heavy, puffy ceiling texture that deadens sound. It is created using a joint compound mixed with large texturizing pieces made from materials such as Styrofoam. Once applied, popcorn texture is difficult to remove and may require a professional to remove it if it was applied before 1978, since there is a risk it may contain asbestos.
• Orange peel texture: A very popular wall texture choice, orange peel texture is a subtle splatter texture created by spraying plaster onto drywall. The layer of plaster makes the walls more durable against cracks and dents. As the name implies, this wall texture resembles the soft bumps of an orange peel.

Tip: Using a paint texture additive
or joint compound will allow you to add texture to any paint color of your choice.

Texturing a wall using joint compound or drywall mud is forgiving for DIYers, since the compound’s long drying time allows you to simply wipe it away and start again if necessary.

• Start by cleaning the walls and allowing them to completely dry.
• Combine the joint compound with water according to the proportions listed in the manufacturer’s instructions. The resulting mixture should have the consistency of a thick batter.
• Use a trowel or wide putty knife to spread it on the wall.
• For a stucco-like texture, dip a sponge into the compound mixture and pat it onto the wall until you reach your desired texture.
• For a crosshatched or ridged texture, use a notched trowel to draw lines into the joint compound.
• For a knockdown texture, apply the joint compound by stamping it onto the wall or ceiling with a stomp brush. Then use a putty knife to scrape away the peaks the brush leaves behind. Be careful not to apply too much pressure to the putty knife, as you can accidentally smooth away too much texture.
• Once you’ve textured the whole wall, look at it from a distance and do spot touch-ups. Add or remove joint compound as needed.
• Allow the joint compound to dry for at least a full 24-hours before painting.

If you want to achieve an orange peel texture on your walls or a popcorn texture on your ceiling, you’ll need a drywall texture sprayer. Similar to a paint sprayer, a texture sprayer is designed for evenly applying dense joint compound across large surfaces. This is the easiest method for texturizing ceilings.

Follow the steps below to learn how to texture walls with a texture sprayer:

• Clean the walls and allow them to dry completely.
• Combine the joint compound with water according to the manufacturer’s instructions. Note that the texture sprayer may require a higher water content in the joint compound mix than what is recommended by the compound manufacturer. Cross-reference both the compound manufacturer’s instructions and the sprayer’s instructions and add more water as needed.
• Cover furniture, floors and walls you don’t want textured with plastic drop sheets. Texture sprayers are imprecise and can be messy.
• Add the joint compound to the texture sprayer’s hopper.
• Adjust the nozzle and air flow for your desired texture.
• Increasing the air flow will decrease the amount of compound sprayed onto the wall. Decreasing the air flow will increase the amount of compound sprayed onto the wall.
• Use slow, even motions to spray the compound
  onto the walls.
• Complete one wall at a time so that you can take breaks and maintain a uniform texture on each wall.
• Allow the joint compound to dry for at least a full 24 hours before painting.

You can create a faux texture finish with just a paint sponge if you want the appearance of texture without adding a layer of joint compound to your walls. This is the easiest way to add texture to your walls, since it requires very few materials and no previous painting experience. Creating this faux finish should also take less time than texturing the walls with joint compound, since you won’t have extra drying time to worry about.

If you want to learn how to texture walls with paint, then try this sponge technique:

• Clean the walls and allow them to dry completely.
• If you plan to change the underlying color of the wall, paint it as you normally would, and let it dry.
• Soak a sponge in paint. The paint can either be the same color as the underlying layer of paint, or it can be a contrasting color for a more striking effect.
• Dab the sponge onto the wall repeatedly to create a random, textured pattern until the entire wall is covered to your liking.
• Sea sponges create irregular, more natural patterns while synthetic sponges create uniform, rectangular patterns.
• This technique can be done with regular or textured paint.
• Cut a sponge into narrow strips to paint in corners.

Another way to texture walls is with a paint roller. This is a simple technique that can be used to add textured paint or to create a faux finish.

Texturing with
joint compound
or textured paint

• Clean the walls and allow them to dry completely.
• Combine the joint compound with water according to the manufacturer’s instructions.
• Pour the joint compound into a paint tray, then use a paint roller to roll it onto the wall.
• Wait for the joint compound on the wall to partially dry, then roll over the wall again.
  Doing so will pull up the partially dried compound to create a pleasing 3-dimensional texture.
• Use a brush to texturize corners.
• Once the compound has completely dried after 24-hours, you can paint the walls.
• When using textured paint, check the paint’s manufacturer’s instructions to see if it recommends just a single coat.
• For a more defined texture, use a thick-nap roller cover.

Texturing with paint for a faux finish

• Prepare and clean the walls as you normally would for painting.
• Paint a base color
  and allow it to dry.
• Using either a thick-nap
  roller cover or a stencil roller, roll a complementary glaze or second paint
  color over the base coat.

To create more styles of faux finishes, you can use a variety of other painting tools and supplies.

Combing technique

• Use a paint comb to create patterns such as zigzags, checkerboards, wavy lines or swirls in wet paint.

Rag rolling technique

• After the base coat is applied, dip a rag into your accent paint, wring out the excess, wad into a ball and roll it along the wall.
• Try different rag materials such as cheesecloth, lace, linen or burlap for different looks.
• You can change directions as you roll to create a random pattern or go over areas multiple times for deeper impact.
• This technique can be done with regular or textured paint.

Smooshing technique

• Apply a glaze to a wall, then place a plastic sheet against the wall before it dries. Remove the sheet to create a marbled pattern.
• Smooth, rub or wrinkle the plastic with your hand before removing from the wall to create different patterns.

Wood graining technique

• This process gives walls the look of wood.
• After a base coat of glaze is applied, use a wood graining tool to complete the process.

Other tips

• Prepare walls with a drywall primer before applying joint compound.
• Always strip existing texture before applying new texture.
• Texture additives can be mixed into most oil-based and latex paints.
• Touch up spray is available for repairing acoustic or popcorn ceilings.
• Powdered texture compounds are best for heavy-duty texturing jobs.
• Smooth eggshell or satin paint can be applied on top of the textured wall or ceiling to highlight the depth of the effects.