It’s
Faux
Real!
Have
the
Home
You’ve
Always
Dreamed
About
By
Dena
Harris
We
may
call
North
Carolina
home
and
love
it,
but
there
are
those
among
us
who
have
dreamed
of
living
in
a
gilded
French
chateau
(sans
children,
of
course—sticky
fingers
and
gold
just
don’t
mix)
or
perhaps
preparing
a
meal
in
an
authentic
Italian
kitchen
replete
with
frescos
and
crumbling
mortar.
Sound
out
of
reach
without
a
lotto
win
and
eight
weeks
off
work?
Think
again.
Able
to
faux
“anything
except
the
human
body,”
Greensboro-based
faux
artisan
Debbie
Hayes—and
others
like
her—create
exclusive
faux
finishes
for
kitchen
cabinets,
walls,
furniture,
accessories,
custom
art
commissions,
fireplace
mantels,
range
hoods,
and
more.
High-end
faux
finishes
are
still
something
of
an
unknown
around
these
parts.
Say
the
word
“faux”
in
North
Carolina
and
people
either
think
you’re
saying
“for”
and
wait
for
you
to
finish
your
sentence
or
their
minds
immediately
leap
to
the
bad
sponge
painting
that
ran
rampant
through
our
homes
in
the
late
80s.
(Admit
it—you’ve
attempted
at
least
one
sponge-painted
room
in
your
life.
Likely
it’s
now
the
room
the
dog
sleeps
in.)
High-end
faux
finishing
is
a
different
game
altogether.
First
comes
the
training.
Faux
finishers
typically
spend
thousands
of
dollars
each
year
in
training
and
the
environmentally
safe,
water-based
materials
required
for
a
high-end
faux
finish
may
often
only
be
ordered
by
a
certified
faux
finisher.
 |
| Refinished
Museum
Lions |
Faux
finishers
are
also
sought
after
by
companies
and
establishments
looking
to
create
a
specific
look
or
to
recreate
the
look
of
an
older,
damaged
piece.
Hayes,
for
example,
was
called
on
to
refinish
the
150-year-old
solid
cast
iron
lions
outside
the
Greensboro
Historical
Museum
that
O’Henry
played
on
as
a
boy.
She’s
also
assisted
with
faux
renovations
on
a
12th
century
church
in
France.
But
barring
cast-iron
lions
in
your
home
that
need
a
touch-up,
what
might
you
use
a
faux
finisher
for?
“Almost
anything,”
says
Hayes,
whose
inspiration
for
the
custom
finishes
she
creates
comes
from
whatever
clients
walk
in
the
door
with—including
magazines,
pictures,
wood
samples,
or
even
a
plate
or
fabric
swatch
they’re
hoping
to
match.
 |
|
An
80-year-old
window
in
an
Italian
mansion
with
custom-designed
and
fitted
patterns
in
a
frosted
finish
for
privacy
and
light.
The
surrounding
walls
are
an
all-over
design
in
metallics.
|
Hayes
has
fauxed
a
plain
window
to
recreate
an
Italian
design,
wooden
outdoor
columns
to
appear
as
marble,
and
yes,
kitchen
cabinets
to
resemble
an
authentic
Italian
kitchen.
“Kitchens
are
my
favorite,”
says
Hayes.
“There
so
much
oak
out
there
that
has
the
potential
to
be
so
much
more.”
She
mentions
one
couple
that
sought
her
help
when
the
outdated
kitchen
cabinets
in
their
upscale
dwelling
prevented
the
home
from
selling.
Hayes
set
about
renovating
the
cabinets
and
the
clients
were
so
thrilled
with
the
final
result
they
decided
not
to
sell
after
all.
“That’s
not
uncommon,”
says
Hayes.
“People
have
no
idea
what
can
be
accomplished
with
faux
finishes
and
don’t
want
to
leave
once
they
see
the
transformation.”
| Before |
and
After
|
 |
.jpg) |
| Before
and
after
of
a
kitchen
island
(before
is
plain
maple
and
after
is
white
italian
plaster
with
faux
ebony
base). |
To
custom
faux
a
cabinet
or
countertop
requires
anywhere
from
five
to
eight
layers
of
treatment.
And
anything
in
your
home
is
open
for
transformation.
Change
a
garage
sale
desk
to
a
leather-finish
looking
wonder.
A
concrete
patio
becomes
an
aged-patina
fresco.
Or—another
of
Hayes
favorite—instead
of
paint,
opt
for
custom
faux
wallpaper.
That’s
seamless
custom-designed
wallpaper
Hayes
creates
to
model
any
high-end
texture,
surface,
look,
or
mood
you
want
to
capture.
“The
wallpaper
creates
more
moments
where
people
say,
‘I’m
never
leaving
my
home
now
that
this
is
here,’”
laughs
Hayes.
| Before |
and
After
|
 |
.jpg) |
| Before
and
after
of
painted
white
bookcases
with
a
closeup
of
an
ornate
cherry
and
gold
door. |
When
interviewing
designers,
make
sure
they
are
certified,
visit
their
showroom
if
possible
to
see
samples
of
their
work,
and
don’t
hesitate
to
ask
for
references.
And
remember,
ladies—we
may
live
in
the
mountains
or
the
foothills
of
the
glorious
state
of
North
Carolina,
but
there’s
no
harm
in
slipping
away
to
our
Parisian
café
dining
rooms
for
tea.
Ready
to
enter
a
whole
new
world
when
you
step
through
your
front
door?
Faux
finishing
provides
instant
ambiance
to
any
home.
Hailed
as
the
“Erma
Bombeck
of
cat
writers,”
Dena
Harris’
stories
appear
in
the
newly
released
Chicken
Soup
for
the
Cat
Lover’s
Soul,
as
well
as
in
her
new
cat
humor
book,
Lessons
In
Stalking…Adjusting
to
Life
with
Cats
(www.lessonsinstalking.com).
