Stool painted in faux bois, ornate with a faux painted  cushion

One of my clients had a black stool called in French an X shaped stool (by reason of its crossed legs)  bringing sturdiness and style to the piece.

It was in her foyer, topped by a cushion. She was tired of cleaning the cushion that would also fall on the floor hence her request  to paint a fake one, in “trompe l’oeil”!

Original black stool with gold line

She also wanted to soften the severe and conventional look of this Directoire stool by changing its black color to a faux wood grain in a medium hue.

The first step was to hide the black under a sand colored primer, covered by 2 coats of “café au lait” colored paint with a hint of salmon hue mixed into it.

Stool primed in cream color

Background color for faux wood applied

I then started drawing the pattern of the wood grain and applied several coats of glaze to simulate with it the wood grain.

Faux wood grain painted on edge and legs

For the design of the cushion, I picked a pattern to simulate the fabric in a more credible way, faking creases and their corresponding shades, as well as the fading of the fabric in some areas.

Stool with faux painted cushion

Of course, along the contour of the cushions I darkened the faux wood, as well as along the edges of the faux cushion itself to bring in some depth necessary to a three dimensional effect.

Faux painted cushion on top of stool

The stool has now become a piece of conversation with a maintenance free cushion.

One could also imitate the fabric of close-by drapes or upholstered furniture to make it more convincing!