Part 6: The Little Things (Faux Oiled Rubbed Bronze Technique)

Once we discovered that we were getting a “new bathroom” I decided it was the “little things” that would make the bathroom look amazing. The rubbed oiled bronze plate covers, the wire shelves to look like wood and of course decorations. The first thing I concentrated on was the switch plate covers. I am cheap, very cheap especially when it came to the switch plate covers. First the oiled rubbed bronze ones were not worth $15, they looked flimsy and cheap. I opted for the $2.00 unpainted wooden ones to paint however I wanted (I was thinking orange at first).

Once we got home and I started looking at the fixtures, faucet and knobs I quickly realized I could achieve the same look with paint.

Materials:

Unfinished Wooden Switch Plates (I got mine at Home Depot – they were $2.00 each)
Black Craft Paint – I used Apple Barrel by PLAID®
Copper Craft Paint – I used Folk Art® 666 – Metallica Antique Copper
Brushes
Water
Gloss Varnish – I used Liquitex® Gloss Varnish Medium

1. Paint the switch-plate black

2. Once the black is dry take a small flat brush and dip in copper paint. Only go around the edges of the switch-plate cover. You can also add some dry brush strokes to the flat surface of the switch-plate.

3. Apply varnish. Allow to dry. Note applying varnish will help protect the switch-plate from moisture which can happen in a bathroom.

4. Install