How to make wood look like stone?

[lauriebrooker]

I am carving replicas of the Fifth Element Stones (in wood, as they will be under cover) - about 30cm high, and need to finish the project in something like a paint or stain that will give a stone appearance, as below or similar.

BTW the discussion board possibly needs a 'Craft and Hobbies' post location, not just as a tag?

[Jason]

Hi @lauriebrooker,

Welcome to the Bunnings Workshop community. We're pleased to have you join us and trust you'll get all manner of inspiration and assistance from our clever and creative community.

This sounds like a fun project. Let me tag a few experienced members to see how they would go about tackling the project: @Remarka6le, @TedBear, @Noyade and @prettyliving. Bunnings D.I.Y. expert @EricL will also be back on the site this afternoon and I'm sure will be happy to help. 

Thanks also for your feedback about the site. Our boards correspond to areas of the house, while our labels correspond to activities. You can search by either, or both. Placing your post in the Whole of House board with a Craft and Hobbies label should ensure most people can find it in future. 

Looking forward to seeing you make progress on your project. 

Jason

[Remarka6le]

Chalk paint! Grab yourself a brush and blunt the crap out of it, get a thick layer of black or charcol chalk paint and apply a thick layer as an undercoat, fill the cracks and deep portions well. Once this is done, grab a sandstone coloured chalk paint and use a sponge to apply it, though you might want to use a brush with a thin layer of paint if you want that chiseled, polished look. Then use a white chalk paint mixed with the tiniest bit of sandstone for the highlights. 

[EricL]

Hello @lauriebrooker

Thank you so much for sharing your question about how to make wood look like stone. What a fantastic project to undertake. The Fifth Element is one of my favourite movies. It's great that you've received excellent advice from @Remarka6le. Just to add to the suggestions made, I recommend using UNi-PRO 500g Multi-Purpose Interior Filler. Just like Leeloo's multi-pass that lets her go anywhere, the filler will cover all the pores everywhere on the timber giving it a nice flat finish.

The painting process can be summed up in four steps. Prime the timber, then paint it with the base coat. You then apply the highlights and then put in the details. That's four steps, just like the four stones according to Zorg. The tricky part is painting it in such a way that it looks and appears like stone. I suggest getting a timber piece and practising your painting skills on it. There are dozens of techniques on how to do it just do a quick google search.

Mind you there are spray products that give you the appearance of stone such as "Rust-Oleum Stone Effect" This has to be specially ordered at the special orders desk. Plus the Rust-Oleum 887ml Chalked Ultra Matt Paint which you can have tinted to your preferred colour. If you have a model sprayer the highlights will be easy to apply, otherwise, you can use a sponge to apply the worn edges effect. The last step which is the cracked stone effect can be achieved with Dulux 300g Duramax Black Marble Effects Spray Paint or you can freehand it with a very fine brush. Use the spray sparingly as you want it to look slightly cracked not overly stressed.

I am super keen to see you start this project, any updates you can provide while making it will be very much appreciated.

If you need further assistance, please let us know.

Eric

"If I happen to get another ticket to Fhloston Paradise, I'll be sure to share it with you."

[lauriebrooker]

Thanks @Remarka6le and @EricL for the suggestions and for the time you took to reply. Someone else suggested that there's a spray that is actually like a sandstone spray and sent me this pic - can't find it anywhere...

[EricL · Accepted solution]

Hi @lauriebrooker

The equivalent of that spray is from Rust Oleum, it's called American Accents Stone Spray Paint. It comes in Travertine or Bleached Stone. These products will have to be specially ordered at your stores Special Orders Desk. Please let me know if you need a hand ordering these items. I'll be more than happy to give you a hand.

Eric

[lauriebrooker]

Excellent, I will order that, thanks heaps!! You can have a Multipass on me!

[MitchellMc]

Super cool project @lauriebrooker! I'm just checking in to see how you're going with it. I can't wait to see your results.

Mitchell