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Faux Nero Marquina Marble
(also Nero Maquina)
Veining Read Faux Marble: Veining
You will need to use an artist’s mixing palette or three pie tins or something similar to put your oil color in, another to put a bit of mineral spirits in and the third to use as a mixing palette.
Dab a goose feather into the mineral spirits then pick up a dab of your white oil and mix it on the mixing palette. Bring the mixed / thinned white to your prepared base coat and using the veining techniques mentioned in “Faux Marble: Veining“, apply drifts and veins of white (see sample of Nero Marquina). Open up the veining by spattering with mineral spirits (cissing). Nero Marquina has straight fracture veins that run perpendicular to the main drifts and veins, these run straight across the drifts in short broken lines. Also add fine negative black veins, using the point of a 5 in 1 painter’s tool to negatively draw in these ultra fine detail veins. Leave lots of pure black, this will give the marble depth. Soften the veins and drifts with a badger.
Isolate with a wash coat of clear shellac
After the veining layer is dry (about 24 hours) use a wash coat of shellac to isolate and protect it before proceeding with the second layer of veining.
Adding black
You can actually add black in on top of you white drifts from the first layer in the second layer to give the drifts more interest and detail. Make the black glaze by adding oil black paint (or artist oil colors) with mineral spirits (about 50/50 mix).
Allow this layer to dry (about 24 hours)..
Clear Coat Shellac Finish
Finish off your faux marble with a clear finish coat of shellac. This will give your work a “polished” marble look. You cannot use a yellowing varnish over your black and white faux marble, or it will ruin it in time. My favorite non-yellowing finish for marble is clear shellac. Although shellac has a slight amber cast to it in the can, if you thin it (1part shellac to 2 parts denatured alcohol) you will not notice any ambering. Use only one coat to minimize a build up or amber cast. Use only fresh shellac (Zinsser dates their shellac, and it should be usable for three years from that date), old shellac that has been in a metal can for a whole will sometimes corrode the can leaving the shellac rusty in color.
Don’t use oil varnish is yellows badly over time, or waterbased clears which might not adhere to the underlying shellac used as an isolating barrier and base coat.
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Smooth application techniques
One of the keys to good faux marble is the smoothness of the base coat, it should look sprayed on smooth. A base coat that has a roller stipple will look like it was “painted“.
Obviously, spray application will give you a smooth finish. Black shellac can be sprayed with an HVLP sprayer. HVLP sprayers give a fine finish and have very little over spray (compared to an conventional air sprayer or airless), when used properly. You can also use a Preval sprayer for application on smaller surfaces.
Nero Marquina is a classic black and white marble . The neutral colors of black and white make it a marble that goes with almost anything.
White Glaze
Interior oil based paints can yellow badly if not exposed to sunlight. The newer VOC compliant paints seem to yellow more than the non-compliant paints.
Artist Oil Colors
I use artist oil colors when I must be sure of color fastness and non yellowing whites. Artists rely on these paints to retain their original color. Use the very best oil colors. Grumbacher is a good brand, there are others too. Look for Titanium whites that are in a non yellowing oil base.
Real Nero Marquina
Faux Nero Marquina
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Jet black base coat
The base coat for Nero Marquina is black - jet black Latex paint bases will not produce a black - black, the whiteness of the latex resin always adds to paint color and the result is a grayish black. You can use a latex black base coat, but you will get a “deeper” look to your marble if you start with a jet black.
Black shellac
I like to use black shellac for Nero Marquina and for certain other granites and marbles. Black shellac is jet black and dries quickly. Shellac has great adhesion and levels out nicely. To mix black shellac you will add 2.5 ounces of lamp black to a quart of amber shellac. Mix on a shaker for 10 minutes to disperse the tint completely.
Foam roller application using a dense foam roller will lay down almost as smooth a finish without the need for spraying. Work the paint into the roller and roll out a few passes on a scrap piece of cardboard to work the shellac into the roller and to work the air out of the foam.
Alkyd paint
You can also get a deep jet black with an oil based paint, but the drying time will slow you down. Oil based enamels do level out well, and make for a great base coat for marble if you have the time to wait for drying. It might take two coats to achieve good hide, so be prepared to wait a few days (over night dry for each coat) before you can begin marbling.
Second layer
On small items you won’t need this extra detail. On larger surfaces you will want the added detail and variety that a second layer adds. Use the same veining white set up as layer one. Add highlights and fine grain lines with this layer. You can add very washed out and highly “cissed” drifts in this layer without worrying about ruining the clarity of the first layer.
