Panel Matching Real Patina with Faux Patina

You thought you’d never, but here you are looking up how to do a convincing faux patina paint job that matches existing panels.

Generally, were panel beaters and spark makers, we find painting to be a chore, but we find that painting faux patina is one of the funnest painting processes we do with any regularity because it’s an art form — it encourages experimentation and it’s pretty tough to mess it up.

It doesn’t require a paint booth or a ton of equipment — just some rattle cans, masking supplies, and other basic stuff you’ll likely have around the house like salt, water, cotton swabs, and rags.

No pressure; you can spatter, rub, and wet the area. If the paint surface bubbles or has defects, bonus; these defects are desirable and add to the overall weathered appearance, and how convincing the final patina will be.

Patina Matching a ’56 Chevy Wagon

This Chevy long-roof known as Duke gets a DIY patina match from Uncle Frank using a spray bottle with water, several colors of spray paint, and a rag…

In this next example, YouTuber Jonathan W makes a valiant effort to match primered panels on a 1959 Ford Galaxie Fairlane 500 to the original patina on the rest of the car using a similar process with spray paint and water…

Matching the patina