• Stucco is one way of texturing wall paint.blue stucco image by jimcox40 from Fotolia.com
  
  Walls are traditionally painted in flat or glossy paint, which simply sits smoothly along the wall's surface. While this approach is usually fine, there are times when you will want to add some texture to that paint. Sometimes it's because the wall is old plaster with ridges and humps that need to be hidden. Or maybe you're just looking for something different. There are several ways to texture the walls of your house, all of which can be done by the average homeowner with a few simple tools.
  
  

Textured Paint

• The simplest way to add texture to your walls is to use textured paint, which can be applied just like regular paint without any further work by the painter. Textured paint is simply regular paint that has had sand, pulverized gravel or some other solid added to it. You can usually buy textured paint in a plain off-white color, to which you will add the color that you want. Textured paint is applied to the walls with a standard roller, just like regular paint, except that you lay it on more thickly. It usually doesn't work very well to use a brush with textured paint, so use a small roller so that you can get into the corners. This approach is best for walls that are in relatively good shape but to which you want to add just a little texture.
  
  

Stucco

• Stucco is a kind of paint that is closer to cement. You spread it onto the walls with a trowel in small sections of a few square feet, flattening it against the surface at about 3/8 to 1/2 inch thick. Once the layer is spread onto the wall, you can work it with the trowel in one of a few different ways. You can put random lines into it, pull the trowel straight out to create ridges and peaks, or simply leave it as a flat, stoney look. This approach is good for especially uneven, marred walls.
  
  

Pressed Designs

• For less random, more deliberate designs in the texture of your paint, buy a textured paint sleeve. This is a rubber roller sleeve that goes right over a standard paint roller frame but, instead of rolling the paint out smoothly, it creates specific patterns with it. These can include curved or sharply angled lines, circles, flowers or even words. You can use textured rollers with regular paint, provided you apply a very thick layer of paint to the walls. This is a good approach when the object is not to hide uneven walls but to create an interesting design.