Consideration #1- Amount and Quality of Support
One of the most important issues to take into account is whether or not the instructor and his or her staff are available to you after the class. Is the person answering the telephone knowledgeable about the materials? Is each staff member able to answer questions about materials and techniques? The best scenario is to have involved, caring, immediate support, so that if you have questions or need technical assistance, you receive the help you need in a timely manner. Ask to speak to the class instructor. If he or she is going to be available to you after the class, the same should be true before the class. Don’t be afraid to interview the instructor about his or her teaching style, education, and experience in both decorative painting commissions and teaching. Is he or she warm and friendly or cool? Is she professional when referring to other contractors and instructors? Is he openly willing to share information about himself, the school and accommodations? Is he or she willing to allow past students to speak for his or her teaching skill and studio? Does he or she express a confident manner or convey arrogance? You are going to spend several days with the person on the other end of the telephone and will need to lean on him or her as you get started. Make sure you feel comfortable with his or her personality.

Consideration #2 - Product Lines
Creating great faux finishes involves a combination of the right materials and the techniques used with those materials. It is in your best interest to find a school that does not specialize in only one manufacturer. When you interview schools, ask what product lines they teach. Don't get sidetracked by several product "names". Be sure to clarify whether or not the products are made by a single manufacturer. The best schools teach several product lines that are produced by manufacturers dedicated to faux finishing materials. Beware the instructor who says you can create elegant faux finishes with Floe-trol or other paint or department store products. It's very difficult to manufacture top-of-the-line glaze when you're also making clothing or paint brushes!

Consideration #3 - "Sell-ability" of Finishes Taught
If you are contemplating a career in faux finishing, make sure the finishes taught in class are effects that you can use and, more importantly, sell! Sure, you can create a painted green Verde marble that looks and feels like the real McCoy, but the time and number of steps it takes to create the effect will make it un-sellable. For example, a marble finish may take up to ten steps or layers. If you figure your time at $50.00 per hour and your production at one hour per step for 100 square feet, it will cost $500.00 just for labor. It does not take into account the materials. And that's on a very small area! A person can purchase the real marble for about $250.00. The end result is that it costs more to paint it than it does to purchase real marble. When taking a faux finish class, make sure that you'll learn a variety of finishes, from single- to multi-layer. There are plenty of great looking, elegant finishes, including marble, that are achieved in just a few steps.

Consideration #4 -Complete Business Classes
One of the latest trends among faux finishing schools is to offer business lectures as part of the course. It is important to find out what is included in business classes. Business class should include: understanding how to set up a successful business; estimating for profit; how to present proposals; advertising; marketing; and selling work. Many schools only teach estimating. Some cover only a few of the subjects listed above. Worse yet, some do not even approach the subject, or address it only if there is extra time. It is highly unlikely that you will be successful as a contractor without learning the business! Ask if the school you are considering teaches "unit price" (square foot pricing) or "production" (we call it "accurate pricing") estimating. The production method guarantees you will be successful in business while unit pricing involves guess work.

Consideration #5 - Number of Students in Class
Ask if there is a limit to the number of people in the class you are considering. The best case would, of course, be one-on-one with the instructor. You would get personal attention and the instructor could adjust his or her teaching to fit your learning style. If there are 20 in a class, your chance of personal attention is pretty slim. Also, that many people slow the pace, making it difficult to produce enough quality samples. The fewer students in class, the better education you will receive.

Consideration #6 - Professional Quality Tools
Some schools use cheap, throw-away tools during class. Some ask you to purchase brushes or other tools before attending class. Still others provide professional quality tools for your use in class. When you work in the field, you will want to use professional quality tools, allowing you to apply and work the materials faster and more efficiently. It makes sense that your learning environment includes professional quality tools. Buying your tools is okay, since you'll probably have to anyway. However, until you use a brush, it's difficult to know whether or not you'll use it in the field. You may not want the expense of purchasing costly faux finishing tools until you've had an opportunity to use them. You may want to purchase tools for jobs as needed, instead of all at once. Choose a school that provides each student with a complete set of professional quality tools for use in class.

Consideration #7 - Number of Samples
The number of samples produced in class is important. If you do too many, you rush through them and can't remember how to recreate them when you get home. Too few, and you don't have a full professional portfolio with which to market yourself. Classes should be structured to produce a certain number of samples, yet allow for customizing to the pace, skill level and preferences of your class.

Consideration #8 - Sample Boards
Sample boards can be a wide variety of sizes and styles. The best sample boards are made of polystyrene and are at least .30 mils thick. They do not crease easily, are light weight, flexible and will last a long time. Sample boards should be large enough to give you and your clients a good image of what the finish will look like on a wall; the larger, the better. A good size is poster-board size: 19 inch by 20 inch. Some schools work with poster board which tears easily and wears out quickly. Other schools work with 20 mil poly-styrene which is easier to crease. Also, ask whether the classroom has easels or tables for the students. In the field, you will be doing your faux finishes on a wall. Therefore, it is to your advantage to learn on a vertical surface.

Consideration #9 - Time in the Classroom
Although it may be exciting to see a finished job site, you must consider whether you want to spend your hard-earned money touring someone else's jobsites or learning in the classroom. Also, you may initially like the idea of working on walls during your school experience but you cannot take the wall with you. It makes more sense to spend your classroom time creating the sample boards that will become your portfolio.

Consideration #10 - Detailed Manual
After spending a week creating one sample after another, it is difficult to remember exactly how you achieved each finish. In order to make it as easy as possible for you to recreate the samples you produced in class, the school you choose should provide a manual which contains detailed notes on each finish. Additionally, there should be a fool-proof way to match the notes to the sample.

We wish you the best of luck in choosing the right school for you. You will find our answers to the above considerations – and much more – at the link below.