If it looks BS, sounds like BS and smells like you know what, then it is. Old three-coat over lath plaster is put on in layers, the under layers (rough and scratch coats) can look a little rough, and they are supposed to be so for good adhesion. If your other walls are smooth then you have finish coat plaster on top, which is usually smooth as as silk. Its smoothness comes from the final polishing. My finish coat plaster is so smooth that little silicate (sand) particles in my unpainted bedroom ceiling will sparkle if the light hits them right. Now the contractor who did this, is he a plasterer, or something else? Did he use real plaster or joint compound? Is the plaster (if that's what it is) over lath or is a skim coat over board? And what is the nature of the roughness or texture: ripples, waves, orange peel or more than that? Also, though this may not be so important for modern plaster mixtures, older ones at least, need to cure and be primed before they can take any paint. Has anybody taken that into account? And yes, you can sand plaster; a big mess (lots of dust), but it can be done. Usually the problem is the other way around; in some areas of the country it is apparently customary to have a "knock-down" finish to plaster, in those cases the patch is often too smooth compared to the remaining walls. What was the outcome today? Good Luck! Molly~

You have to experiment to come up with the look you want. I'm planning to experiment soon to achieve a similar driftwood finish for one of my oak bathroom vanities. RH has different products with variations on that look; some are reclaimed elm, some are unfinished ("lightly sanded") reclaimed pine, some are oak with a "weathered finish." Some ideas to get you started... No oil-based varnishes or traditional oil finishes can be used, because all impart a yellow or amber color. The reclaimed pine is a grayish color caused by oxidation. Ferrous sulfate and iron buff are chemical stains that can duplicate that process and produce a grayish color. Washing soda or even baking soda can lightly gray or "weather" oak a bit. The "weathered" oak RH finish looks to me like gray pigment is lodged in the large pores of the wood, just like with any whitewash or limewash finish, but with gray pigment instead of white. I would try a flat, waterbased paint in a similar shade of gray, apply and wipe off. Rubio Monocoat might also achieve a similar look, in a grayish color like Gris Beige. Monocoat is so matte the wood looks unfinished, but does have some decent protection. If you use any other protective topcoat, it would have to be dead flat, crystal clear, and applied very thin so there's no obvious film build. One of the RH pieces is said to have a wax finish; that's pretty easy, just add artist oil pigments to wax. I'd start with white and tint it to light gray with a bit of green undertone to cancel any warm tones naturally in the wood. (Of course, no other topcoat would be compatible with the wax.)

Well keep going and strip the wallpaper? :D I have patched areas like that with regular joint compound and a small knife, sanded it, and then my 'secret' is to paint with a rough nap roller. It ends up kind of getting too much paint on but it helps match all the surfaces better.

For the cracks, you need to use fiberglass or paper tape. Joint compound can be used to fill bumps / holes. You can find DIY wall patching techniques just by Googling. There are also books at the Big Box stores. I wouldn't skim coat, 'high build' primer will fill in small voids / imperfections. KILZ High Build Surface Healing Primer Interior Water-Based Primer/Sealer