Swirly patterned wall paint effect?

[ProfessorDent]

Hi, I am trying to decorate my folks' house, it is a 1930s detatched. However, the walls have this not unpleasant swirly pattern, as if someone has created a pattern with the plaster on the walls, then painted over it in a gloss paint.

On other walls in the house, the effect is more 'knobbly'.

Does anyone know if there is a correct term for this effect, so I can describe it to any decorator we hire to come in and do the job?

[spottymoo]

Sounds like artex if it put up in or before the mid 80s chances are it contains asbestos so if your wanting it removed it needs doing by someone that has a licence to dispose of it

[80sMum]

The photos look a bit too amateurish to be Artex. I wonder if it might be just textured paint, which was quite popular up until the early '90s and widely available from DIY shops. However, it is often also referred to as "Artex", as that came to be a descriptive term for that type of finish.

[strawberrysplit]

I'd describe as artex, my parents house was covered in it, as are most of the ceilings in our house... the only way to get rid is to get it skimmed with new plaster. You can knock some of it off if it's particularly spikey but it'll need to be tested for asbestos first to be safe.