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| I posted this in House Chat, but it’s very quiet over there.
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| I really like the look of venetian plaster. I’m about to re-do our family room and thought that it would look great on the walls. This is a project that I’m looking forward to doing myself. My question is-what happens if, years from now, we want to change it back to smooth walls? How big and how messy of a job would it be or would the walls have to be re-drywalled? Does anyone have any experiences to share?? Beatrix |
Edited 12/29/2003 2:58:05 PM ET by Beatrix
Replies
I thought of that too before we did our family room. For one thing I don't think I am going to touch the walls again. Again if you want smooth walls later, you can just prime and skim. Shouldn't be too bad.
TOMCHARK,
Sounds like you are happy with your finish. Just out of curiosity- how long did it take you to do it? I spoke with someone at Home Depot tonight who laughed when I said that I'm planning on covering a 12 X 20 room. I'm in no hurry at all, just want it to be done right.
Beatrix-
One thing to consider- usually, the last step in venetian plaster is to apply a wax to the surface to make it shine and to accentuate the texture. I'd be a bit wary about trying to skimcoat over the wax later, as it may keep the skimcoat from bonding.
Other than that, have fun with the plaster- it's a great looking technique, and not exactly rocket-science to get it to look nice. If we all worried about what it'd take to "convert" something back later, we'd hardly ever do anything....lol.
Just a thought,
Bob
Bob,
I appreciate your thoughts. I've not heard of applying a wax finish, the techniques that I've seen and read of have you sanding the dried surface of the third layer of plaster and then applying a latex top coat as an option for high traffic or high moisture areas. Have you done this with a wax finish?
I agree with not worrying about possibly converting back in the future, but, I really want the "whole" picture before I dive in. I not a big follower of fads, but tastes change.
Thanks,
Beatrix
Ralph,
I don't know why, but I can only reply to one post without having to log back in, so thanks for the contact!
Hi Beatrix. To say that I am happy with the finish is an understatement. I never thought it would turn out that good especially considering the rest of the stuff that I got my hands into.
First I have a confession to make. I took the easy way out, I used the new synthetic venetian plaster. Since you were talking about HD so you are probably on the same wavelength. The real venetian plaster is way over my head but if I have time some of these days...
The room is 13x18, with a big window, a fireplace and three doors. 8' ceiling. I forgot exactly how long it took me, I did it on three separate days. One coat per day, may be 6-7 hours per coat? If you take your time the task is not that daunting at all.
Regarding protective coat, a clear acrylic coat is recommended where you may get water splash but the resulting finish would have a more even appearance. As with any wall finish, do a test board first until you are satisfied, and practise your technique and set the tempo as you go along. It's easier to throw away the board than to do correction on the wall.
Here is a picture.
TOMCHARK,
Thanks for the picture-it looks great! I have a friend with a 9000 sq.ft home who had her numerous hallways venetian plastered by a master. It's breathtaking, but way, way out of my league! I was looking at the BEHR product, but I'm going to look further. What did you use? We have a fish tank and a chameleon tank in the family room so it has to be very durable. I'm going to contact the person that Ralph suggested and see what is recommended. I'm really looking forward to doing this!
Have a look at this site, it's the "real" thing: http://www.italianplasters.com/venetian_plaster_nfo.htm
Thank you for the lead. There is a guy named Don who used to frequent this forum and he is a true master plasterer. Do a search may be you'll find some of his works here.
The product I used is called Stuccoantico by Adicolor. It can be tinted to pretty well any color you desire, even black. Again we are talking about synthetic universal tints, nothing like the natural pigments. But hey, one step at a time right?
Thanks so much for your leads. There are a few Adicolor dealers in the Toronto area-I will check it out first thing next year, ha ha ha! I have a color in mind-Behr's color choices are quite limited. I don't pop in here enough- I didn't realize that there were previous discussions about venetian plaster.
My question about possibly reverting back to smooth walls (even though I may never) seems to have been answered, but I'm once again learning so much more!!
Small world. Toronto?
North York.
Home Depot will mix custom colours for Behr. They also have brochures on how to apply it and occassionally run classes/demos on Saturdays.
Building Box and Rona-Lansing also sell Venetian plaster kits and have info.
As you can see - in the heart of Markham.
Phill Giles
The Unionville Woodwright
Unionville, Ontario
Beatrix,
A true venetian plaster can indeed be smooth.
You get there through careful application and through burnishing. The burnishing will also bring out the visual texture/depth of color. Color variation and 'depth' similar to marble.
There are indeed variations on technique that do have texture...where the plaster or faux-plaster is simply troweled on or applied with a wide putty knife in a cross-hatch pattern and left, for the most part, as is. That will give texture.
If you go with a slight texture and later want to revert to smooth, you can indeed do that with another skim coat of plaster, troweled on. Just like a skim coat over blue board, about 1/8th" thick or as required depending on the extent of yout texturing this time around.
If you want to keep that avenue open, as someone already wrote, don't use anything on the wall (wax for example) that will keep the subsequent coat from adhering.
Please post progress pics ans step-by-step posts as you go. I'd love to see how the project turns out.
I had a HO who wanted that in her bathroom and asked about it while I was doing the basement. I told her I'd lend her a drywall knife :-) I don't know how easy it would be to make it smooth again. Probably not too bad. The stuff will add some thickness to your walls - 1/8" or a little more depending, so you could conceivably gain as much as a quarter by the time you skim over it to get it level again. That's just educated guesswork on my part though.
I took my soda breaks and watched her go at it. It seemed a little time consuming. A living room would probably not be a Saturday morning affair. I did come up with a tip while watching her work though, and she swears it was a winner. I gave her a random orbit sander (hook & loop) and some scotch brite pads. When you get to the step that says to buff the surface down after it dries - that will save your arms and shoulders some wear and tear.
"The child is grown / The dream is gone / And I have become / Comfortably numb " lyrics by Roger Waters
RW,
Thanks for the educated guess and the scotch brite tip, my shoulders will appreciate it. I knew that it wasn't a quick job-I'm giving myself three weeks to complete it.
This could be another one for Andy Engle and FHB's article on plastering (Supposedly in the works...Looking forward to it.).
I'm not sure exactly what "venetian plaster" is. Around here (Massachusetts) the most common wall finish for quality homes is veneer plaster over blueboard. This plaster can be applied and then finished smooth, or in a variety of textures. Textures are often used in garages, basements, closets and other areas where there is less demand for the best appearance. A smooth finish requires more skill and time, but texture can give a nice look if a special effect is desired.
If you have existing smooth drywall and want to add texture, joint compound is probably the product to use because is is very forgiving to work with and sticks to most surfaces. If you want to go back to smooth later, I think it would be very difficult and messy. If you were to skim over the venetian finish, you'd then have a pretty thick build-up where the drywall meets the moldings and I think it would be difficult to get it very smooth. Sanding it smooth would be very dusty. Once this finish was applied, I'd think going back would be a decision not taken lightly.
Perhaps a creative paint finish could give you a look you would like. My wife did a fantastic job with a special roller that has two roller covers on one handle. Two paint colors are poured in a special tray with a divider. Both colors are applied simultaneously. It took a while to develop the right touch, but in the end it looks fantastic.
Al Mollitor, Sharon MA
Al,
Here's a link showing what DIY venetian plaster is:
http://www.diynet.com/diy/lv_faux_finishing/article/0,2041,DIY_14109_2278252,00.html
I have done a few different faux finishes, I think the finish that your wife did is called Fresco. I've seen it and it looks great. I really want to add a bit of texture and drama to these walls, I like the idea of the walls changing depending on the lighting and time of day. I've been thinking about it for a while and have seen it in other homes, but just wanted to know what the options are for the future. Thanks so much for your advice.
e-mail this guy for more info about venetian plaster:
[email protected]
or snail mail:
Plaster Man
c/o NJM, Walls & Ceilings
755 W. Big Beaver,
Suite 1000
Troy, MI 48084
Forgot to add this link, and my post hasn;t yet appeared...
For tints, you can indeed fine tune the base to get most any desired color. Mixol makes a very nice product, and has a basic tint sheet to show where you can go with their tints:
http://www.mixol.de/com/rangepaste/index_rangepaste.html
Also, if you do wax the surface, with a bit of effort the wax can later be removed. Mineral spirits and denatured alcohol will do the trick. Obviously, the more textured the surface, the more laborious the removal.
Since for some reason I can't reply to more than one without re-logging in:
Tomchark-That's too funny! I'm just down the highway in Oakville.
Phil- The HD guy told me the only available colors were in the brochure, interesting that you say they will mix custom colors. I'll go see the people at Rona.
Mongo-Thanks for your input.I envisioned a slightly textured finish, not completely smooth. I'm planning on doing alot of practicing before I attack the walls. From what everyone here has said, if sometime down the road we want to go back to smooth walls-it won't mean having to re drywall the walls. I can live with that. Mixol is available in 16 countries- but according to that site, it's not in Canada.
(Just had a little excitement here- had an oven element fire that I couldn't put out- it's reassuring that the fire department was here in less than 2 minutes) Looks like I'll be shopping for a new stove before I go further with the venetian plaster.
I'll try to post pictures.
Happy New Year to all!!
Which HD did you go to ? It says right on the display in the store and in the brochure that they will mix custom colours..
Phill Giles
The Unionville Woodwright
Unionville, Ontario
Since for some reason I can't reply to more than one without re-logging in:
I don't think you can reply to more than one person in the same post. If you find a way I would like to know. If you want to direct more than one person to a post you have the option of emailing them, up to ten recepients I think and they would be notifiied to go to the particular post but I don't know of anybody who does that routinely.
Was at HD today, DW wanted to buy a lock box. There was a promotion on Behr products including venetian, you get $10 HD gift certificate I guess for buying over a certain amount. Didn't read the small prints... forgot my glasses.
As Phill and other posters suggested, you can tint your venetian to any color you want, not limiting to their samples. Any universal tint from any paint manufacturer will do. If you are very particular about the color you have in mind, may I suggest you go to a store where they know how to tint.
Here is a very typical example. You go to HD, get your venetian tinted to the sample you show them, turn out aaaa.. little too pink. You go back and they'll say, "Sorry, we can't make it less pink, we have too much red in here already. I can make it more pink if you want(don't laugh, it actually happened to me before, to be fair, not at HD) but if you want it less pink you'll have to buy another can of base and I can mix the two and you'll get your less pink." Now if you go to the store where the clerk knows what she's doing, she will say, "No problem, I'll just add a little green."
It may not be that extreme but there is my point. Good luck, have fun.
Now I see that you need recommendation for a new stove...
.
TOMCHARK,
I get error messages after replying to one post and then trying to reply to another...just had the computer reformatted- I think maybe it's the settings??
I see now why other customers were waiting for one particular clerk at the HD the other night. I didn't have alot of time. The person that I was speaking with (Burlington HD) obviously didn't have all the info (the pamplet says very clearly, in tiny letters though, that custom colors are an option). You are so right about finding the right place -I used to get all of my advice and buy all of my paint at a very small paint store-unfortunately it had to bow to the bigger places and closed. The owner was a color genius! I now have color swatches all over our family room walls- interesting discussion for our New Years party last night.
.I'm OK with the stove, know exactly what I want, I just have to find the best deal now. It was only a matter of time before the stove died-it's dead.