I was tired of my home décor and wanted a change so I spent some time at my local home improvement store browsing for some decorating ideas. I decided I wanted to update my walls and chose a decorative paint technique – – Venetian plaster. Venetian plaster gives walls the appearance of a natural stone finish, which is exactly what I wanted for my kitchen walls.
In three simple steps, we had beautiful kitchen walls in a decorative paint finish that looked as if we had hired a professional.
Step One: Apply plaster
Using a Venetian plaster spatula, apply the plaster to the wall working in small sections (two to three feet sections). Apply a thin coat, overlapping your strokes, until you have covered the area in a thin coat of plaster. It is okay if you miss some small spots, as this will give the decorative paint a more authentic appearance. Continue applying plaster in thin layers, overlapping and keeping the strokes random so there is no definite pattern. Allow the plaster to dry according to the package recommendations.
Step Two: Level
After the plaster has dried, you will need to level and smooth out the high and low areas of the plaster. Apply a quarter-sized amount of plaster to the spatula, apply holding at a 90-degree angle and skim over the surface to fill in surface dips. Continue to work in small areas applying a thin layer to smooth over the high and low spots. Allow the plaster to dry before apply a second leveling coat – – two coats provide a greater amount of texture to the wall.
Step Three: Sand and polish
To finish and polish the Venetian plaster, we used 600-grit sand paper working in small, circular patterns to buff and polish the surface. You may also use a steel spatula for a more polished look – – hold it flat against the wall, apply pressure and rub in a fast, circular motion. Continue over the entire wall until the Venetian plaster has a glossy, polished finish.
Materials:
· Venetian plaster – in whatever color you choose
· Venetian plaster spatula
· 600-grit sandpaper or steel Venetian spatula
We learned a few things from our first attempt at decorative paint finishes that helped us when we moved on to our living room walls.
Tips for applying Venetian plaster:
· Practice first – – use an old piece of plaster or wood to practice before you apply to your walls. This will give you an idea of how thin to apply the plaster and how to keep the strokes random.
· Use a colored plaster – – it is much easier to use a pre-colored plaster than to paint the plaster. This takes out a step and makes the job easier.
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· Keep the steel spatula clean while applying the plaster to avoid unwanted surface marks.
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