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Old World Italian Villa Finished In Tadelakt

By on September 1, 2011 in Architectural Wall Finishes, blog, feature, Full Interior Projects, home, Lime Plaster, Tadelakt, Tadelakt full interiors, Venetian Plaster Full Interiors, Venetian Plaster Vancouver

Tadelakt being used as a distressed old-world finish is not the norm for this material. While my supplier were out of stock I was forced to use this amazing material on a Tuscan Villa in the depths of Langley, Britsih Columbia.

What a treat it has been to learn the advantages of this amazing material and also a client and builder giving me full expresion of my work and creativity.

This is the 1st home I have Venetian Plastered that has 5 Juilet ballconies in the main hall, with one of the most amazing fireplaces I have ever seen. (That to come in the next post)

Here are some pictures from the start of the project

Powder Room Plaster finish

The house is still under major construction and I will share more as I find more time, bare with me the end of the summer is a real busy one.

Thanks for stopping by

Cheers
Darrell Morrison

Tadelakt A Shower To Dream Of In Venetian Lime Plaster

By on May 28, 2011 in Architectural Wall Finishes, Bathrooms, blog, feature, home, Intonachino Lime Plaster, Intonachino Lime Plaster, Lime Plaster, Plaster Showers, Polished Plaster, Tadelakt, Textured Plaster, Venetian Plaster Vancouver

If you know me, you know I’m a busy guy. It’s work, work, work, these days, and when it’s not about work, it’s about time with my wife, my girl, and the pups.

Needless to say, like most of us, I seldom get to do the projects around the home that I dream of doing.

That all changed in the last month, because not only did I finally get to do a bit of home reno that my family gets to enjoy, but I also got to try something I’ve wanted to do for a really long time — a heavy-duty Italian venetian plaster treatment to a bathroom shower stall.

This work was done in our main-floor bathroom, which had been wanting TLC for a while.

Doing any project for the first time, especially when it’s a bathroom, can make it hard to estimate all the work involved, so getting a chance to explore the process on my own time was great.

It was a major project by the time I finished, as you can tell by the end results, but what did it take to get there?

Here’s how the Home Shower Venetian Plaster Project evolved, start to finish.

This ’70s bathroom came with tons of cedar, which all had to come down. Luckily, it was installed by someone who didn’t make much effort to do it right, so only a couple nails in each board ensured they popped right off. Removing the shoddy work made investing time in improving the room that much more satisfying.

The first thing I wanted to do was move the shower-head up by about two feet. No one wants to crouch for a shower.

Before now, I never had the need, or an opportunity, to work with copper. I decided I’d take a kick at the copper can instead of calling a plumber, and working with the pipes was easier than I expected. I might do the odd fix-it job here and there now, but I’d certainly never do my whole place.

Next, I installed plywood. I’m sure some of you building guys out there are wondering “why not concrete board instead of plywood?”

It’s a preference, really. I find plywood’s just easier to work with, and it comes in big old 4×8-foot sheets, making for less cutting in some situations, but, most importantly, I find plywood’s a big help when it comes to installing lath. (Shown later.)

Next up was installing the water-proof membrane. Obviously a quality project is needed for a shower, and I used a local company’s product, called, “SuperSeal” you can learn more about it here.

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Wood Staining And Finishing

By on May 3, 2011 in blog, feature, home, Wood Staining & Clear Coating

I’ve written before about my love for wood staining. In a world of laminate from Ikea and pre-finished wood from Home Depot, we forget that wood staining isn’t just a dramatic statement, it’s a real artform, but it’s dying out.

We’re doing our part to keep it alive.

I’ve been lucky to work on this home’s extensive staining project over the last few years. The architectural detail and craftsmanship in the woodwork is fantastic, and my job as the wood staining expert is to not only ensure I’ve got colour matching throughout all the areas, but also to make sure the wood grain doesn’t get lost in coverage.Other things I’ve had to watch for has been dripping and even making sure finish on all the surfaces offers a similar shine. When you’re talking this much surface area, that takes a lot of attention to detail.

Staining is always a labour of love but there’s nothing better to do for good quality woods. With mass-produced MDF and laminate everywhere, what little great woodwork we have should be stained, and not painted.

Today’s enviro-friendly stains are durable and good for Mother Earth. I only use Earth-friendly products, and I stand behind them. If I can’t work with a stain at home around my family, I wouldn’t put it in your home.

Quality staining and clear-coating can last for decades if done right. So, we do it right, but with Earth-friendly products.

We’re not just plaster-and-paint guys, we’re the guys you call for great wood treatments that will last for ages, whether it’s staining or clear-coating existing finishes. We’ll do woodwork all over the Lower Mainland, so keep us in mind if you have a project (big or small) you’re thinking of, or if a friend’s 1930 fireplace mantel needs rescuing.

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