Tag: Lime plaster interior

Mediterranean Lime & Venetian Plaster Interior

By on November 11, 2012 in Architectural Wall Finishes, blog, Full Interior Projects, home, Intonachino Lime Plaster, Venetian Plaster Full Interiors, Venetian Plaster Vancouver

This lovely Mediterranean home on the cliffs on White Rock, British Columbia was a treat to work in. Every wall and ceiling in the common areas are treated with an Italian Lime plaster finish. The ceilings hand troweled technique was a lightly textured Intonachino tinted to Cloud White CC-40.Decorative Painting and venetian plaster
The walls robust in yellow tones keeping true to Mediterranean styling while smooth and slightly shiny brought life to this home.

 

Stairwell venetian plaster walls and ceilings by darrell morrison

venetian plaster walls and ceilings by darrell morrison

venetian plaster walls and ceilings by darrell morrison

venetian plaster walls and ceilings by darrell morrison

venetian plaster walls and ceilings by darrell morrison

Venetian Lime Plaster Vancouver BC

This next round of photos is durning the construction of the Mediterranean Villa.

Natural Intonachino Lime Plaster

With over 10,000 sq. ft of Natural Italian Lime plaster sprawling through corridors, stairwells and the 3 levels of this home walking through the door you are transported to a far away place in a Mediterranean Countryside.

Thanks for Reading Darrell Morrison

Venetian Plaster Vancouver : The Process, The Projects

By on September 17, 2012 in Architectural Wall Finishes, blog, Carrara Marmorino, Custom Fire Places, Decorative Finishes, feature, home, Intonachino Lime Plaster, Lime Plaster, Polished Plaster, Tadelakt, Tadelakt full interiors, Textured Plaster, Venetian Plaster Vancouver, video

The process, the projects, the finished product: This is an inside look into how I create my Venetian plaster projects, making them come alive.

In this video, you’ll see steps used to create my Venetian plaster projects, including completed project photos of Classic, Carrara, Intonachino and Tadelakt plaster applications.

When it comes to my projects, it’s Stucco Italiano Italian lime plaster that is my one and only choice, and I think this video shows you why. When you think interior stucco think Authentic lime based Venetian plaster.

 

Venetian Plaster In Modern Setting

By on January 9, 2012 in Architectural Wall Finishes, blog, feature, home, Lime Plaster, Polished Plaster, Venetian Plaster Vancouver

Venetian Plaster has always been used in Old-World settings like Tuscan Villas, for me though its been a slow start into the Modern realm.

Modern with its clean lines, simple colours and large windows do not usually call for a distressed Old World Tuscan plaster. In 2011 we had two installs of significant modern interior design stature. Keeping to the lighter side of the colour pallet we used a beautiful sand taupe. Here is one of the projects.

What makes me always go back to Venetian plaster is the fact it can be so many sheen’s, from matte to high polish and everywhere in between, its a timeless plaster finish that I will continue to offer in my portfolio.

The Before

With so many colours and finishes to choose from and durability that is far superior to any paint finish, Venetian plaster will be found in Modern and Tuscan homes more and more as the years progress.

Progress: Lime Plaster In a Tuscan Style Villa

By on October 1, 2011 in blog, feature, Full Interior Projects, home, Tadelakt, Tadelakt full interiors, Textured Plaster, Uncategorized, Venetian Plaster Full Interiors, Venetian Plaster Vancouver, Wood Graining Vancouver

Lime plaster has been my choice of material for almost a decade now. Recently someone told me it takes 10,000 hours to become proficient at any trade whether it be carpentry, framing or even a stone mason, the time spent honing that skill will one day make you a tradesman (or tradeswoman).

Over the summer I have been fortunate to work on a project in an Old World Italian Design Tuscan Villa. Breaking into my crate of techniques from WoodGraining, GoldLeafing, Venetian Plastering, Lime Painting and Stencilling.   I have been challenged in ways that excite my mind and creativity, opening a new chapter in my life and the world I love to call Italian Plastering.

Here are some photos from this recent journey, the project is still in progress.

WoodGraining base coat

WoodGraining complete

Fibre Crown is a foam moulding used to simulate stone and in most situations is painted with acrylic paints.

Here is a close up of the foam moulding

Lime Painted Fibre Crown Moulding To Simulate The Look Of LimeStone

Fibre crown molding Lime stone 2 before & After

Venetian Plaster Project Walk Through Video

By on April 3, 2011 in Architectural Wall Finishes, blog, feature, Full Interior Projects, home, Intonachino Lime Plaster, Intonachino Lime Plaster, Lime Plaster, Polished Plaster, Textured Plaster, Venetian Plaster Full Interiors, Venetian Plaster Vancouver, video

When you’re a guy working in the building trades, it’s not very often you get to travel for work, let alone work in a place like Banff, Alberta. This fantastic retreat in the mountains has been a dream-like project for me, and I’m happy to share with you this video of a walk-through of how the project’s coming.

As the build got further along, more plaster work got added to my slate. I love an owner getting excited about my technique and wanting more as the work progresses, especially in a place like this. By the end, Stucco Italiano’s Italian plaster was used throughout, stretching from the bottom up to the third floor.

 

Please set your viewing to high-def for all the detail!

Take a look at the waxed deep magenta plaster walls in the powder rooms, which includes that awesome entry feature and incorporates those subtle smooth textures across the walls and ceilings, on all floors.

Why would you want to use Italian plaster over both walls and ceilings? You have to consider the characteristics. No paint will match the beauty or durability over the long-term like Italian lime or Venetian plaster, and when you’re creating a mood in a room, why would you neglect the ceiling?

When the colour is fortified right off the bat, as I hand-mix plasters for application, including base coats, it gives a rich layered finish that doesn’t look man-made — it looks like it just belongs that way. It’s natural, rustic, and amazing for creating a mood in big and small spaces.

Lime plaster builds an atmosphere you just can’t get with only paint, and I’m a painter saying that.

When you’re talking about any kind of art or space, lighting means everything, and it’s definitely true with Intonachino plaster approaches I use in my Venetian/Italian lime finishes. As light moves across the room, during dusk through to dawn, and the light shifts from season to season, it changes the way the plastered surface appears, and you’ll always notice something different. It’s almost like your walls are a living part of your space.

This video will provide a perspective on the feel created with these finishes, but if the same video was shot at different times of day, you’d get more a sense of why I say that lightning — natural or electrical — is plaster’s best friend.

It’s been a while since this amazing journey began. Have a look at how far we’ve come, and how this plaster came to life. Click here to see the beginning blog posts.

Grandview Business Center, Italian Lime Plaster Interior

By on March 21, 2011 in Architectural Wall Finishes, blog, Full Interior Projects, Intonachino Lime Plaster, Lime Plaster, Polished Plaster, Textured Plaster, Venetian Plaster Vancouver

Here, have a look at South Surrey’s Grandview Business Centre, which you’ll find nestled behind Winners in the Grandview Corners Mall.

Starting any day now, we’ll be installing natural lime plaster throughout this high-end office building’s common areas, including the bathrooms.

Landing this project was a super-proud moment for me, because it’s my largest commercial project yet, and it’s yet another client who cares about craft quality, so it’s exciting to be a part of this.

Besides that, though, it’s really close to home, and I know I’ll be able to take my daughter there and show her that this is what Daddy does, because it’s a public space.

I’ll be blogging about the experience here, so please follow along as we transform this space from floor-to-floor, trowels in hand, as we take ordinary drywall and finish it into a seamless polished lime stone plaster.

Here’s proof Vancouver-and-area isn’t just a rainforest, we get snow too. This is the project under a fresh short-lived blanket of it a few weeks ago.

 

I love watching projects come together, and living so close to this build site let me catch glimpses throughout the early stages.

Here’s a shot of the braces holding up recently-erected concrete panels. Obviously this isn’t your average construction site.

The job required lifting massive tilt-up pre-made panels into place, including one panel 31-feet wide, 58.7-feet high, and a whopping one-foot thick, weighing a jaw-dropping 186,000 lbs.

When I get something wrong on a job, I might have a shade off in colour tinting, or a pit where there shouldn’t be (and, naturally, it gets fixed pretty easily). Could you imagine when guys like the panel-tilters get their jobs wrong? Man, I’m glad I’m a painter.

In an article published October 19th, 2010, by the Peace Arch News, Hannah Sutherland reported there were 26 panels to “tilt up” in this unusual construction project, averaging at 140,000 pounds per panel.

In speaking about the construction method, its “Tilt-Up” assembly, Project Manager and owner of Double-V Construction Shane Van Vliet told Sutherland, “This type of construction is typical, but the fact this is four storeys is very unusual. Four storeys gets to be a little trickier… and more engineering is required.”

A video of the assemby process can be viewed here on the BC Daily Buzz.

Now here’s what the building looked like just recently.

If you’re interested in purchasing space in this soon-to-be-awesome building, learn more about the Grandiew Business Centre on their sales site: http://www.grandviewoffice.com.

Venetian Plaster Interior — Banff: Phase 2

By on January 10, 2011 in Architectural Wall Finishes, blog, Decorative Finishes, feature, Full Interior Projects, Intonachino Lime Plaster, Intonachino Lime Plaster, Lime Plaster, Polished Plaster, Textured Plaster, Venetian Plaster Vancouver

It’s great to be back in Banff!

The progress from other trades has been awesome! I’ve come back to see the millwork going up on our lime plaster ceilings in the dining room, and the drywall’s being installed throughout the home.

With such a positive start for the new year, we’ll have a super-productive month.

Having lost some time to travel early this week, we’ll be working straight through the weekend. We’ll be focusing on the kitchen, which means Venetian plastering the ceilings so we can finally take on the walls.

After arriving in town, we spent the week preparing all these areas for the next seven days of work. That meant we had to prime all the walls and ceilings, and float some walls to get them perfect and level so they’ll the right canvas for our work.

Old-school methods like floating walls don’t get a lot of talk on the home reno shows on TV, but they can really make the difference in the level of craftsmanship seen in work like ours.

Remember, we’re working with natural products like wood, and one warped 2×4 can mean a world of trouble for more than one trade on a job like this. Using today’s tools and yesterday’s know-how, our finishing techniques transform trouble spots that could make an elaborate plastering job like this seem less than perfect.

Sometimes, it’s what you don’t see at the end of the job that makes the difference between good work and great work.

Here’s the dining room. I can’t wait to see this room get further along!

The design is just amazing, and look at all the windows. I’m in love with the look of this space and keep trying to imagine the final result. With all the lines, the angles, the textures, the light, I know it will be stunning.

Below is a detailed shot of the first floor’s drop ceiling.

The architecture here blows me away, I can’t get enough of it! It demands that we spend way more time on the finishing work, sure, and our necks and shoulders are cramping up with the strain and effort it takes, but that’s the way it goes.

It’s honestly a privilege to work on such a high level of craftsmanship, in such an amazing natural setting, and if it takes an ice bag or two, that’s okay.

These ceilings are something else, aren’t they?

I think the slight sheen and subtle rustic texture bounce the light nicely while adding lots of character. What about you? Can you see this in a space for your project?

Can you imagine enjoying an Irish coffee, reading a mystery book, and the glow of a roaring fire casting shadows on this pitted ceiling? If you’re a designer, would your clients enjoy this?

Here’s a ceiling shot taken before the drywall was installed. You can really see the jagged edges and the revealed planks underneath.

Our work is literally cut out for us!

This is the biggest wall in the house, area-wise — and the tallest. We have an amazing design happening for this, which is carved in, with half-inch reveals. You don’t get to see how cool it looks until next week’s blog posting, though.

If you’re enjoying Week One of the exciting second phase of this big project in Banff, Alberta, then stick around for more excitement — now that almost all the prepping is done, you can expect to see change happening quickly and dramatically.

Stay tuned!

Wishing you a happy and healthy 2011,
Darrell Morrison

Grandview Business Center, Venetian Plaster Interior

By on December 2, 2010 in Architectural Wall Finishes, Bathrooms, blog, feature, Full Interior Projects, home, Lime Plaster, Polished Plaster, Venetian Plaster Vancouver


Guess what I’ve always dreamed of scratching off my bucket-list? Plastering a high-end commercial building.

Soon, I’ll be scratching it off! (Or I can change the bucket list to “super-big high-end commercial building,” maybe. Then, after that, add “downtown”.)

Starting April, 2011, I’ll be starting an amazing adventure with my team as we begin a massive lime plastering project in the Grandview Business Centre in South Surrey, BC.

It’s a great building, an important part of the new “Morgan Crossing” district, which is an area that has just exploded over the last two years.

The mall, The Shops At Morgan Crossing, has great businesses like the Steve Nash Sports Club and a favourite of mine, because we all love a good wine: the “Everything Wine Store”.

Located so close to the mall, the Business Centre’s a great location for professionals looking to be accessible and convenient for clients.

All right, let’s talk project details.

The Builder Double V Construction will be creating the blank canvas for this amazing project.

We’ll be putting lime plaster in all the common spaces (including lobbies, corridors, and washrooms) on the Morgan Crossing Business Centre’s 1st, 3rd, and 4th floors.

We’ve chosen the palette already.

The corridors will be a slightly polished sandy/cream-coloured lime plaster with subtle pitting and black flecks.

Washrooms will be treated with a cement-based plaster that incorporates subtle pitting, almost like a honed travertine, but seamless and free of any joints.

The lobby ceiling will have a shiny finish that resembles the look of polished marble.

I can’t wait to see so much of my work in one place. A lot of what I work on is in private homes, but this will be a project that I can “visit” for years to come — and close to home, too.

Stay tuned while I prepare for this awesome undertaking, because I plan to share the journey with you by blogging the process in words and video while things come to life.

Cheers,

Darrell Morrison

Venetian Plaster Interior Banff, Alberta Week 1

By on November 19, 2010 in Architectural Wall Finishes, blog, Carrara Marmorino, Decorative Finishes, feature, home, Intonachino Lime Plaster, Intonachino Lime Plaster, Lime Plaster, Polished Plaster, Tadelakt, Tadelakt full interiors, Textured Plaster, Venetian Plaster Vancouver

I remember my parents telling me their stories about how hard life was “back in the day,” when they’d have to slog through heavy snow, up snowy hills, all while braving the freezing weather. Now that I’m working in Banff, I can finally tell my daughter the same kinds of stories.

Except that my stories will involve my struggles this week — hauling some 2,650 pounds of Italian lime plaster up a snowy, icy hill, down some stairs to the lower level’s entrance, and all in chilly -14 degrees Celsius weather.

Yep, just another wintery day’s work in Banff, Alberta.

Laying down the base coat

There’s a reason they call short people “vertically challenged,” and my work in Venetian plaster and the constant need to do ceiling treatments means I’m proof of the “challenged” part.

Ladder, please!

I often need a little extra height, and that perfect height still means a world of work but a lot less pain!


Living and working in one of the mildest climates in Canada means I’ve never experienced the difficulties of building in high-altitude severe winter climate like that found here in Banff.

I’m enjoying seeing how different practices are needed for success here, and I’m super-impressed with how the builder deals with nature’s wrath, tenting exterior areas so the work on the home’s landscaping can continue throughout the season.


This is the exciting part, for me! Just last week, the main floor had barely any drywall hung. That was then and this is now! The build team has really pulled together, everyone’s always on the move, and they’re working as a team to get ‘er done. There’s a lot of good nature on the build site, with everyone being very friendly and communicating clearly, all things that are very important to me in a work environment.

It feels wrong to post without sharing another photo of the area. Here’s the town as we head to our lodgings after a day at the job site.

Banff is such a lovely place. I have so much more of it to experience while I’m here, and that’s really exciting. It’s not just a mountain town, it’s a winter wonderland, and it’s feeling like an epic journey’s just getting started. Thanks for following the experience!

Cheers,

Darrell Morrison

This Week’s Banff Trivia:

 

Geologists report that the Rocky Mountains that make up Banff National Park are 45 to 120 million years old. In just the national park alone, one can find more than 1,000 glaciers — but only if they wear really, really rugged hiking boots!

Massive Tadelakt Fireplace Resurfacing

By on October 5, 2010 in Architectural Wall Finishes, blog, Custom Fire Places, Decorative Finishes, feature, home, Lime Plaster, Polished Plaster, Tadelakt, Tadelakt full interiors, Textured Plaster, Venetian Plaster Vancouver

Now you’ll see I don’t exaggerate. I said this Tadelakt fireplace was massive? It was HUGE!

Stretching 16 feet across and with a towering peak of 11 feet, you can see why such a dominant feature made nailing the perfect colour the most important step in planning. But, hey, it’s always about “the perfect colour”.

Remember, I’ll always be happy to mix tints as often as it’s needed to make sure it’s a colour you’ll love living with well into the future.

Back to the massive fireplace: When you take a built-in entertainment centre/room feature and want to turn it into something bold and grand, while still adding value to your home, natural lime-based Venetian plaster is definitely the way to go. Remember that, it’s not just a cosmetic change — it’s adding value with beauty.

But, here, take a look for yourself.

“After”:

“Before”:

Here’s the soon-to-be Tadelakt fireplace. Mean, green… and wow! Could be a show-stopper if it’s finished right… but that’s why they hired me, because my company only does it “right”.

Our first step was building up the mantle for added size and drama, by using a 16-foot piece of 2×6 and some crown moulding. Et voila! There’s some beautiful architectural detail.

After finished beefing-up the mantle and the build was done, it was
time to figure out the posts for the bulk of the Tadelakt fireplace
application. This transformation really took it to the next level of
super-cool, don’t you think?

Look closely. Do you see both the bulk and pure “flow” those legs added? We felt it gave exactly the character needed to make this fireplace a feature to envy in an already-upscale neighbourhood.

Next came the real treat — doing the actual Tadelakt lime-plaster application. That’s when I get to feel like we’re putting icing on a cake. This, though, was a tricky cake.

You know me, I love a challenge. Personally, this profile was like nothing I had ever Venetian-plastered before. The detail, curves, and
difficulty reminded me of a lonely country road on a winter’s morning — a great pleasure to be on, but taking it slowly and carefully would
be essential, while knowing that patience would be rewarded with beauty.

Do you see how I used an orange mesh for tying the pieces together? This step is a massive pain, and really not a fun part of the project, but when it comes to a curved profile and the added degree of artistic difficulty that comes with it, that grief is worth the effort just for the extra years of architectural integrity it gives the project. It’s like your mom always told you, “Anything worth doing is worth doing right.” That’s how I operate, too.



Now the project is complete and the space has taken on a whole new look. It’s no longer a built-in piece of drywall, but a long-lasting element for the room, and a focus of the home that can be built upon for years. This fireplace will surely remain a strong selling point for as long as the home stands, because we built it to last.

I’m glad you popped in for a look at my recent work. Thanks for reading!

Cheers,
Darrell.

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