Decorative stucco on the ceiling: application technology
Decorative do-it-yourself plastering on the ceiling - This is one of the most time-consuming types of finishes. In addition to the fact that the technology itself is distinguished by a certain complexity, the horizontal surface located above the head does not simplify the task at all.
Although, the beauty, respectability and durability of such coatings are: both the effort and the money spent. People have long understood this, and therefore are interested in whether it is possible to do this work with their own hands.
We will talk about how decorative plaster is applied to the ceiling, and whether you can do it or not, decide for yourself.
The content of the article
Stucco ceiling decor
What is more convenient than decorative plastering of the surface is the fact that no painting or pasting is required as a finishing finish. There are many varieties of plasters with a decorative effect, but not all of them are suitable for ceiling finishes.
Many formulations are used exclusively for outdoor use.
So:
- Decorative stucco for the ceiling is, most often, either graffito, which allows, like plasticine, to cut out any volumetric composition, or various thin-layer options. The latter include: "Venetian", as well as synthetic and microcement plasters. Between themselves, they differ both in their different component composition and in the technique of applying and processing the coating layers.
- The end result is also individual. It is worth saying that in modern ceiling interiors, decorative plaster is most often used as a finish plasterboard ceiling finishes. Most of the photographs presented in this article as an example convince us that this combination looks very interesting.
Well, let's see how decorative plaster is applied to the ceiling - the video on this topic presented in this article will help us in this matter.
Plaster Compositions
For decorative ceilings and walls, most often use colored plasters. They contain fine sand and cement, as well as lime and pigment. Stucco, in which marble flour is added instead of lime, is called "Venetian".
- Lime-cement plaster is used mainly for relief compositions, and Venetian - to simulate the surface of marble. If the first option is applied in a maximum of two to three layers, then marble plaster requires the application of at least six layers. Accordingly, the price of such coverage is much more expensive.
Stone cement or granules of volcanic glass called “perlite” can be added to the cement-lime plaster. Due to the presence of such ingredients in the composition of the mortar, the plastered surface acquires a granular structure.
In the photo at the beginning of our article, you can see how interesting and original it can look on a suspended ceiling. Structural plasters have nothing to do with the sgraffito technique, but are excellent for performing abstract reliefs on the surface.
Our story, as well as the video in this article, will acquaint you with some methods of applying nakryvochnyh layers for decorative plastering.
Decorative plastering techniques
There are many ways to apply plaster. The final result depends not only on the component composition of the solution, but also on the tools, pigments and paints that are used in the work. All this together is called the technique of decorative plastering.
Preparatory work
We note right away - and this applies to all technologies that decorative plaster will easily hide minor surface defects.
If on the ceiling there are deviations from the horizontal, or differences in the marks of the floors, it is necessary to pre-align the base. It is done without grouting and smoothing, basic putty with a rough dispersion.
So:
- The leveling layer should dry for at least a day, and only then can you start decorative plastering. And one more thing to keep in mind: if decorative plastering on a cement base will be used for finishing, then there should not be gypsum screeds under it, since the surface layer cannot be more durable than the base.
- Drywall this does not apply, since the strength of the gypsum board is provided due to its thickness. So, to eliminate significant defects in the ceiling, you can also by stitching with dry plaster, and then do its finishing. In any case, drywall needs to be putty, just decorative plaster will eliminate the need to paint its surface.
- So, the decorated surface should be flat. If alignment was not necessary, it should simply be cleaned of dust, soot, rust and oil stains. Stain removal is important, as the substances forming them can reduce the adhesion of the layers, and also, over time, to surface.
If plaque removal was carried out using modern household chemicals, after processing the base base will also have to be washed. The more carefully the preparation is carried out, the better the finish will be, and this axiom is not negotiable!
Colorization
To design the surface in the style of sgraffito, most often use colored plasters. Almost all decorative compositions go on sale in white.
The only exceptions are those options that are designed for one single effect - you see one of them in the picture below. In this case, the application technique is regulated by the manufacturer's instructions.
- Colored plasters become the result of introducing pigment into the solution. But what color is required, according to the conceived composition, the master decides. In this case, it is very important to correctly calculate the amount of tinted material, since it is almost impossible to achieve the same shade in different batches.
- The solution is tinted immediately before use, or applied to the surface in white, and then painted. The option with staining is used more often in cases where the lower layer should have a dark color, or a strongly saturated shade. The fact is that you can add pigment to the composition of the plaster only to a certain limit.
- At most, it is 15% of the mass of the solution, and if you do not adhere to this proportion, the strength of the screed may decrease. Therefore, when you need to get a saturated color, the soil layer of the screed is painted. If necessary, you can do this even with undiluted tinting paint, which you see in the picture.
- In general, colors are made not only in the form of paint, but also in powders. Powder pigments are most often used for tinting a dry plaster composition - they are easier to dose.The solution should be tinted with a margin - immediately over the entire decorated area. Naturally, then you need to quickly apply it in order to have time to work out.
Decorative plasters do not harden as fast as conventional putties, since they contain additives that slow down this process. The solution remains plastic for five to six hours.
Each master knows how much work he can perform during this time, and, accordingly, kneads and tones the composition.
Sgraffito style drawing
The term “graffito” was not obtained by the plaster itself, but by the method of processing the set, but still not hardened mortar.
By and large, you can apply this technique even on ordinary cement mortar, if you make it more flexible with the help of modifying additives. But the ceiling is not a facade, and decorativeness is important here.
- The type of drawing in the sgraffito style can be performed in two ways: deepening and stuffing. In the first case, the image is obtained by removing segments of the top layer of plaster. In this case, the lower layer, usually having a contrasting color, begins to be seen. The method of stuffing is a variety of techniques for painting.
- Anyway, you need to fully imagine the composition that you would like to get. A cardboard stencil is usually used for this purpose. On it, with the help of an awl, on the upper, not yet hardened layer, the outline of the drawing is applied, after which they begin to sample the solution. But, back to the initial stage of work.
- The prepared and cleaned base is treated with a primer and allowed to dry, after which the first layer of plaster is applied. It is called “primer” - not to be confused with impregnating primers! The thickness of this layer is usually within 3-4 mm. If the plaster has a granular filler, then the thickness of the soil should correspond to its fraction.
- To paint the screed, or apply a subsequent coating layer, is possible only after a day. The more layers, the more time is required for work. Although there is a technique for painting on raw stucco, but it is not for the ceiling. As for the sgraffito technique, it is used in the ceiling design, mainly as a decor.
- This means that the pattern or pattern is not created over the entire area of the ceiling. Most often, this is the sector around the chandelier, corner zones, or the perimeter of the ceiling. In drywall constructions, these are caissons, or convex figures.
- A solid pattern on a single-level ceiling, especially if it has a large area, just does not look. But sgraffito looks very harmonious in the decoration of one wall with the approach to the ceiling. To perform a drawing using a solution sampling method, there are many special tools that, in appearance, are very similar to surgical ones.
- After the coating layer is completed, and a drawing is applied with a needle, the master proceeds to create his masterpiece. The decorated section of the ceiling is conventionally divided into grips, after which, with a thin cutter, the solution is sampled along the chopped contour.
- In this way, almost any pattern can be made: each layer will have its own color, and its own part of the pattern is made on it. Similarly, ancient murals were created. After sampling the solution, small particles are removed with a soft brush or brush - and the picture will appear in all its glory. It remains to let the last coating layer dry, and cover it with special wax.
- With the painting method of drawing, stencils are also used. If the picture is multicolor, then each color should have its own stencil. After completing the background, and then, the covering layer, it is applied to the ceiling, and the pattern is filled first with a needle, and then with a brush dipped in paint.Paint fills the holes and forms a color drawing.
- We, of course, tell you briefly, so that readers can catch the point. The technology of printing a picture using sgraffito technology is quite complicated, and includes many nuances. Even if you watch the video, to do something similar on your own does not work out right away. Here you need a master class from a professional, a certain skill of work.
Therefore, before tackling the ceiling, look for instructions on how to make a stencil, practice drawing a pattern on a piece of drywall. If you can’t get sgraffito, choose another, simpler method of decorative plastering - for example: making relief using improvised tools.
