Nice juxtaposition of polished and matte Venetian plaster finishes.

Stucco Italiano Carrara all through the common areas:

How to do this finish:  1 – Base coat Carrara.  2 – Distressed coat Carrara.  3 – Soap wax.  4 – Tinted glaze

Sorry for the image quality, took them with my IPad.  I’ll post some better shots when the project is completed

Intonachino Medium in the wine cellar:

How to do this Finish  1 – Base coat Intonachino Medium.  2 – Distressed coat with 3 colors of Intonachino Medium.  3 – Soap wax.

Need more info on how to do these finishes?  Call us and we’ll tell you.  Better yet, come to class and we’ll show you

It’s a really beautiful finish in the client’s massage room.  I want a massage room.  Here’s a closeup:

Problem with adding metallic particles to your lime material is the particles get coated and no longer look metallic.  How did she do it?  Debra just did the finish and while it was still setting up she put the metallic particles on her trowel and just pushed them in.  Brilliant!  Thinking about trying silver metallic into different shades of gray Intonachino

2012 is kicking off with an echoed bang at Stucco Italiano as we just finished our new sample kits! Current global color trends and nature herself have inspired this collection. Upon opening the kit, you might find an earthy, brown matte Intonachino finish paired with a shiny, polished watery blue Marmorino Classic.  Your senses will definitely take a joy ride through all the different sheens and textures that lime plasters can offer!  Also included is my favorite so far…Tadelakt in a vivid leafy green. This timeless, earthy and smooth material has been used in Moroccan steam baths for centuries so it goes great in wet areas too!

The best part about making the kits was seeing the boards transform from canvases to finishes..as cups of coffee and music guided us through. Each material demands certain techniques and sings to a different tune. We sure had a lot of boards to get through yet it was exciting to watch each step build to the next one. It’s been a lot of fun collaborating with Aaron and Kay Lynn on designing it. So alas, I am honored to share our latest kit with you!

Trowel On!

Check out this cool stop-motion video of our friend Lynn Kriley applying Marmorino Carrara to a wall up in Anchorage Alaska, He says it’s something like 35 below there at night – yikes.

Stop Motion movie of me applying Stucco Italiano Marmorino Plaster from Lynn Kriley on Vimeo.

If only we could work that fast, right?

Stucco Italiano lime plasters are a durable and non-toxic choice for remarkable surfaces. Our Stucco Italiano studio in Seattle provides access to these fine imported materials, thorough training in the distinct Italian tradition, and ongoing expert advice.

Should you choose Stucco Italiano’s Authentic Lime Plaster for your next project, we will support you through the design, installation, and maintenance phases.

Upcoming Stucco Italiano Certification Course dates:

• May 7-9 (Mon-Wed) 2012 Completed
• June 18-20 (Mon-Wed) 2012
• July 30-Aug 1 (Mon-Wed) 2012
• September 10-12 (Mon-Wed) 2012

Sign up for class

We have a number of projects going right now up there, I’m just begging the installers for photos.  I was just there a few weeks ago and took some photos of a winery south of Kelowna that Len Trump just did using Carrara, Intonachino, and lime paint.  It came out beautifully.  Below is a preview – Len had some professional photos taken and I’ll post those in the next couple of days.

There's Len in front of a multi-colored Marmorino Carrara wall

Good composition, Len!

That's Intonachino Fine on the walls and Lime Paint on the ceiling

Opening soon

A very nice little spot for a winery

Best grape I ever tasted

The grocery stores all have all kinds of really delicious grapes you can’t get in Seattle.

We have a big exterior project going on north of Kelowna, they are using Intonachino Medium.  Check out this place:

I'm on the dock leaning against the yacht

Decent view

The whole interior is getting the “Stucco Italiano treatment” also.

The architect and the owner want a distressed finish, which can be difficult to pull off on an exterior because of the need to work on such a large scale “canvas”.  I played around with the stucco contractor on a couple of different approaches on some test walls.  The house is first-coated with Intonachino in most areas, but the final finish will be done next spring.

Look good when you dry, please!

Still drying

I’ll head up there when they get started on the last coat.  I like sitting in a directors chair and yelling out instructions.  But seriously you often need someone to be far enough away during application to see the composition from the bigger perspective.

Distressing exteriors is a whole thing unto itself.  It can go horribly wrong.  And then your customer’s neighbors will make fun of them, so you must not attempt this unless you really know what you are doing, or, just get me a plane ticket and the directors chair.

I’ll do a post in the not-too-distant future on aging exteriors.

Here’s me and the shower, no good pictures yet but Paul will send me some after he gets the bathroom cleaned up and I’ll post them.

Paul is also going to finish off the floor in the bathroom and the countertops, so it will be one of those nice seamless Tadelakt bathrooms.

For substrate we used a new product I have become very interested in.  It’s called Rubberize It and it’s a Zero VOC paint on rubber coating that seems to waterproof any surface it coats.  On their website they do a demonstration on the inside of a cardboard box which they completely waterproof with the rubberizer and then fill with water.  Pretty impressive.  Here’s a link to their website.  What surprised me when I ran some tests in the studio a couple of months ago was how well all of our material bonded to it.  I applied the Tadelakt directly over the coats of Rubberize It and our material bonds very strongly to it.  So theoretically, in a shower one could build the substrate out of almost anything (for example, plywood) and coat with Rubberize It and end up with a waterproof surface the Tadelakt will bond great to.  Seems like it should work.  Paul is one of the principals in the company so he gets to be guinea pig for a few months and then I am going to use it in my house for a Tadelakt shower as well.  I’ll keep you posted.

You can also use the material on exteriors, which is very interesting, and they seem to be doing a brisk business selling the coating for roofs, as well as koi ponds and other water garden features.

The Columbia gorge is such a beautiful area, go there if you can.  Here’s a couple of shots I took during our hike:

Nice, right?  We have a couple of spots left in our certification class next week, and there is also room in the one-day Tadelakt class.  I’ll be using my new find Rubberize It to prep all the Tadelakt boards.  I’ll post photos of that finished bathroom as soon as I get some.

]]> http://www.stuccoitalianoinc.com/venetian-plaster/working-weekend-tadelakt-installation/feed/ 1 http://www.stuccoitalianoinc.com/about-stucco-italiano/oneday-tadelakt-workshop/ http://www.stuccoitalianoinc.com/about-stucco-italiano/oneday-tadelakt-workshop/#comments Wed, 31 Aug 2011 17:54:33 +0000 Aaron Cohen http://www.stuccoitalianoinc.com/?p=2116 Due to popular demand we’ve added a basic one-day Tadelakt workshop to our class roster.  Here’s some of the info for the class:

Our One-Day Tadelakt Workshop will introduce you to the basics for applying our Italian manufactured Moroccan-style Tadelakt product.

You will also learn about substrates and sealing Tadelakt, how to apply in showers and wet areas, and how to create high polished Tadelakt.

The One-Day Tadelakt Workshop is held on Day 2 as part of our 3-Day Stucco Italiano Certification Course. The Tadelakt class may be taken as part of the Certification Course for $795, or it can be taken separately for $300.

UPCOMING CLASS DATES: ¨     Tuesday, September 20 ¨     Tuesday, December 6

Please call the studio for more information or to hold your spot in class!  Or you may sign up on line here.

Hope to see se you in class!…

This reminded me that I get asked fairly often if our Tadelakt is the “real” Tadelakt.  When people ask this they are usually asking if it comes from Morocco.  Stucco Italiano Tadelakt is manufactured in Italy.

In our humble opinion, ours is an improved version of Moroccan Tadelakt.  This is what our applicators are telling us as well.  Stucco Italiano Tadelakt looks the same as Moroccan Tadelakt, it has the same chemistry as Moroccan Tadelakt.  But due to the Italian refinement in the manufacturing process it is easier to polish and less likely to peel off when it is being polished.  On flat surfaces it can be brought up to the highest sheen with only a trowel – a stone is not necessary.  So it looks better more consistently and requires less labor.  Anything wrong with that?

Here’s the official statement from our website:

Stucco Italiano Tadelakt is manufactured in Italy by Giovanni Polistena.  Giovanni’s intentions in developing this Moroccan-style Tadelakt were to remain entirely faithful to the look, feel, and chemical makeup of the original Moroccan Tadelakt, while creating a more sophisticated, user-friendly product. Enlisting the help and guidance of Moroccan Tadelakt installers, Giovanni spent many months formulating the perfect blend of natural limes, clays, and sands.

Stucco Italiano Tadelakt is now preferred by many installers of  Moroccan Tadelakt for it’s beauty, ease of installation, and ability to resist delaminating/detaching from the surface as Moroccan Tadelakt often does in the hands of anyone but the most expert installers.  The results speak for themselves – Stucco Italiano Tadelakt is the equal to Moroccan Tadelakt in it’s look and durability, and superior in ease of application, price, and availability.