DIY Woodworking, Home Improvement, and Art Projects

One of the main remodeling projects in the kitchen, in addition to the cabinet refinishing, is the venetian plaster effect on the walls.  When we started there was awful wall paper in a country pattern.  On the opposite wall, in the small dining area, there was an equally hideous, but different pattern.  We knew that just re-doing the cabinets was not going to be enough.

We removed the wall paper (that topic will be covered in depth in other posts and in other project tutorials) and what was left on the walls was a scratchy, uneven texture from all of the excess paste.  The previous owners hadn’t used any sizing before applying the wall paper, so our removal job was more difficult, and the walls needed a creative solution to make them look good.  Straight priming and painting wouldn’t work here…the walls were just in no shape to work with using traditional painting techniques.

We had wanted to do a venetian plaster faux finish somewhere in the house, so this seemed like the ideal location.  There were several things we considered here.  One, would the plaster finish match the cabinet style, and the other colors/textures in the kitchen?  Two, could we do a finish like this ourselves and actually make it look good?  Three, what kinds of costs are involved with a venetian plaster finish and would it be worth the final results?  Four, what kinds of products were the best, cost-effective, and easy to find for the job?

Check back to find out the answers we came up with, and to see the test results on the walls!  When we try an idea, we try it big!  Cheers!

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