WHAT IS VENETIAN PLASTER?

Venetian plaster is a new description for traditional lime-based plaster finishes by hand-trowel

It consist of slaked lime and marble dust, which gives each plaster its distinctive look and appearance. A lime-based plaster may contain over 40% of marble powder.
Venetian plaster is mainly used internally, on walls and ceilings. Applied over a lime based primer coat and then from one to four thin layers of product. Tadelakt is naturally waterproof due of its "creation process", however, a 2 pack sealer is recommended unless you want to apply black olive soap every 6 months. They can be finish with a specialised steel trowel to a smooth glass-like sheen, or stone-like. Polished plaster is usually sealed with wax to add extra protection, or a polyurethane sealer to ensure 100% waterproof.
Below, you can find more explanations about our products. Tadelakt, Marmorino, Travertino

WHAT IS TADELAKT

Natural waterproof lime base plaster

Tadelakt or Moroccan plaster is a natural waterproof plaster used in Moroccan architecture which can be used to make baths, sinks, interior and exterior walls and ceilings.
It is made from lime plaster which is rammed, polished, and treated with olive-oil soap solution to speed carbonation of the surface and impart water-resistance. However, we recommend to use a polyurethane water-base sealer on wet areas like shower walls.
Since it is applied as a paste, Tadelakt has a soft, undulating character, it can form curves, and it is seamless and durable.
Pigment can be added to give it any colour with a shiny or matte finish. Traditional application includes polishing with a river stone and treatment with oleic acid, in the form of olive oil soap, to lend it its final appearance and water resistance. Nowadays the use of a polishing trowel, allows a different finish, achieving more pattern once is sealed.

WHAT IS VENETIAN PLASTER

Venetian plaster is a wall and ceiling finish consisting of plaster mixed with marble dust, applied with a trowel in thin, multiple layers, which are then burnished to create a smooth surface with the illusion of depth and texture.

When applied correctly, it can be used to create a highly polished, rock-hard, marble-like finish.

When left un-burnished, Venetian plaster has a matte finish that is rough and stone-like to the touch but, also very brittle and damages rather easily.

Venetian plaster is especially useful on surfaces where marble panels could not be installed easily, and on surfaces that would be too expensive to have carved from real marble such as columns, corbels, and curved walls.

Venetian plaster can be tinted using natural or synthetic colorants. Through the application of a top layer of wax sealant, Venetian plaster can also be rendered waterproof. The most common material used is Marmorino and it will be called differently based on grain thickness of the marble dust.Venetian plaster can be tinted, or colored using natural or synthetic colorants. The ability to tint Venetian plaster is especially helpful when a specific color of "marble" is desired, or when a color that does not exist naturally is wanted. Through the application of a top layer of wax sealant, Venetian plaster can also be rendered waterproof.

WHAT IS TRAVERTINO

Travertine Limestone

Travertine is classified properly as a type of limestone, not marble. Therefore, this is the main difference with Venetian Plaster or Marmorino.
It can also be polished to a smooth, shiny finish, and comes in a variety of colours.
The Romans mined deposits of travertine for building temples, monuments and amphitheaters such as the Colosseum, the largest building in the world constructed mostly of travertine.

Travertine is found at Tivoli, 25 kilometers east of Rome, where the travertine has been quarried for at least two thousand years. However, Travertine is found in hundreds of locations around the world.

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