| Faux Stucco for an Interior Wall |
From "Ask DIY"
episode ADI-106 |
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Q: There's a boring wall in my living room I'd like to jazz up. I love the stucco look in older homes. How tough is it to add this effect to a new home? A: (Brad Staggs, Ask DIY Home Repair expert) There is an easy treatment you can do to give your walls a stucco look. It's not truly stucco, because that's an exterior masonry product. We would consider this a faux stucco finish. You can apply it on a newly painted wall, after you clean an existing painted wall (figure A), or on a bare, clean, smooth wall. Just make sure you've removed any remaining wallpaper glue if you used to have wallpaper on the wall. Here's how you create the faux stucco look: Materials: Powdered joint compound
Two shades of the same tint
Masonry and flat trowels (figure B)
Plastic spatulas
Texture painting squeegee or window squeegee (optional)
Broom (optional) Working smarter: The stucco project is messy! Wear old clothing from start to finish. And always tape the areas you don't want to get tinted finish on. - Choose the color you'd like. This wall is a toasted-buttercup color. You'll use two shades of tinted joint compound, one lighter than you want the finished version to be, the other darker, to achieve a striated version of the color you want. You could also buy a textured paint (figure C) mixed with pigment to get this effect.
- Mix up two vats of powdered joint compound and paint (figure D), one a shade lighter than you'd like, one a shade darker. The mixes should be the consistency of creamy mashed potatoes (figure E).
Nobody's perfect: Don't mix paint with liquid joint compound; it's too watery. - Apply the light color first. Load a masonry trowel with the compound using a plastic spatula. Press the trowel down and work the compound into the wall. Use a lot of pressure if you'd like a smooth look but let the trowel skip over the wall a bit in places where you'd like a streak of "stucco." Whenever you stop and start, blend the new compound into the edges of what's already on the wall.
Nobody's perfect: If you and a friend are working together, don't start in opposite corners of the room and meet in the middle, or the stucco patterns won't look anything alike. Work where you can both see the pattern you're creating. - At this point, you can also make other textures with tools you can buy. For example, drag a texturing squeegee over the compound to make a ridged pattern. Or use a piece of corrugated cardboard or even the bristles of a broom to make other patterns.
Buyer's guide: An alternative to the squeegees sold for texturing in the paint department is a window squeegee -- cut notches in it yourself. Nobody's perfect: If you don't like the patterns you've made with the patterning tool, smooth them over with the trowel immediately and start over. - Trowel the second, darker color on to the wall. Apply globs of it here and there on top of the lighter color, then smooth it over with the trowel, working on small areas at a time. This will give you subtle shades of the same color. You may want to texture some more at this point, too.
Working smarter: If you don't like the ridges once they're dry, knock them off with a putty knife or sand them down. - Wait a full 30 minutes for the compound to dry, and then seal it with a water-based polyurethane.
More questions for Brad Staggs: Q: Do I need to apply some sort of sealant over the stucco to keep it clean and make it easier to clean up? A : Yes, cover the entire area with a water-based polyurethane. Use a brush or a roller to apply it. You can even mix in a little antiquing glaze if you like. Q : Can you paint over stucco? A: Yes. Use a thick-nap roller and latex paint to change the color anytime you want. Q: What happens if I get sick of the stucco? Can I cover it up? A: If you absolutely have to do away with the stucco finish, you can scrape small areas with a putty knife, but it will take a long time and a lot of work. If you didn't seal it, you can spray it with warm water and then scrape it off. Web site resources for adding stucco: Renewing the Look of Stucco from Lowes.com A Stucco Addition for Case Design and Remodeling from Rtbullard.com Repairing Deteriorated Stucco Add Exterior Insulation and Synthetic Stucco for an Attractive House from Dulley.com Stucco Exteriors From Michael Holigan.com
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