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| Beautiful suede-like finish |
While staying in Ojai California for a few months I had the opportunity to get together with my friend Carolyn. Carolyn has been involved with the natural building movement for some years now. Her home is evidence of her passion for earthen remodels and amenities. While I was there we got down to tackling some of the details in her living room.
The walls had been plastered with a beautiful American Clay plaster and looked great except for a couple of black burnishing marks. With a simple sponging technique we took care of those marks and gave the room a smoother finish.
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| Windows - before |
Then we took on the window and front door treatments. Carolyn wanted to add some creativity to the windows and a more hand-made look to the room. We drew up some ideas and Carolyn selected a nice curvy style.
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| Windows - after |
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| Windows - after |
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These photos are of the plaster reliefs while they are still wet. The colour used is actually a gentle light grey, giving just a subtle contrast to the colour on the walls. You can see this better in the photos below of the detail done around the front door. The stained glass embellishment, along with the iridescent glass beads, provided just the right touch to give the treatments a fun and vibrant look.
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| Relief around front door |
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| Stained glass and bead inset |
We particularly liked how the clear glass in the piece above the door let the colour of the wall behind it through, giving a nice layer to the detailing.
I must say that relief work and plaster embellishments are one of my favourite things to do with my building. There is really no end to the creativity that can be achieved through such a simple part of the whole process.
With earthen building, the whole really is greater than the sum of its parts. Go ahead, get creative and build a whole home.
