Finishing walls with natural, nontoxic products imparts a number of benefits to a building, whether you are working on a plastered strawbale wall, or interior gypsum wall board. The ingredients are simple and safe, the process is creative and fun, and the possibilities are endless! In this course, we will look at the art, science and practice of making your own paints, washes, and other finishes with clay, lime, casein, wheat paste, mica, sand, pigments, oils and other natural materials. Students will be introduced to a variety of materials and their working properties, as well as gain a solid understanding of the basics of where and how to apply these products to different wall systems. This class will be mostly hands-on, with discussion ongoing throughout the course.
Course start time: Saturday, 9am
Course end time: Sunday, 5pm
- Competency Level: All Levels
- AIA credits: 14 -- Qualifies for HSW and SD requirements.
Suggested Reading
Adam Weismann and Katy Bryce. Using Natural Finishes
Lynn Edwards and Julia Lawless. The Natural Paint Book
Materials/Tools to Bring
- Mason's gloves or other protective tight-fitting handwear
- Favorite paint brush, sponge, or other applicator
- Goggles
- Dust mask
- Yogurt, sour cream or other small containers for mixing paint
Course Outline
Day 1: Clay Paints
Day 1 AM
- Introductions
- Discussion: What is Natural Paint?- Materials overview, process overview, applications
- Making alis: wheat paste, clay slip, intro to pigments
Day 1 PM
- Introduction to the color study
- Colored alis mixing & application (cont.)
- Individual labs with alis- oiling, mica, etc.
- Clean up 4:30-5
Day 2: Lime- Casein Paint, Limewash
Day 2 AM
- Introduction to Lime- lime cycle, etc
- Making casein
- Color study with lime-casein, limewash
Day 2 PM
- Application of Lime-casein paint
- Limewash& Lime-casein paint labs
- Clean-up by 4pm
- Class wrap-up 4:30-5pm
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