Natural plasters, paints, and floors:
June 5-11 2010

Seven days of playing with mud.

Natural plasters and paints are suitable and often the proper application for almost every environment and compatible with almost any substrate including but not limited to Brick, Stone, Log, Drywall, Plywood, and especially Straw and Adobe. Natural plasters and paints are low in VOC’s, and toxicity; are easy to use, repair, and cheap to make from scratch.

In this workshop we will be making plasters and paints from scratch and the participant will have a strong base of understanding the application and rendering of these materials.. We will be discussing the history and practibility of these materials as well as sources for premade products.

Cost: $750 per person with half down non-refundable deposit.
The donations will remain the same.

Come prepared to work ie: work gloves, work boots, proper clothing. Keep in mind this is Colorado at 7,000 plus feet. Bring layers and any tools that you find appropriate. You will be responsible for your own food and lodging. Bring your own lunch for lunchtime is an excellent opportunity for open discussion.

Itinerary: We will be plastering a small out building from the ground up. This building will be a Tire and Strawbale hybrid. Using tires as a footer/foundation to get above grade and straw once we have gotten above grade.  
Work starts at 9:00am. We will take the time necessary to orient you to the job site and what we did to get to this phase of construction. All discussions will be ongoing!

Strawbale Plaster Preparation
This will cover all the details that are involved with preparing the house for interior and exterior plaster. This will give you an opportunity to see all the phases of construction up to this point after which will be forever hidden.

Exterior Plaster
Preparation
Earthen base coat, Lime top coat, rendering and application.

Interior Plaster
Interior Earthen / Adobe plaster base coat, finish coat and finishes, ie: Linseed oil, Alise, and Coloring. Possibly Tadelakt. Rendering and application.

Adobe Floor: Preparation, rendering, and application.

Natural Home Tour: There are many Strawbale, and hybrid homes within a few miles of each other; as well as Adobe, Earthship, and others. Salida has many great homes to see.

To register with a credit card, call 719-395-8419 or 719-486-4292 or to download a registration form to mail in with a check, click here.

Back to Top