Glazing and Patinas

Some of the uses for glazes and patinas in decorative finishes are as follows: To alter the coloration and aspect of surfaces that appear to be transformed with time, to age the surface by applying several different glazing techniques and then waxing, to replicate different architectural techniques, cracking, tobacco or tea stains, or just to enhance the color of a wall and add movement. Glazes are applied over other decorative techniques such as plasters, thickened paint, etc.

Gilding

Gold, silver, palladium, copper, composite, and leaf are all central to the application of decorative finishes. These leafs are often enhanced by the application of chemicals for patinas or over-glazing to diminish or enhance the leaf itself. The underlying surfaces must be completely flat and smooth. More time goes into the preparation than the finish itself. Leaf is used on walls, furniture, and glass in the form of verte iglomise.

Plasters, cements and other material

Lime: Used as protection and decorative finishes going back to Mesopotamia, Italy, Greece, Egypt, Babylon 10,000 BC.
Lime and crushed marble are the central ingredients for several different finishes: Marmorino (coarse aggregate plaster), Venetian or Grassello Plaster (fine aggregate), Badigeon, lime paint, tadelak. Scrofito, frescos etc.
This wonderful mix may be transformed by pigments and application techniques to produce ethereal old-world or shiny up-scale contemporary finishes. Its ability to transform color into soft or dramatic organic patterns is stunning.

Cement Finishes:

Floor designs, counter tops, chimneys, fireplaces, baths, showers, etc. Cement is a wonderful material to camouflage or transform elements. Cement may be embedded with ground glass or tile, large grained sand, or inlayed and applied Marmorino style over surfaces.

Custom Plaster Finishes:

Polished plaster porcelain finishes consist of layers of plaster with designs imbedded under the surface and then waxed. Smooth and porcelain like to the touch.

Other Plaster Finishes:

Soft composite or decorative lime paints with embedded designs. Murals of grottesca over lime plaster panels.

Trompe l'oiel:

Marbling and Wood graining, for use on surfaces for themselves or applied to surrounding finishes in the case of panels, plates, doors, etc that are of an other material than the surrounding marble or wood for restoration and continuity. This may be applied to yacht interiors, objects, furniture and the like. The Italian and French often use these techniques in their architectural details: wainscot, crowns, trims, columns, stairwells, panels, museum pedestals, etc. There are many types of trompe l'oeil meant to fool the eye: ornamentation, grisaille, moldings, perspective, organic material, etc.

Frescos and Mural Painting:

Using soft-troweled lime, composite plasters and other materials, we create beautiful soft murals and decorative grottesca panels for our clients. These are all specially designed for each client. We utilize oils, chalks, casein, acrylics, tempera, lime paint, gesso, and hyde skin glues in our build up and painting of the mural.