Work photos

[Chris L]

Here are some shots of some of my work.

[cbassett]

Take it to the Vendor forum!





You do some damn beautiful work Chris!

May have to invite you up for a weekend of remodeling, er, uh, BBQ and wheeling!

[Dan-H]

did you do the textured paint?

wanna come do my house ?

I'm *ALOT* closer to the 'con than basset

[mrblaine]

Originally posted by Dan-H
did you do the textured paint?

That's funny, actually hilarious. He actually is the floor cleaner. Didn't you notice how spotless the floors were?

[Chris L]

Originally posted by Dan-H
did you do the textured paint?

wanna come do my house ?

I'm *ALOT* closer to the 'con than basset

That's called "Marmorino". it's an Italian plaster made from ground marble and lime putty with color added. Compressed/Troweled to a smooth marble surface.

[mrblaine]

Originally posted by Chris L
That's called "Marmorino". it's an Italian plaster made from ground marble and lime putty with color added. Compressed/Troweled to a smooth marble surface.

Well, you could call it textured paint, couldn't you? Looks almost as good as those sponge paint experts.

[Dan-H]

Originally posted by mrblaine
That's funny, actually hilarious. He actually is the floor cleaner. Didn't you notice how spotless the floors were?

LOL, I was going to comment on the floors.

so, the "textured paint" stuff sounds expensive.

I was thinking 5 to 8 coats of sponge paint in different colors...

[Jeff Weston]

Is that a house? Such a vulgar display of wealth should be punished. Nice job Chris.

[-=Alien=-]

Wow... that's awesome.

[Dan-H]

Originally posted by Jeff Weston
Is that a house? .

a house with fire alarms and lit exit signs?

building codes down south must be pretty tough

[Jays89YJ]

Chris L, you didn't ask me permission to post my property on the internet.

That is very excellent work. I like the 2nd to last room photo. What is it that you do? Design? Carpentry? Architect?

[Chris L]

Originally posted by mrblaine
Well, you could call it textured paint, couldn't you? Looks almost as good as those sponge paint experts.

Umm...no you can't. This aint no home depot weekend class of faux finishing!

[NAILER341]

those are great pics chris. let me know if you ever need a pallate to practice on
very nice!
i'll see if i can pimp your work out to some of our higher end customers.

[Chris L]

Originally posted by Jays89YJ
Chris L, you didn't ask me permission to post my property on the internet.

That is very excellent work. I like the 2nd to last room photo. What is it that you do? Design? Carpentry? Architect?

I'm just a crack spackler

Actually i do high end custom plaster finishes'.

[JeepGal]

Very beautiful work Chris!

Judging by the pool table and the dining room table for eight, I dont think its a hotel. But exit signs in a house?


Tam

[Jerry Bransford]

Wow, that is some truly gorgeous work Chris. What process, if it's not a trade secret, gave the walls that beautiful look?

[mrblaine]

Originally posted by Jerry Bransford
Wow, that is some truly gorgeous work Chris. What process, if it's not a trade secret, gave the walls that beautiful look?

Phenomenal trowel skills, lots of elbow grease, and knowing how many square feet you can spread before it goes off on you.

The rest is just putty and color.

[Joe Dillard]

Looks alot like my basement.

Nice work Chris!

[Jays89YJ]

Originally posted by Chris L
I'm just a crack spackler

Actually i do high end custom plaster finishes'.

So you do finish work. That's awesome. Definitely looks good.

Do you put some sort of backing/lattice/wire mesh up behind the plaster to hold it in place? Sort of reinforcement?

[Chris L]

This type of work is called "Marmorino" {meaning little marble in Italian}. For centuries the Italian stonemasons would craft statues or whatever with marble. Not wanting to be wasteful, they would take the scrap marble and grind it up to use with interior plaster. This process has been a lost art for some time and was brought to the US about 10 years ago. This finish is applied over a finished sealed wall and is only about 1/16th-1/8th" thick. It is actually 5 coats/applications. The first coat is done with a bit of texture and has high and low spots. That dries for 24 hours. Second and third coats are done in succession using wet material over the dry surface moving the material from wet to dry in little circular patterns and dries in about 3 hours. All your patterns and signature come out in this coat {every applicator may have a different look depending on hand movement}. 4th coat goes on pretty much the same, and just enough material is applied to wet the surface. After 5-10 minutes of drying I start burnishing the surface with a special double sprung stainless steel triangular shaped trowel, moving every direction across the work area, horizontally, vertically, and diagonally. This burnishing process polish?s the surface causing it to compress and shine like marble. When finished you have a cold stone mirror like finish as smooth as glass with great reflective qualities. The 5th coat is a limestone paste type of wax used as a sealer to protect the surface from staining. It also gives the final finish a more luxurious feel and look. On every job I have done the first thing people want to do is walk up and feel the walls. Feels just like glass.

[Jerry Bransford]

Wow, that is old-world craftsmanship. Very impressiive Chris, very impressive.

[Jays89YJ]

Chris, what do you apply the first layer on? Wire mesh? Lattice work? That is quite a process. My friend's father, from Italy, hand carves those statues you speak of. He's actually very well known all over the US. He makes the statues in Barre, VT.

[Chris L]

Originally posted by Jays89YJ
Chris, what do you apply the first layer on? Wire mesh? Lattice work? That is quite a process. My friend's father, from Italy, hand carves those statues you speak of. He's actually very well known all over the US. He makes the statues in Barre, VT.

This process is done over a finished/painted/sealed surface. Either cured sealed plaster or finished sealed drywall. It's just a decrotive finish. When I am doing interior plaster from start, I use 1/2 or 5/8's blue board which is very similar to drywall, only the paper is blue and has a lot more suction. This is also called "thin wall".

[Jays89YJ]

Originally posted by Chris L
This process is done over a finished/painted/sealed surface. Either cured sealed plaster or finished sealed drywall. It's just a decrotive finish. When I am doing interior plaster from start, I use 1/2 or 5/8's blue board which is very similar to drywall, only the paper is blue and has a lot more suction. This is also called "thin wall".

That's pretty awesome. So needless to say, hammering a nail through this type of finish is not advisable? That looks sweet. Is this finish resistant to water? Can you wash this finish? I think it would look pretty badass in a kitchen with granite countertops. Sort of an extended splash guard.

[mrblaine]

Originally posted by Jays89YJ
That's pretty awesome. So needless to say, hammering a nail through this type of finish is not advisable? That looks sweet. Is this finish resistant to water? Can you wash this finish? I think it would look pretty badass in a kitchen with granite countertops. Sort of an extended splash guard.

I can think of some evil things to do to a high end plasterer, but a splash in a high end kitchen would be brutal.

I can't even imagine that amount of effort it would take to make it seamless in and around the cabinet work, garden window, and stop it at the transition between the kitchen and dining area or the butler pantry.

No to mention doing it all at the extended distance of having the lower cabinets in your way and ducking under the uppers.

[Chris L]

Originally posted by mrblaine
I can think of some evil things to do to a high end plasterer, but a splash in a high end kitchen would be brutal.

I can't even imagine that amount of effort it would take to make it seamless in and around the cabinet work, garden window, and stop it at the transition between the kitchen and dining area or the butler pantry.

No to mention doing it all at the extended distance of having the lower cabinets in your way and ducking under the uppers.

I have done it both ways. The bigest problem I have is if I go in when it most convienent {no cabinets etc.} then some jackhole installer throws the cabinets up against the wall or ceiling area trying to fit it in place, while knicking and gouging the work that I have done. It needs to be applied in one continual direction and you only use one side of special applicating trowel. That means switches, electrical outlets, can lights etc., all have to be removed and wiring tucked in, so I can flow over the hole and keep the patterns moving in the same direction. When I have to stop and go around a light switch or somthing I have to change directions and pull the material away from the opening which changes the direction of my hand movements. Most people can't see it, but I do and that bothers me. Repairing it is painful and very hard without it looking like a patch. Other tradesman for the most part are only worried about getting their work done. When I do this type of work it needs to be in a very clean enviroment and I usually ask to be the last person in. Even the oil from peoples hands can have an effect on the finish prior to it being sealed.

...and it is waterproof after it has been sealed. I have seen pictures of the outside of buildings in Europe done with it. Doesn't seem to practical to me, especially @ $10-12 bucks a square foot.

[mrblaine]

Originally posted by Chris L
I have done it both ways. The bigest problem I have is if I go in when it most convienent {no cabinets etc.} then some jackhole installer throws the cabinets up against the wall or ceiling area trying to fit it in place, while knicking and gouging the work that I have done. It needs to be applied in one continual direction and you only use one side of special applicating trowel. That means switches, electrical outlets, can lights etc., all have to be removed and wiring tucked in, so I can flow over the hole and keep the patterns moving in the same direction. When I have to stop and go around a light switch or somthing I have to change directions and pull the material away from the opening which changes the direction of my hand movements. Most people can't see it, but I do and that bothers me. Repairing it is painful and very hard without it looking like a patch. Other tradesman for the most part are only worried about getting their work done. When I do this type of work it needs to be in a very clean enviroment and I usually ask to be the last person in. Even the oil from peoples hands can have an effect on the finish prior to it being sealed.

...and it is waterproof after it has been sealed. I have seen pictures of the outside of buildings in Europe done with it. Doesn't seem to practical to me, especially @ $10-12 bucks a square foot.

I've probably set cabinets in over a 100 kitchens in custom homes. I know all about only caring about getting just my work done, especially when the boss is collecting by the box and paying us hourly.

[Jays89YJ]

Originally posted by Chris L
...and it is waterproof after it has been sealed. I have seen pictures of the outside of buildings in Europe done with it. Doesn't seem to practical to me, especially @ $10-12 bucks a square foot.

That is awesome. $10-$12/sq. ft.. Damn, that's between $320-$384 per sheet of wallboard. Can the owner do some "site prep" to help out?

[William Karstens]

Originally posted by mrblaine
when the boss is collecting by the box and paying us hourly.

Collecting by the box? Can you explian this term?

[mrblaine]

Originally posted by William Karstens
Collecting by the box? Can you explian this term?

The world of modular cabinets to mimic custom has evolved very highly. So much so that unless you really know what you are looking at, you can't tell the difference.

As such a standard base cabinet is about 30 inches wide x 24 inches deep. It comes in a box all wrapped up with the doors installed. Essentially a unit and that's called a "box". The width matters little in the count as long as a module is single level. A pantry for example would be considered 2 boxes. An upper over a counter is a "box".

If you skip a space and add countertop nailer on the wall and filler strips to the sides of two cabinets to create a space for a dishwasher, the work done to fit it all is considered a "box" as the time spent is equivalent to setting a lower box.

The job pays by the box. I've done kitchens before that were 70 plus boxes. Typically the job paid about 75 per box plus trim, plus customs. We could finish out a 50 box kitchen plus tile, plus setting appliances in a little over a week.