Sgraffito - what kind of technique? Finishing in the technique of Sgrafito - how to prepare a solution, how and what to apply?

Sgraffito is a very popular technique for applying patterns. In our article you will learn what this technique is and how it is performed.

Content

The word Sgrafito came to us from Italian and means "scratched." The technique cannot be called the type of plaster - this is a special kind of application. Something it resembles drawing and stucco, because the result is a relief multi-colored image.

Sgraffito - what kind of technique: concept, features

A layer of plaster can be not only uniform, with texture or fillers. The plaster may well be the basis for the canvas. This is precisely the essence of Sgrafito.

For the basis, the use of any lime-cement mortar of good quality is allowed. In this case, both homogeneous color mass is allowed, and similar to a natural stone, which contains stone crumbs. The main thing is that the fractions are no more than 3 mm, and for the finishing layer - 1.5 mm.

As a basis, you can also use:

Portland cement with the addition of quartz sand in different proportions
Cement is to know sand
Hydraulic lime with sand

Each of the materials has sand in various ratios. Simple mixtures of lime and gypsum are not suitable for this technique, because the pattern is formed not after drying, but before it, so that the mass is plastic. Gypsum dries very quickly and its working period is not very large.

The meaning of the Sgrafito technique is that several layers of plaster in different colors are made on the surface. When the layer is already grasped from above, but does not dry out, the creation of the image begins. With the help of the tool, the layer is removed until the desired color does not seem. The result is a beautiful multi -colored image. Often in this way beautiful unique patterns are created.

Sgrafito technique has many advantages and stand out among them:

The uniqueness of the design. Even if for several works to use the same picture, then it will always turn out to be different and unique.
The plaster well resists the effects of water, and therefore it is possible to make a sgrafito even in very wet rooms, and the material can be washed even with household chemicals.
On such a decoration, mold or fungus is never formed.
The plaster is resistant to fire and does not support the flame.

However, there are shortcomings:

If you apply a complex and thin relief in the kitchen, then it will collect fat and soot, and dust will be collected in the rooms. Accordingly, such surfaces will have to be washed more often.
The image is formed quickly, but the technique itself is quite laborious, and therefore the price of services is high.
Sgraffito is rarely applied to the entire wall, especially when it comes to rooms. This technique was previously often used for palaces, but for a simple apartment it was considered unacceptable.

Relief images are bright interior details. They are much more interesting than furniture, but with excessive use in the bedroom or living room, you will get a whole museum. The exception can be considered a bathroom, because its area is small. That's just here you have to be neat. Walls and ceiling can be made in the same style, but the drawings themselves should be different.

If you do Sgrafito according to fragments, then the technique will look perfect. You can do with it:

Wall panels. They will look very impressive with homogeneous decoration, like real paintings.
The combination with the finish allows you to achieve an interesting effect when the picture, as it were, protrudes from the wall.
The allocation of some details of architecture, for example, the design of the wall in the bathroom. Such a finish allows you to attract attention and divide the room into zones.
You can make a panoramic image on the entire wall. In this case, it is made in several colors of a similar shade. In this case, Sgrafito something like a fresco.
In small rooms, Sgrafito can be done on the entire ceiling. But in the hall it is better to break it into different sectors so that the relief and homogeneous structure are combined.

As for the colors, natural colors are usually used for Sgrafito. It is this feature that makes the technique expensive. The bottom line is that for the pattern you can use only rich colors, and therefore the pigment in the composition should be 10 times more than in the usual composition with the same color.

In addition, the pigment should respond steadily to the alkali, because there is always lime in the plaster.

Colors can be obtained as follows:

If you want to get a gray color, then use manganese peroxide
Thanks to ocher, you can get yellow and brown colors
To obtain bright green color, you can use chromium oxide
Blue is obtained from ultramarine
Mummy and cinnabar give red
With the help of pink pigment, you can make the color of the brick

It is worth noting that the pigment for work will need a lot. For example, in order to get a blue color you will need 1 share of lime, 3 shares of sand, as well as half a share of ultramarine. So most often synthetic dyes are used to create colors in Sgrafito.

The advantage of this approach is that the work becomes cheaper, the color scheme becomes more diverse and intense. But to obtain beautiful frescoes, not only bright, but also natural colors are needed, so natural dyes are still often used.

How to prepare a solution for Sgrafito with your own hands?

As the basis for the technique of Sgrafito, as we have already said, pigmented-known solutions with a large number of pigment are used. Everyone can make a solution himself, even a beginner. Difficulties do not even occur at the stage of preparation, but with the final surface processing.

The composition is quite ordinary. So, for example, you can get a golden mixture of 10 kg of plaster using the following components:

The number of fillers and pigment may change, and the mass of Portland cement and lime change depending on each other.

Preparation regardless of circumstances will always be the same:

To get started, mix small ingredients, and then enter the filler. At the very end, water is added and the entire mixture is brought to the consistency of sour cream.
The finish layer is done a little differently. This is an aqueous solution of all components, and its application is carried out using a brush, not a spatula.

For the last layer, the composition is calculated as follows:

It is important to note that in the finish layer of the fraction can be up to 1.5 mm. Its cooking is quite simple. First, lime is mixed with cement and dye, and then all this is combined with sand and dolomite flour. Water is poured half an hour before use, and it should turn out to be liquid.

How the Sgrafito is applied to the surface: Technique

In fact, the very application of plaster in the technique of Sgrafito does not differ from simple. First, preparation is carried out, then a primer and several thin layers are applied. Again, a lot of skills and skills are required to apply the finish layer.

So, for work you will need the following tools:

Principle of operation:

First, it is recommended to apply Sgrafito to the plywood or chipboard to practice a little. After that, you can already start working with the walls.
Comers and clean the surface from dirt and moisten with water. After absorption of moisture, apply sand with slaked lime. For a primer, you can make a colored solution. Seal and draw the layer. Try to have no sinks. It is better to make notches so that the subsequent layers are well held.
After 20 minutes, when the first layer begins to dry, you can apply the next. Its maximum thickness should not exceed 6-7 mm.
After another 20 minutes, the next layer is applied. It will be even thinner-3-4 mm.
To make the plaster strong, try not to do more than 5-6 layers. Moreover, each next becomes even thinner. And it is also important that the previous one is not visible through the new layer.
The finish should be made more liquid and apply with a brush. The coating thickness is 1-2 mm.

After applying all the layers, start cutting the images. You have 5-6 hours before the last layer does not grab. So you need to work on the pattern without interruptions. If you need to draw too much, then the last layer is applied in turn on the areas the size that you can definitely process during this time.

Finish processing sgraffito: Instruction

The finish can be carried out in two ways.

Method 1. Basic

If the image is very complicated or the master is not sufficiently experienced, then you can use stencils. They are made of cardboard, where the necessary drawings are applied by a pattern.

After that, the contours are pierced with a darn needle and partially cut out. To save the stencil, it must be covered with olifa and dried under weight.

Sgrafito in this case is created in two ways:

Figure stuffing. Apply the stencil in the right place. After that, make blows with a tampon or a brush moistened in a mele or pigment so that the pigment passes through the holes and forms a drawing.

It is important to understand that all individual details will have to make different stencils. When the capture is filled, you can start cut the image.

Sample of the solution. Here stencils are made for all details. All elements are sequentially applied and cut through the cutter. Everything must be done very carefully, because each incorrect notch can ruin the type of picture.

Further processing will not be different. The circuit is cut out using incisors, and then layers of plaster are removed with brackets of a suitable shape. As a result, a beautiful relief comes out, since all colors are located at different depths. Be sure to keep in mind when you think over the image.

Method 2. Lighted

Often, a lightweight technology is used to create drawings. First, with the help of a stencil, a pigment is applied, and then it only remains to trim the drawing. In this case, only the application of the primer layer is carried out, and then the pattern in different colors is filled with stencils. Although, this is no longer Sgrafito, but something else, but similar.

In this case, processing can also be carried out in two ways:

The outer layer of plaster is located on top, and the image goes inside
The image is applied from above, and the background is below

It is important to be consistent so that in the foreground the layer does not go deep into it. The finished work is not necessary to process. In addition, chips and cracks gradually begin to form, which makes Sgrafito more interesting and valuable.

Sgrafito technique - how much do materials cost, work?

The cost of materials for Sgrafito is slightly larger than on a simple lime-sand plaster, especially if synthetic dyes are used. If you need a mixture with natural colors, then it will cost even more.

As for the price of the work itself, it depends on how complicated you need an image and how many colors in it. As a rule, even the easiest option costs 4,500 rubles per square meter.

Sgraffito is a very interesting and unique technique for decoration of the premises. Moreover, it all depends not on the material and color, but on the skill of the performer.