Ornamental plaster restored, ceilings replastered Alexandria, Virginia

Ornamental plaster restored, ceilings replastered
Alexandria, Virginia


Loose areas and 150 years of sloppy patches are cut out, filled with metal lath, and molding plaster and lime. This method of forming the "arris", or outside corner is called "stripping". A wood strip is stuck flush with the old arris using dabs of molding plaster and lime. Later the blobs are scraped off. Nailing the strip would only damage the moldings more.	Bottom is filled flush with the strip. Here, Carlos uses a mitering rod to straighten the angle, or inside corner.

Strip removed after mortar sets hard, top side stripped and filled. A little filling and troweling, and our arris is on the money, just like 1850.	Smaller arrises are done by mitering, or tooling with a mitering rod. With a new coat of paint, moldings will look like new again. Some of the castings are broken off and missing. We'll probably do those next winter.

Ceilings re-plastered


Mynor trowels white coat smooth on the first ceiling. Note the support we made to support the medallion and chandelier for protection from demolition. A lot of the old ceiling was cut out and filled with new metal lath and plaster.	An 1820 piano and the fireplace were covered with boxes made of two by fours and masonite before demolition.

More about of the building

This unique "shadow box" design of the plaster moldings is strikingly beautiful. (No, we didn't do them. They were done in the 1850's) The filigree (cast details) are hollow behind, supported by the top and and bottom plaster moldings.
Click on the images for a bigger view.
Bronze chandeliers have a unique fox and grape design. They were wired for electricity I think
about the 1920's.
You may remember a virtual tour
I did of this building 2 years ago:
Please click here