U.S. Gypsum
Finishing Plaster

There are many ways to finish plaster casts. Choose the one that works and looks best for the particular piece to be finished. Some ways to finish gypsum are: painting, metallic leafing, rub-on waxing, flocking, polyester or resin coating, plastic spraying, electroplating and staining. Accessories can also be added: wiggly eyes, eyelashes, whiskers, felt, yarn, novelties, long pile fur, braid, glitter and even feathers. When it comes to selecting the finish, imagination is the only limiting factor.

General recommendations

First, make sure of a good casting. Fill the holes and sand off seams. Make sure the piece is properly dried. Always seal the dried plaster gypsum cast with shellac, lacquer or acrylic before finishing. This helps obtain a uniform paint finish and improves the surface for other types of finishes. Quick drying lacquer, applied by brush or spray, is an excellent sealer for gypsum.

The correct procedure is to thin the sealer so that the cast readily absorbs the first coat. Apply an unthinned second coat after first coat has thoroughly dried.

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There are many excellent paints for finishing plaster castings. However, first and foremost, the plaster cast must be dry. If not, paint will not stick, or it will blister and peel off later. Base coats and finishing paints can be lacquer, acrylic, latex or enamel. Selection depends on personal choice and availability of the desired paint. Contact a paint manufacturer for his recommendations.

A process of covering the plaster cast with thin metal sheets. It is probably one of the oldest methods for finishing plaster used by some sixteenth and seventeenth century picture framers. Metal leaf is available in silver, gold and some burnished/variegated colors. Metallic leafing is a slow process, but its effects can be obtained in no other way. Basically they plaster cast, base coat or undercoat is sealed with a color similar to surface foil.

Next, an adhesive is applied, the foil laid-up, and pressed into deep areas with a brush. Foil is added until the entire surface is covered. Sometimes a stain is added over the foil, then coats of clear acrylic are sprayed to set the stain.

These colors in paste wax form are used to accent the piece. To use them, seal the casting and base-coat with paint; then rub on the wax to accent metallic or pastel areas, or completely flood a casting with wax.

Gives the piece a velvet texture and look. Electrostatic flocking makes precise placement of acrylic fibers possible. After the plaster is sealed, an adherent, close in color to the flocking, is brushed on. Loose acrylic fibers are placed in a plastic cylinder, and a wand is connected to a power unit. This charges the fibers, attracting them to the wet-glue surface, into which they embed themselves in an upright fashion. The wand is passed over the casting until the desired density of fiber and surface color are achieved.

Simple and clean, the flocking process assures perfectly aligned fibers with no unsightly matting.

Plaster Master Industries
4308 Shankweiler Rd. Orefield, PA 18069
Phone (610) 391-9277 · Fax (610) 391-0340

U.S. Gypsum Finishing Plaster

U.S. Gypsum
Finishing Plaster