Plaster crafts for beginners.

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Plaster crafts. DIY Plaster mix for crafts. Do it yourself home decor ideas. How to make homemade decorative items for home.

Plaster for crafts

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Plaster is a well-known material used in various fields of human activity. There are lots of plaster crafts that we can make with it. It is obtained by heat treatment and subsequent crushing of natural plaster stone. It has long been used in the construction industry, e.g. for stucco and decorating walls and ceilings.

It is necessary for the masters working with glass as it is a flexible material and it can be used for creating heat-resistant forms. We are interested in plaster as an accessible and easy to work with material for decorative works.

A few words about where and what plaster can be bought literally within a stone’s throw from home. You can find modeling plaster or plaster for sculptural work in art stores where there are many goods for artists. Less commonly, it can be found in hardware stores. This plaster is white, fine-grained and of good quality. It is convenient and easy to work with.

The most readily available material is building plaster of various brands. It can be purchased at any building market. It is more coarse-grained, hardens faster and is rarely snow-white. Its color often is dirty white, gray, yellowish or pinkish, depending on the quantity and quality of admixtures in the product. You can also work with such plaster, although modeling plaster is much more convenient both to work with and for casting. Thus, it is easier to make plaster crafts using modeling plaster.

Traditionally plaster is divided into three groups according to the degree of grinding: coarse, medium and fine grinding. Also, plaster is divided into three groups according to the setting time – quick-setting, normal and slow-setting.

Plaster mix for crafts

You don’t need much plaster for casting: plaster, water, a mixing container and a mold for the casting. Plaster hardens quite quickly and if you want to get a good result by making a casting, you should not be distracted from the process. So, the heart of all the work is the preparation of the plaster mortar. It is simple. If you make a decent plaster mix, your plaster crafts will be perfect.

1.Pour the plaster into the water making a pile (the ratio is about 1:1 or 1:1.5 or 1:2) and wait for the powder to soak in the water.

2.Mix everything up quickly and well. You should have a homogeneous mass.

3. Pour the prepared mortar immediately into the mold, and then tap on the sides and bottom of the mold – air bubbles in the mortar will rise to the surface. If the mortar was homogeneous and the bubbles floated up, the casting will be dense, without voids and defects.

Normal mortar should pour into the mold fairly viscous. A liquid solution is optimal when pouring the molds – for making tiles, masks, Christmas decorations. For making casts of living leaves, it is better to prepare a thicker solution, increasing the amount of plaster a little. The thicker the mortar, the denser and heavier the casting will be, and vice versa. It is essential information in plaster crafts making.

The “setting time” of plaster depends on its quality. Without going into technical details, I will say that this time is usually specified on the package.
And one more important point: the plaster should be mixed in small portions, optimally – for one casting at a time. It is necessary to use the prepared mortar immediately because you can’t dilute stale plaster with water again.

For some jobs, it is necessary to slow down the hardening of plaster. This can be done by adding a small amount of water-based glue to the mortar.
Kneading the mortar with hot water will speed up the hardening of the plaster.

A small volume of mortar is better kneaded with a tablespoon, a stick or a spatula. For making a large volume you should use an electric mixer.
Remember! Plaster mortar should not be stirred for a long time – it will lose its ability to “set”. Don’t forget about it when you make your plaster crafts.

When it hardens, the plaster heats up quite a lot at first. Take the wet workpiece out of the mold when its temperature is normal (I mean when the plaster surface will be cold again). Allow the casting to dry at room temperature. Complete drying time depends on the size and thickness of the casting.

The strength of plaster.

Plaster is a brittle material. The strength of it can be increased by adding a certain amount of glue. The necessary amount of glue is determined by experience and depends on the quality of the plaster.

When casting large pieces, you can also add glue to the mortar. To increase the strength, the large pieces are often reinforced with wire or metal mesh (for example, brass mesh). The reinforcement should be placed between layers of plaster. It is better to use thick copper or aluminum wire. This wire will not rust on the surface of the plaster casts. Thus, you can make plaster crafts of any size.

Diy plaster crafts

Plaster is flexible. It is pliable and malleable. Plaster is quite hard and strong. That is why you can use it to realize a lot of creative ideas.

Plain smooth castings are better to use as a base for decorative panels. Painting, decoupage, creating textured surfaces with structural pastes – all of these can be applied on plaster. As on any other surface.

With help of castings into moldings you can make a variety of elements for decoration. Or you even can make individual, independent objects for interior or festive table decorations. Now, any plaster crafts are available for you.