Adobe Plaster Tutorial
by Marie Wendt
 

This tutorial will guide you through the very easy process of achieving an adobe-style plaster look for the exterior and/or interior of any dollhouse.

Materials List:

1.  Dap DryDex Spackling - the kind that is pink in the container and dries white.
2.  Putty knife
3.  Tacky Glue
4.  An old rag

When it comes to buying my spackle, I look for the "least" fresh container of it I can find on the shelf.  This means I open and close them until I find what I feel to be older spackle.  The reason I do this is because I like to apply the spackle with my fingertips more so than a putty knife because I feel I have more control this way; despite the mess.  The softer the consistency of spackle, the fresher it is.  I look for a container that contains spackle that feels somewhat stiff.  Unfortunately, this container I'm working with is pretty fresh and there was nothing I could do about it when I bought it.  To remedy this, I opened up the lid when I got home and just rest it on the top of the container and let the air get to it for a couple of days.  This only stiffens the top layer though so I've had to leave this container unsealed at all times. Spackle will wash off your hands with plain cold water.

 

 Ensure that all windows, doors and trim work are in place and stained before you start to plaster the exterior.

If covering a large area like the exterior of a dollhouse, as shown here, you'll work in easily manageable sections.  When applying glue, don't apply it to an area larger than you can easily work before the glue dries.

As shown in this picture, I've applied the tacky glue to a small portion of my dollhouse and then I smoothed it out with my finger tip so it's not bumpy.

 
Reach into your container of spackle and get about a couple tablespoons worth onto your finger tips.  If you don't feel like getting spackle under your fingernails, you can use thin rubber gloves.

If the spackle is so fresh that it feels more like cake frosting, I advise you use the putty knife instead of your finger tips as it will be easier to work with.

In this instance, I was able to apply the spackle to my surface with my fingertips.

Press the spackle onto your glued surface, spreading it with your fingertips or your putty knife.  You want to maintain a thickness equivalent to the thickness of your windows and/or doors; approximately 3/32" thick.  This is so the surface of the plaster is flush with the surface of your windows/doors as this will give you a more professional and finished result.

 

 

 

It got to the point where I started to need my putty knife.  If you are using a putty knife, apply the plaster as if you were frosting a cake.  It's going to look a lot sloppier at first, but soon we'll smoothe it out.
I've finished covering the entire area where I applied glue.  The plaster was carefully spread right up to the edges of the window frame.  If you get plaster onto your stained window, grab the old rag and moisten it water and just wipe the plaster off the wood before it dries.

As you'll see, using the putty knife makes the surface look very rough and uneven; like a frosted cake.  What you want to do to remedy this is let it sit for about 5 minutes and let the air start to dry it a bit.
After about 5 minutes or so, the plaster will have dried and stiffened enough to where you can smoothe it out with your fingers without it sticking to you.  Just gently pat (do not rub) the spackle with your fingers, pressing flat the ridges and valleys created by the putty knife.  You'll see here in the picture that the surface is smoothing out quite nicely!
Here's the "after" shot taken after I smoothed everything out.  Much better! 

Once the spackle turns from pink to white, it's dry enough to paint.

To continue forward in covering more area, just apply more glue and spackle.  If you have to stop for a day or two and you're adding to already dried spackle, in addition to putting glue on the surface, put a little bit of glue onto the edges of the spackle that dry so that your new spackle has something to adhere to.
To do interior surfaces, you'll use the exact same technique used for the exterior section we just did. 

Ensure all doors, windows and anything that will come into contact with your plaster work is finished in advance.  As shown here in this picture, the ceiling and the staircase has been finished first.  This is done because you don't want to have to cut away any dried plaster to accommodate components and fixtures of any kind.  Not to mention, you could get unwanted paint and/or stain on your pretty plaster surface.  So, just do a little planning ahead.

Apply glue to a workable area and smoothe out with your fingertips.
Apply your spackle, just as you did before, to the area you glued with your fingers or putty knife.  If the spackle is really fresh, wait about 5 minutes or so and then smoothe out.
There, all nice and smoothe.  Once the spackle turns from pink to white, it's dry enough to paint. 

To continue forward in covering more area, just apply more glue and spackle.  If you have to stop for a day or two and you're adding to already dried spackle, in addition to putting glue on the surface, put a little bit of glue onto the edges of the spackle that dry so that your new spackle has something to adhere to.

Now, it is inevitable that you'll experience some minor cracking in the spackle as it dries.  This is easily fixed, so don't panic.

Just get a little bit of spackle on your fingertip and rub into the crack and smoothe out.  Let dry.  No more crack!

On the SW Bungalow prototype, as shown here, you'll see that quite a large part of the exterior has been plastered and painted.  Experiment with different complimentary touches like stone and wood.  You'll love the effect!