Venetian Plastering Training for Durham

If you want Venetian plastering training in Durham, the courses are taught at the Zavoré Academy in Birmingham. They are built for people from Durham and County Durham who are happy to travel for a few days and bring a new skill home.

It suits painters and decorators who want to offer a premium finish, plasterers who want to move into decorative work, career changers looking for a hands on craft, and designers or homeowners who want to understand exactly how a polished lime wall is made.

Venetian plaster in Durham and County Durham

Durham has a steady market for decorative plaster, because so much of the housing is old and characterful. The city sits around a World Heritage Site, with the cathedral and castle at its heart, and the streets below hold Georgian townhouses, Victorian terraces and a lot of listed property.

Solid old walls like these suit lime based finishes such as Marmorino, because lime lets the wall breathe. Owners of period homes in and around the city centre often want a refined, quietly polished look that respects the building rather than hiding it.

Beyond the city, County Durham has market towns, stone built villages and rows of terraces that grew up around the old coalfield. Many of these homes are being renovated by new owners who want something better than flat paint in the hall, the lounge or the kitchen diner.

The city also has a student population, hotels, pubs and restaurants. Hospitality owners like a finish with depth and a hand made look, and new student apartment blocks and flat walls are well suited to polished plaster. A decorator who can offer it stands apart from firms that only paint.

Choosing the right course for you

Pick the course that matches where you are today. All three run at the Academy with a maximum of six students, from 10am to 5pm each day.

• Beginner Course runs for 3 days at £750 per person. No experience is needed, so it suits career changers, homeowners and decorators new to plaster.
• Advanced Course runs for 4 days at £1,200 per person. It suits beginners who have done the first course, or people already working on site.
• 1 to 1 Training runs for 3 days at £1,500. You set the agenda, at any level, from new designs to artificial rock or liquid metal.

The Beginner Course covers the theory of how the materials behave, surface preparation, base coats, a wide range of textures and the finishes Marmorino and polished plaster, taken from bucket to burnish. The Advanced Course goes deeper into stencil work, vein work, high gloss polishing, tinting and coloured waxes. If you want a plan built around one goal, look at 1 to 1 Training.

You can see upcoming dates on the training page. If none are listed yet, you can register your interest there. For help deciding, read our guide to choosing a Venetian plastering course.

Getting from Durham to Birmingham

Students come to Birmingham by train or by car, and Birmingham sits in the centre of England, which is why people join us from all over the UK and abroad. A three or four day course means you should plan where you will stay.

Zavoré holds a partner rate at a hotel near the Academy. Quote Zavoré when you book your room. If you arrive by rail or air, airport or station pickup can be arranged with your booking, at a price that depends on where you arrive.

Lunch and refreshments are provided each day, along with all materials and tools, so you only need to bring yourself and clothes you do not mind getting marked.

Using the skill back in Durham

You finish with panels to take home for a portfolio, a Zavoré certificate and trade pricing on Zavoré materials after the course. You also join a private course group with a helpline for life, so a question on a tricky first job in Durham is never a problem you face alone.

Many decorators add Venetian plaster as a premium service alongside painting, charging for a finish that homeowners cannot easily get from a competitor. Advanced students also get help to find, price and win a first paid decorative job.

If you would rather have the finish installed than learn it, see our page on Venetian plastering in Durham. If you plan to buy materials, the shop has tracked UK delivery.

Questions about Venetian plastering training for Durham

Is there Venetian plastering training in Durham?

The courses do not run in Durham. They are taught at the Zavoré Academy in Birmingham, and students from Durham and County Durham travel there for the three or four days.

Do I need experience to start Venetian plastering training?

No. The 3 day Beginner Course at £750 starts from the basics and needs no previous experience, so decorators, plasterers and complete beginners from Durham are all welcome.

What will I take home from the course?

You take home your finished panels for a portfolio and a Zavoré certificate. You also get trade pricing on Zavoré materials afterwards and a place in a private course group with a helpline for life.

Which course suits a Durham decorator who already paints for a living?

The Beginner Course is the place to start, to learn how Venetian plaster is built up, and the 4 day Advanced Course follows on from it. If time is short, 1 to 1 Training is shaped around exactly what you want to learn.

To reserve a bench, ring 07592 929191 or email sales@zavore.co.uk. You can secure a place with half the course price and pay the rest on the day, or book online and pay in full. Dates are on the training page.