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Where Artistry Begins
Venetian plastering training for Manchester is available at the Zavoré Academy in Birmingham, because that is the only place the courses are taught. People from Manchester and the surrounding area make the trip south, learn over 3 or 4 days, and return with a skill they can sell.
The courses welcome decorators who want to stand out, plasterers moving into decorative work, interior designers, new starters and keen homeowners. Nobody needs to have held a trowel before.
Manchester has a steady appetite for interiors that feel individual, and the housing stock gives a decorator plenty to work with. The city's mix of old brick and new glass creates demand for more than one kind of finish.
Much of the older housing is Victorian red brick, from terraces to the larger villas of suburbs such as Didsbury, Chorlton and Whalley Range. Walls like these were originally finished in lime, so a breathable lime based plaster sits happily on them, where a sealed surface can trap damp. Original features such as cornices and chimney breasts also make good partners for a hand trowelled wall.
The cotton mills and warehouses of areas like Ancoats, Castlefield and the Northern Quarter have been turned into apartments and bars. Exposed brick is common there, and a polished or Marmorino wall is a popular way to add softness and a sense of depth beside it.
The city centre has also seen many new apartment towers. Their flat, square walls suit polished plaster, and their bathrooms suit tadelakt or microcement. Add restaurants, hotels and offices, and there is a real mix of homeowners, developers and designers who ask for decorative walls.
For a Manchester decorator, this is a chance to add a premium service to an existing business without moving into a new trade.
The Beginner Course is the right start for most people, and the Advanced Course follows once you have the basics or have site experience. Check the training page for dates, or register interest there if none are listed yet.
Each day runs 10am to 5pm and the group courses take up to six students. On the Beginner Course you learn how a wall is built layer by layer, how to prepare surfaces and lay base coats, and how to produce Marmorino, polished plaster and metallic finishes. The Advanced Course adds stencil work, textured Marmorino, sanding, tinting and coloured waxes. If you have a particular finish in mind, such as artificial rock or liquid metal, the 1 to 1 option is built around it. You can also read what happens inside the Beginner Course.
Manchester students reach Birmingham by train or by car, and Birmingham sits in the middle of England. Since the course fills 3 or 4 days, most people plan an overnight stay.
Zavoré has a partner rate with a hotel close to the Academy, so mention Zavoré when you reserve a room. If you would like a lift from the airport or a station, ask when you book and the price will depend on where you arrive. Students come from all over the UK and abroad, so you will be in good company.
A bench can be held with half the fee, and you settle the rest on the day. Phone 07592 929191 or email sales@zavore.co.uk, or pay in full online.
When you return, you leave with your own finished panels, a Zavoré certificate and trade pricing on materials. Those panels are useful when you meet a homeowner or designer who wants to touch a real sample.
The private course group and helpline stay open for life, which matters when a tricky mill conversion or a new build wall needs a second opinion. If you complete the Advanced Course, you also get help finding, pricing and winning a first paid decorative job.
To see how Zavoré approaches the finished walls, visit Venetian plastering in Manchester. You can also order materials from the shop with tracked UK delivery.
The courses are taught at the Zavoré Academy in Birmingham. Manchester students travel there for the 3 or 4 day course.
It lets you offer a premium finish to the same customers you already serve, from period homeowners to apartment owners and hospitality. The courses teach the techniques, and the helpline supports you afterwards.
The courses do not run in Manchester, but you can send people to Birmingham. Group courses take up to six students, so a small team can learn side by side.
No. You can hold a bench with half the course price, then pay the rest on the day. You can also book online and pay in full.
Ready to book? Ring 07592 929191, email sales@zavore.co.uk, or look at upcoming dates on the training page.
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