Venetian plastering in Wiltshire

Zavoré provides Venetian plastering in Wiltshire for period townhouses, thatched cottages, mill conversions and new homes. We are based in Birmingham, our own applicators travel to install, and every plaster is tinted to your approved sample before it leaves us. Start with a sample board, or send photos of the walls and your postcode to sales@zavore.co.uk.

Wiltshire is a large county and parts of it are a good way from Birmingham. Where that is the case we plan installations in blocks of days so the team can stay and lay the coats in order. Dates are fixed once you have signed off the sample and the price.

What we plaster across Wiltshire

Wiltshire is chalk downland, ancient landscape and market towns. Salisbury has a medieval cathedral and Close, with timber framed and Georgian houses in the streets around it. Marlborough's very wide high street is lined with Georgian and earlier buildings, and Devizes, Malmesbury and Lacock keep a great deal of historic fabric, much of it listed.

In the west of the county the stone changes. Bradford on Avon and Corsham are built in the pale Bath stone of the region, and Bradford on Avon is known for its old cloth mills and terraced weavers' houses climbing the hill above the river. Further east and south you find flint and brick, chalk cob walls and thatched roofs in the villages, and a good many manor and farmhouses.

Swindon is different again. It grew around the railway works, and its older core includes the Railway Village, while much of the rest is twentieth century housing and new development, including recent estates and apartments. Chippenham, Trowbridge and Salisbury have both historic centres and modern suburbs.

So the same county gives us breathing stone and cob walls on one job and smooth plasterboard on the next. We choose the finish for the wall in front of us.

Finishes that suit Wiltshire homes

• Limewash for cob and chalk cottages and farmhouses, where a lime coating lets old walls dry out.
• Marmorino for Georgian townhouses in Salisbury, Marlborough and Devizes, with a soft sheen that suits tall rooms.
• Venetian plaster for living rooms and halls in manor houses and refurbished period homes.
• Polished plaster for new builds around Swindon and other growing towns, once the plasterboard is flat, jointed and primed.
• Cornice and coving where Georgian and Victorian rooms need ceiling details restored.

How a Wiltshire job runs

Photos, rough measurements and the postcode come first, and may answer small questions without a visit. We then survey the walls for substrate, flatness, cracks, damp and movement, and for how the room is used and reached. Cob and old chalk walls can hold moisture, so we check carefully and say plainly if a wall needs work before decoration.

After the sample and price are approved, the plaster is tinted in Birmingham and the dates are agreed. Thin coats need time to dry, so rooms should be free of other trades and, in cold or damp houses, gently heated. Historic town centres may have narrow streets and limited parking, so tell us about access in advance. If the house is listed, check with the council about any alteration to the building itself.

Details of every finish are on our installation page.

Buying materials or learning the craft

Using your own decorator in Wiltshire? We sell tinted plaster, base coats and wax, sent tracked. Our Venetian plaster courses run in Birmingham, and trade accounts help with repeat orders.

Our guides to preparing walls and clay plaster and lime plaster may help, and every area we cover is listed on one page.

Questions about Venetian plastering in Wiltshire

Do you install Venetian plaster across Wiltshire?

Yes. Our own applicators travel from Birmingham and plan the work in blocks of days, so they stay and lay each coat in order.

What finish suits a thatched cob cottage in Wiltshire?

A breathable lime coating such as limewash. Cob and chalk walls need to release moisture, and sealed acrylic finishes can trap it.

Which finish works in a Georgian house in Salisbury?

Marmorino is a strong choice, because it is lime based and its soft sheen suits tall rooms. We survey the walls first and say if they need skimming.

Is Venetian plaster suitable for a new build near Swindon?

Yes, once the plasterboard has reinforced joints and the right primer. Polished finishes show every dip, so flatness matters.

Can I buy the plaster for my own decorator in Wiltshire?

Yes. We tint it to your colour and send it tracked, with base coats and wax.

To discuss your walls, call 07592 929191, Monday to Saturday, 9am to 6pm, or email sales@zavore.co.uk with photos and your postcode. Choose colours with a sample board.