The DIY Starter Kit.
Real earth plaster is more forgiving than it looks, and you will not be doing it alone. This is the kit we would hand a friend who wanted to try their first wall.
Four things and a phone number.
- One bag of American Clay plaster in the finish you choose, from either the Original or Forté line
- A natural pigment colour pack, picked from 224 colours
- Up & EZ!™ binder so the clay bonds to drywall or existing paint
- A printed quick-start guide, plus our number for when you want a second opinion mid-trowel
Coverage depends on the finish you pick. One bag of Loma covers roughly 180 sq ft per coat, which is a generous feature wall. Tell us your measurements and we will size the kit properly.
Four days, mostly waiting.
The work is a few hours a day. The rest is letting clay do what clay does.
Prep & prime
Mask, patch anything loose, then roll on primer so the clay has something to grip.
Base coat
Mix, trowel on a thin base coat, and leave it alone. Fully dry usually means 12 hours or more.
Finish coat
The second thin coat is where the texture happens. Compress it with the trowel as it sets up.
Live with it
Pull the tape, stand back. Marks and dings later can be re-wet and blended, which is the best part.
Plan on roughly 24 hours between coats. Humidity and temperature move the number, so a cool damp room takes longer than a warm dry one.
What the kit does not include.
Tools are personal and most people already own half of this. We would rather not sell you a trowel you do not need, but we will tell you exactly which ones matter.
- A stainless steel finishing trowel, the one tool worth buying properly
- A drill with a mixing paddle, and a clean bucket
- Drop sheets, painter's tape and a sponge
- Patience on day two, which is free
Honest answers.
Have I got any chance of this looking good?
Yes, and more than you would think. Clay is forgiving: it does not show lap marks the way paint does, and if you hate a section you can re-wet it and work it again. Texture hides a multitude of first-timer sins.
Can I put the kit in a bathroom?
On the dry walls, yes. Not in a shower, not as a backsplash, and not behind a range hood. Clay is a dry-area finish. For wet and high-heat surfaces we install Venetian plaster instead, and that one is a job for us rather than a weekend.
My wall feels chalky. What went wrong?
Almost always compression. Clay needs to be worked and compressed with the trowel as it sets up, and a dusty or chalky face means that step was rushed. It is fixable, and it is the one thing worth ringing us about mid-job rather than pushing on.
What if I run out halfway through?
Call us before you start and we will size it from your measurements. If you do run short, we ship more, but colour packs are mixed per bag so ordering the right quantity up front keeps the colour consistent.
Do you deliver outside the Okanagan?
We ship American Clay products anywhere in Western Canada. Send your postal code with your quote request and freight comes back with the pricing.
Ready to try a wall?
Tell us the room and the measurements, and we will size a kit and send pricing.