We recently finished a job up in Buxton that had a bit of everything – ceiling repairs, lime work, and proper like-for-like restoration on an old external wall.
First off, we carefully removed a solid plaster cornice in the main room. From there, we overboarded the ceilings in both the main space and wardrobes, then skimmed over with gypsum to give it a clean and crisp finish.
In the wardrobes, the main wall was reskimmed in lime. The top layer of lime skim came away easily due to a poor key, but the backing coat was still reasonably solid. We roughed it up with a devil float, wetted it down properly, and then applied a fresh skim in lime to keep it breathable and in line with the rest of the work.
The bigger job came when we started stripping back the lime skim from the external walls. On the main wall, the plaster detached fully, so we collected and bagged it, crushed it down, and brought it back to life with fresh lime putty and horse hair – a true like-for-like repair using the original material. The remixed plaster had a decent hydraulic set, which meant we could float it up nice and firm before applying the final skim.
We also adjusted and trimmed the timber dowels in the window heads using a multi-tool to get everything neat and flush. The failed lath plaster in those areas was replaced with breathable woodwool boards, and we used plaster from Chalk Down Lime throughout. Everything was finished with their fine topcoat for a clean, consistent finish.
The result? A solid, breathable, and respectful restoration that blends in naturally with the age and character of the property, while setting it up to last another hundred years.
If you’re in Buxton or the surrounding area and need proper lime plaster work – whether it’s repair, conservation or something bespoke – give us a shout. We do it right.
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