The plaster on these walls has been applied, troweled, and then hard troweled. Once fully dry, it will be ready for the finish plaster, or alis coat, that will add colour and further smooth the look of the wall.
Before the plaster is applied over the clay slip coat, the wall must be misted with water until it appears that the wall is “sweating”. Then the plaster is massaged upwards into the bale wall until the desired thickness is achieved.
A wooden trowel or float is used to smooth the plaster and even out any undulations that occur because of the uneven surface of the straw bales. Finally, after the plaster has partially dried, it is hard troweled to refine the shape and texture.
