How To Do It (Webinars Coming Soon!)
How to Stoneblock
Photo 1
Photo 2
Photo 3
Photo 4
Photo 5
Photo 6
Photo 7
Photo 8
Making the horizontal lines for stoneblock
1. Choose an inconspicuous corner where the pattern will meet, in case blocks get cut off later on. This should be an area that you don't view immediately upon walking into the room.
2. Measure 12" (30.5 cm) down from the line where the ceiling meets a wall, and mark the 12" distance with a chalk dot.
3. Using the level, continue measuring and marking 12" (30.5 cm) down from the ceiling line around any walls you plan to do in stoneblock.
4. Using the level, draw a horizontal line to connect the row of chalk marks you just made 12" down, all around the room. The horizonal lines should align at each corner.
5. Continue measuring downward and marking 12" (30.5 cm) distances between horizonal lines. Then use the level to connect the chalk marks. Draw all the horizontal lines you need to fill your wall.
Marking the vertical lines for stoneblock
1. After you have marked your horizontal lines, measure around the top horizontal line and mark chalk dots at 24" (61 cm) intervals.
2. Using the level, draw vertical lines from the chalk dots you just made down to the next horizontal chalk line (Photo 2). This will demarcate the row of blocks on the wall, each of which will be 24" (61 cm) wide and 12" (30.5 cm) deep.
3. For the second row of blocks, start 12" (30.5 cm) in from the side edge of the block above it and mark a vertical line. Then measure horizontally 24" (61 cm) to make the next verical line. Skipping the first 12" on the horizontal line means that the blocks will align in a staggered pattern. Continue measuring horizontally and marking dots with chalk at 24" (61 cm) intervals around the room on the second row.
4. Using the level, draw vertical lines where the chalk dots are to make the second row.
5. For the remaining rows, use the level to make lines as before, spacing each new vertical line 12" (30.5 cm) away from the previous vertical line above it. Use the vertical lines from the first row as reference in order to space the lines for the third row, and so on.
6. If the stoneblock at the end of the row is too big or too small, add the block's width of the previous block and divide the result in two to make two narrower-than-usual or two wider-than-usual blocks of equal width.
Taping off the lines before glazing the stoneblocks
1. First tape off all the horizontal lines with the white artist's tape (photo 3), and then tape all the vertical lines (Photo 4).
2. Use 1" (2.5 cm) wide blue painter's tape on any moldings and baseboards to protect them.
Glazing the stoneblocks
1. Brush the glaze on and rub it with a rag as though you are cleaning the walls. Use a colorwash or an aging glaze tinted a neutral color like off-white or beige, depending on the room (Photos 5 and 6).
2. To keep paint from bleeding up the tape, glaze three or four blocks at a time and promptly remove the tape after painting (Photo 7).
3. Using a rag, carefully remove any paint that may have seeped under the tape (Photo 8).
4. The lines that the artist's tape covered looks like the mortar between the blocks when the tape is removed.