Brick is a strong, durable material used primarily for the construction of walls, interior and exterior decoration. But it is not always possible to use it - voluminous, thick bricks will make a small room very cramped. Therefore, high-quality imitation brickwork is used for finishing work in residential and office premises. There are a great many options for its execution, they differ in the degree of complexity and similarity to natural brick.
In the interior of which rooms can brickwork decor be used?
Making building facades and interiors from brick is always beautiful. But you won’t be able to use real bricks everywhere - they significantly make the floors heavier, and not everyone has the mason skills to make high-quality masonry.
Decor that imitates masonry made of red, white, or any other brick, looks good in almost any room. For spacious rooms, dark, cold, rich colors are suitable, for cramped, dimly lit rooms - lighter, warmer ones.
This design is most often used in loft, industrial, art-believe style interiors, less often in classic, modern, minimalism, Provence. Fake masonry indoors can cover all the walls of the room, frame window openings, door frames, and have the appearance of narrow, wide, or medium dividing strips. Also, with its help, separate logical zones are highlighted, a fireplace and arched structures are designed.
The more spacious the room being decorated, the larger the brick images are used for it and vice versa.
In the hallway
The front or hall is a kind of “face” of the apartment; the entire interior design “dances” from it. Here, brick finishing is acceptable on all walls, with rare inclusions of appropriate decor - painted ivy branches, decorative cracks, etc. An excessively long corridor is zoned with vertical brick lines, arches located at the same distance from each other - this is how adjustment of its shape and size is achieved , heights.
In the living room
In the hall, most often not the entire room is decorated with brick props, but only one of its walls. A fireplace or false fireplace looks organic here, looking as if it were made of real brick, with several zoning partitions. If the living room is completely combined with the kitchen, then only the kitchen or living room. Let’s assume the option of creating a brick dividing strip between separate zones. Bottles, boxes with colored bricks painted with acrylic, pictures painted using the decoupage technique, made using ordinary putty will organically complement the overall picture.
In the bedroom
In the bedroom, not only the walls are decorated with brick decor, but also the podium (if there is one) on which the sleeping place is located. The same design will allow for beautiful zoning large room, finishing only the mini-office or dressing area with brick. Photo wallpaper is best; ceramic tiles are not recommended - they are too cold.
Even a minimally embossed imitation of brick becomes voluminous with proper lighting placement.
In the bathroom
There are special requirements for imitation brick in a bathroom - it must be moisture resistant, not destroyed, not deformed when exposed to direct water. Ceramic or flexible tiles rectangular, foam plastic, painted with moisture-resistant paint. The color depends on the size of the room - the more cramped it is, the lighter the coating is chosen.
During installation, waterproofing materials are used, silicone sealants etc.
In the kitchen
A kitchen apron made of plastic, glass, with a pattern printed on it, is made of imitation brick for this room. All materials must be waterproof, which is especially important for the area near the sink and gas stove; they must be easy to clean from grease without the use of harsh abrasives or aggressive detergents.
On the balcony, loggia
An insulated, glazed balcony, a spacious loggia can be combined with any room - bedroom, kitchen, living room through the same covering with the main room. As an option: the room is finished with white or yellow painted brick, the balcony is finished with a darker imitation of plaster. The most commonly used here are plastic panels together with insulation made of foam plastic, polyurethane, mineral wool etc.
In the nursery
Brick decor is rarely used for children's rooms; it looks no less organic than in other rooms. This design often used in teenage rooms– industrial, loft, pop art and similar styles, almost in their pure form, look most organic there. You can decorate a room in this way with your children, simply by depicting bricks using acrylic paints, watercolors, gouache, and markers. The effect of an old brick will be achieved if you draw small cracks here and there with a gel pen.
Soft, flexible tiles - advantages, disadvantages of the material
Soft tiles are one of the most “believable” variations of creating realistic masonry. The flexible version is waterproof, which is important when used in wet areas of a bathroom or toilet, home pool, or greenhouse. This material has significant impact resistance, durability, it is vapor permeable, resistant to mold and mildew, easy to process, does not change color from exposure to the sun, and has a beautiful appearance. Also to positive properties Flexible tiles include the fact that they can be installed not only on perfectly smooth walls, but also on convex and concave interior elements - arches, internal and external corners, window slopes, brackets, fireplaces, round columns, small architectural forms with a complex configuration.
Necessary tools, installation steps
To decorate the interior with “soft brick” you will need some tools that are available in almost every home:
- a metal spatula, 13-17 cm wide, with which you will stir and apply the adhesive;
- spatula 16-19 cm wide, with teeth, about four mm high;
- ruler made of wood, plastic or metal 100-150 cm long;
- building level 100-150 cm long;
- a brightly colored centering cord for marking straight lines;
- large sharp scissors;
- a simple construction pencil for marking;
- a medium-hard brush 10-13 mm wide to smooth the seams between the tiles.
Materials needed:
- the flexible tile itself of a suitable color and size;
- tile adhesive - dry mixture in a paper bag or ready-made mixture in a plastic bucket;
high quality primer.
Step-by-step work process:
- the surface that is decided to be decorated is first thoroughly cleaned of old coatings and leveled;
- after the wall with the leveling compound applied to it has dried, it is primed with an antiseptic so that fungus and mold do not “start up” under the cladding, and adhesion is maximized;
- After the layer has dried, the tiles are installed directly. It is important to do it at a temperature not lower than five to seven degrees, since at a lower temperature the adhesion of the tiles to the wall is reduced. This will negatively affect the appearance of the finished surface; individual parts may generally fall off quickly;
- Next, the wall should be drawn into identical rectangles, where tile adhesive will subsequently be applied. If you intend to decorate the entire wall completely, it is mandatory to mark the limiting lines at the top and bottom;
- The adhesive composition is not evenly applied everywhere, but only on individual zones measuring 50 by 100 cm. The layer thickness is two to four mm. Application is done with a flat spatula, after which the surface is “traversed” with a notched spatula to create grooves;
- The bricks themselves are usually made with parameters of 25 by 12 cm or 10 by 15 cm - the material is easily cut with simple scissors. When laying in rows, the first level starts with a whole “brick”, the second - with half or one third. Before cutting, the material is marked with a pencil and ruler;
- During the installation process, it is important to maintain the same width of the joints between the tiles - usually nine to thirteen mm, but other values are acceptable. The horizontality of the rows is periodically checked with a level - the tiles should not “walk” or move excessively up or down;
- when the row “rests” on an internal or external corner, the tiles are carefully bent, gluing them like all the others. Rounded, wavy elements, columns, fireplaces are faced in the same way;
- Every time another area of about one square meter is covered with tiles, the seams between the tiles are smoothed with a wet narrow brush. This must be done before the glue sets and completely hardens;
- no special grout is required for the space between flexible bricks, which significantly reduces the cost of finishing.
Options for rigid facing tiles, their advantages, disadvantages
Rigid tiles are made of gypsum, ceramics, cement, and are mounted on a concrete, plasterboard wall, or other suitable structure. Such decor often contains various pigments, fiber fibers, and plasticizers. The elements are installed using an adhesive composition suitable for a particular option. The finished finish looks as close as possible to real bricks, especially if they are painted in a suitable color.
Before starting finishing work, you should take into account that solid tiles have quite a lot of weight, creating additional load on the foundation and walls of the room.
Plaster
Gypsum decor has a very various designs. This material is lightweight, parts can be cast independently using silicone, plastic molds. Gypsum is not recommended for use in damp rooms, as it is excessively hygroscopic. In the living room or bedroom they are often decorated with fireplaces - the microclimate in such a room will be as favorable as possible. Low price gypsum allows you to create a noble finish at the lowest cost.
Plaster elements can be used to decorate internal and external walls. To process the corners, shaped parts are taken, giving the finish a neat appearance, protecting the walls from chips and mechanical damage.
For installation, gypsum-based adhesive is used, for
For sealing joints, a special grout is used.
Cement
Cement decor also has a low price and is available in a variety of colors - gray, red-brown, white, black, etc. artificial brick can be used even in winter in unheated rooms, as it consists of one part of Portland cement high brands, two or three parts of sand. It is cast in silicone molds - the solution can be painted at this stage, or with the help of a roller, sponge, brush, the finished product, which is a wall element of masonry, can be decorated like a brick or stone part. Artificial bricks are textured and feel like real ones.
Clinker
Clinker is relatively expensive, therefore interior decoration rarely used. It is very durable - this is the option that is recommended for lining stoves, fireplaces, external walls buildings. Clinker tiles contain highly plastic clay, pressed and fired at high temperatures - 1100-1300 degrees. Artificial pigments and plasticizers are not added - this material is the most environmentally friendly, reliable, will last a long time without losing its performance qualities or attractive appearance. Clinker is wear-resistant, has high frost resistance, practically does not absorb water, and is not afraid of sudden temperature changes, strong chemicals, and detergents.
Clinker tiles are very decorative - they are available in glossy and matte, coated with a transparent glaze or with a natural rough surface. The variety of shapes, colors, sizes, textures will allow you to choose it for almost any interior style.
Installation and painting of tiles
Glue rigid tiles from various materials can be almost the same. In addition to tools for marking and applying adhesive, you will need a circular saw for sawing tiles, grinder with discs for stone. The process of laying rigid tiles is more labor-intensive than flexible ones, due to their heavy weight, the need to carefully seal the seams between individual tiles.
Work progress:
- installation is carried out on the most even surface, previously cleaned of previous coatings, dirt, and grease;
- marking is done with a regular pencil, ruler, the recommended distance between tiles is 9-13 mm;
- the composition of the adhesive mass depends on the material used to make the tile;
- laying is usually done from one of the lower corners. Odd rows start with a whole tile, even rows with half;
- The glue is applied to the wall and spread with a notched trowel. For heavy clinker tiles, it is recommended to apply an additional layer of mortar to the back wall of each element;
- Each subsequent row is checked with a level - while the glue has not hardened, you can make some adjustments. If desired, use direct calibration inserts, which are wooden or silicone strips, about one centimeter wide, inserted between the rows;
- for internal and external corners, special shaped parts are used to make the corners look neat;
- When the installation is completed, the seams need to be filled with grout. To apply it, use a special gun and a ready-made mixture in a tube. As an option, the grout is diluted to the desired degree of thickness, placed in a thick plastic bag, the corner of which is cut off, and the solution is carefully squeezed out into the aisles;
- You should avoid getting grout on the front surface of parts, especially those with a rough surface - it will be extremely difficult to remove;
- To even out the filling of the seams, a special jointing tool is used. This should be done before the grout becomes hard - for about 20 minutes;
- painting is done with a decorative composition of a suitable color.
Characteristics, pros, cons of interior panels
Panels for original “brick” interior design are made from a variety of materials:
- hardboard;
- glass fiber reinforced concrete;
- Chipboard and others.
They vary in the degree of similarity to real bricks, size, color, thickness, and durability. Installation of most types is very simple - the wall is literally assembled like a puzzle or the parts are laid end-to-end.
The panels can be wall or ceiling.
PVC, MDF panels
Parts made of polyvinyl chloride are the most popular in modern times due to their environmental friendliness, safety, and relatively affordable cost. In second place are panels made of modified wood-fiber boards. Stores offer the widest range of such decor as “antique”, “wild stone”, etc. MDF is cut with a jigsaw, a hand saw, PVC - with sharp scissors, a knife for cutting paper.
The main advantage of the materials described above is that they can easily be used to finish even the most uneven walls, which do not require any prior preparation, leveling, or applying putty. In cases where it is necessary to hide utility lines in spacious rooms, the panels are mounted on a frame made of metal or wood. PVC panels are used in rooms with different temperatures and humidity levels. For sound and heat insulation, a layer of insulation is used in parallel with the panels. MDF is not used in wet rooms - it is suitable for living rooms; the range also includes corner parts.
Embossed panels made of hardboard, fiberglass, fiberboard, gypsum, etc. are mounted in approximately the same way.
Glass fiber reinforced concrete panels
Glass fiber cement parts are durable and beautiful. The material contains high-quality cement and glass fibers (including colored fibers), which greatly increase the strength of the products. When performing external work, reinforcement with metal structures is often used, which increases the total weight of the structure and increases its mechanical resistance to any influences. The material is environmentally friendly and protects the house from radio radiation, but its cost is high and therefore not available to everyone.
Technology, methods of panel fastening
Interior panels are attached to a flat wall using any polymer adhesive, for example, “liquid nails”. For curved, “humpbacked” surfaces, installation will be required metal frame with special hanging system. Heavy MDF panels are additionally mounted with dowels in three to five places. Glass fiber reinforced concrete structures are attached to flat surface using cement tile adhesive.
Brick-look wallpaper
Brick wallpaper is the cheapest, most economical, but not very durable option. Their main advantage is that no special skills or tools are required for installation, nor the invitation of highly qualified specialists. Usable area the rooms are not reduced at all, and after the work is completed there is practically no waste left. Paper and vinyl wallpapers do not weigh down the structure; even thin drywall can withstand them. Liquid wallpaper is easily applied to a wall of any curvature; its implementation is reminiscent of installing cement mortar tiles.
Homemade wall decoration options
There can be several ways to decorate a homemade “brick” wall:
- details are drawn by hand directly on the wall surface;
- you can use a stencil, templates made of plastic, plywood;
- made of corrugated cardboard covered with decoupage napkins;
- primer mixture;
- high-quality plaster;
- narrow masking tape;
- stationery knife;
- spatula;
- containers for diluting compounds;
- a drill with a special attachment, another tool for mixing the solution.
Polystyrene foam is a cheap, easily processed material. Get regular foam You can use cardboard boxes from furniture and household appliances. Blocks made of dense polystyrene foam are purchased at construction markets. The work process is simple: bricks of a suitable size are cut out of this material, and any irregularities are sanded with sandpaper. The parts are glued to the wall or ceiling using tile adhesive, “ liquid nails", PVA glue, painted with acrylic or other water-based paint. The irregularities are pre-created using a soldering iron or a utility knife.
Tip: the preferred size of bricks is 250 by 120 mm, the distance between them is one or two mm.
Using a stencil to imitate brickwork
The stencil is cut out of a thick sheet of cardboard, rubber, linoleum, and purchased ready-made in the store. Paint and plaster are applied using a smooth spatula, spray can, brush, sponge, or fabric roller. The wall is marked, retreating three to seven centimeters from the floor, leaving space for seams of 10-15 mm. The most common size of a purchased template is 6.5 cm by 20 cm; almost any size can be made at home.
If it is planned not a complete, but a partial imitation of brick, the placement diagram is graphically depicted on paper.
Detailed master class on creating brickwork relief using masking tape and plaster
One of the options for finishing an old or new wall “like a brick” is concrete. To work you will need:
The wall is first cleaned of previous decor - wallpaper, paint, plaster, etc., if necessary, it is leveled, and then primed. On initial stage Marking is very important - a marking cord or an iron tape measure is used for it. It is advisable to mark relative to pre-filled strictly horizontal profiles under the ceiling.
Next, narrow tape is glued to the wall so that it looks like bricks. Plaster, tile adhesive, and rotband are applied over the adhesive tape and the entire wall in a layer of five to eight millimeters. After the solution has set slightly, the tape is carefully peeled off, the gaps are leveled using a wooden stack and a hard brush.
Instead of plaster, ordinary tile adhesive is often used; all work is recommended to be carried out with gloves.
Conclusion
Decorating an apartment with fake, painted, glued bricks is a very popular type of decoration. The simplest options are easy to reproduce with your own hands; for more complex ones, you will need not only the advice of specialists, but also their direct participation. Various variations of fake brickwork are matched to almost any popular interior style - from classic to loft. You can decorate the entire house with bricks, as well as a small area in the room.
To select optimal solution, you should always look at the interior itself. Manufacturers of various imitation materials have taken these features into account and therefore offer many options to choose from. The result obtained with their use will differ visually and in characteristics, so you need to imagine in advance what the end result will be. Now we will try to give such an idea to the reader. We will go like this - first we name the material, describe its main properties and present step by step instructions on implementation.
Soft tiles
Flexible tiles, which are compressed rubber granules painted the color of brick, are perfect for both interior and exterior wall decoration. This material is not afraid of deformation, water and other negative factors. It is elastic, which means it will withstand any movement of the base and can be laid on curved surfaces.
Flexible tiles do not rot, are impervious to microorganisms and are a vapor-permeable material, which allows the walls to not be blocked from the passage of gases, which helps to establish a favorable microclimate in the premises.
This decoration looks very beautiful and presentable. You can understand what material it is made of only from the very first close range, and even then this does not spoil the impression of the finish.
The great advantage of installing such tiles is its simplicity - any craftsman can handle the job. This does not require a specific tool - almost everything can be found in any home.
Unlike rigid analogues, such tiles can be installed with a bend in the corners of the room. This allows you to create the illusion that the masonry is actually made of real brick - look at the photo above. Also, you will not be able to use other materials to decorate columns and half-columns, and indeed other architectural elements that have a complex curvilinear shape.
It is better not to use this finish in bathrooms and kitchens, since the material will not reliably protect the base from water.
Such tiles are quite expensive, but their properties justify the price. The service life of the products is very long and will be determined only by their appearance. The material cannot be damaged by an accidental blow, and if necessary, it can be partially dismantled and replaced with a new one.
Prices for flexible tiles
Flexible tiles
How to install flexible tiles
First, let's prepare the materials and the necessary tools.
Table 1. Required tools and materials.
Photo, title | Description |
---|---|
This tool will help you apply the adhesive evenly on the wall. It is more convenient to use a comb rather than a spatula. Also take a regular spatula to scoop up glue from a bucket, mix it and work on it during the application process. | |
The highest precision when laying such tiles is not required, but it is always good when the seams between the elements are smooth and level. Therefore, take a long building level, or supplement a short one with an even rule. | |
To quickly and evenly draw lines, take a dye thread. Other marking tools include a pencil, tape measure, and carpenter's square. | |
Rubber tiles are very easy to cut. To do this, you can use regular scissors or a sharp stationery knife. Scissors should be chosen more powerful so that they can cope well with thick elastic material. | |
We will need 2 types of brushes. The first is maklavitsa, for applying soil to the surface of the wall. The second is round, 12 mm in diameter, for filling the seams between the tiles. | |
To improve the adhesion of walls and reduce their water absorption, a primer composition must be used. If it is not applied, the quality of adhesion of materials will be much worse. We use acrylic primer with deep penetration. If the surface of the walls is such that the glue will not stick well to it, then it is worth taking a concrete contact, which will additionally create a strong abrasive film on the surface - it contains quartz filler. | |
You will also need glue, and everything you need to dilute it, if you do not buy it ready-made - a bucket, a mixer, and so on. The tiles can be laid either with regular cement-based tile adhesive or with elastic compounds, which will create enhanced adhesion and will not be subject to subsidence and other movements of the structure, like the tile itself. Naturally, the second option is better, but it costs much more. |
Prices for building levels
Construction levels
The work is carried out in the following order (we assume that you have already completed the priming and the walls are completely dry).
Step 1 – marking the walls.
The instructions recommend first dividing the wall into sections and marking them to indicate the areas where you will apply glue. Let's say right away that this is long and not very convenient, since in the process of spreading glue you will constantly stain the lines, and it will be impossible to navigate along them. Therefore, we advise you to do the following.
Using a level, you need to draw a horizontal line on the border of the second row; a tape measure will help you accurately determine its height. This line is drawn with a dye thread. Then you can nail a metal profile PNP 27*28 onto it, which will help you accurately align the first row, or more precisely, the second. Then it is removed and the pass is filled in.
The seams between the rows must be aligned using a spacer, which can be any flat strip of the required thickness. We use it only for horizontal seams, and the run-up between the vertical ones will not make any difference, essentially.
Step 2 – diluting the glue and applying it.
Mix the purchased glue with water according to the instructions on its packaging. If you purchased ready-made option, then you can start working right away. It is applied to the wall, as shown in the photo above. For this we use a comb with a tooth of 2-4 mm, having previously spread it on the wall in a thin layer with an ordinary spatula. You should cover a surface area of no more than 1 square meter at a time, since the elements are small and you may not have time to glue them, and the surface of the glue will become weathered, and the quality of the adhesion will suffer.
Step 3 – cutting the tiles and gluing them.
Then it’s a matter of technique - we glue the tiles one by one, pressing them firmly against the wall. There is no need to remove the squeezed out excess glue; we will need it later. The tiles are laid in order, as is the case with real bricks. Between the rows we make an offset of ½ the width of the tile. The material is cut very simply - we precisely mark it along the square and divide it into parts with scissors. For greater reliability, you don’t need to use a square - let it feel like the edge is uneven.
If you need to get around some obstacles, you can make any shaped cuts in the material, spending a minimum of time and effort.
Step 4 – washing the seams.
As soon as you go through the entire area coated with glue, take a brush, moisten it in water and start rubbing the seams with it, smoothing out the relief from the comb. Changes in glue will create the most reliable effect of simulating a brick surface.
A huge advantage of this solution is that it does not require subsequent finishing, the material is not as cold as brick, and it is pleasant to contact your body with it. Having finished the work, you wait for the solution to dry, and you can safely bring furniture into the room and use it.
Advice! The color of flexible bricks in packs may vary slightly. Before starting work, open them all and mix them together so that you don’t end up with noticeable stains on the wall.
Hard tiles
All other imitation falls into the hard category. Various materials can be used here, ranging from gypsum to plastic. Each has its pros and cons and is installed using similar technology. Let's take a little closer look at the options.
Gypsum tiles
The most common solution is gypsum tiles. Due to the plasticity properties of this material in the liquid state, it is possible to achieve excellent results in imitation, but its use is associated with a number of difficulties that should be taken into account. Namely:
- Gypsum is an organic material, so colonies of microorganisms can multiply on it.
- It strongly absorbs water, which is why it is not used in rooms with high humidity. It's also not as good for the street as its competitors, which we'll talk about next.
- Plaster is white, which is not suitable for every interior - as a result, the surface needs to be painted, and such work can safely be called delicate.
- For corners, you need to buy shaped products, which, as usual, are more expensive than the main material.
At the same time, this material has the following advantages:
- It is vapor permeable, which will allow your room to “breathe”. This finish is beneficial to human health.
- Gypsum is a neutral material that does not cause allergies.
- This finish looks very beautiful and original. For example, it will go perfectly with a Mediterranean interior.
Despite the fact that gypsum stones are cheaper than natural ones, their price does not seem quite affordable to everyone. That’s why the idea of making them yourself comes to mind. Simple technology manufacturing allows you to cast stone from gypsum at home. All that is required for this is the necessary components, special forms and positive air temperature. Look for detailed instructions .
Prices for gypsum tiles
Gypsum tiles
Cement tiles
Cement tiles are more expensive than their gypsum counterpart, but they have several significant advantages over them.
- The material is colored in bulk by adding pigments to its composition. different colors. This allows you to achieve greater realism of the brick surface.
- Concrete tiles are much stronger than gypsum tiles and will definitely last longer.
- The material is not afraid of water, and mold does not grow on it.
- The decorative properties of cement tiles are at a higher level.
- The material is not afraid of temperature changes, so it is often used when finishing facades.
Interesting to know! High-quality products may have fiber reinforcement. Such tiles will serve for decades without being damaged in any way.
Among the disadvantages, one can note only a more complex process of cutting the material, during which you can get untidy chips.
Prices for decorative tiles
Decorative stone tiles
Clinker tiles
A truly beautiful imitation will only be with application. Here are high-quality ceramic products that will look even better than simple red brick. This material costs a lot of money, but this is justified by its unique properties.
- The hygroscopicity of clinker is almost zero. It is very durable and invulnerable to acidic and alkaline environments. The material is also not afraid of frost, so it is what you need for exterior decoration.
- It is not used so often for indoors, due to the lack of need for its strength and other amenities, but if you have the money, then why not - you can never go wrong.
- The material is equipped with different styles, which will also allow you to beautifully go around corners in the room.
Rigid tiles, by and large, are installed in exactly the same way as flexible ones. All difference will consist in the thickness of the adhesive layer, which is recommended to be done around 5 mm, and material cutting. For the latter apply electric tools With diamond wheels. You can use a grinder, a circular hand saw, a miter saw, and electric tile cutters with an upper and lower motor. The glue can be applied directly to the tiles, if you later want to use a special grout - this way the work is more accurate. Otherwise the same principles are used.
Interesting to know! Without corner elements, decorating external corners with such tiles is problematic - you have to make complex cuts at 45 degrees, which takes a lot of time. The result may not be very good if you chose a textured material - the differences remain noticeable.
Wall decorative panels
You can also assemble a “brick” surface from composite panels, which allow you to achieve a pretty good effect. The main advantage of this solution is the cost and high speed of installation. Some models can be installed on a frame, which allows you to place layers of insulation from cold and noise behind them, as well as to conduct hidden communication lines. Essentially, this is an adult puzzle that almost anyone can assemble.
Such panels are made from different materials - the most common are plastic and. There are also fiber cement panels, but they are used mainly for exterior decoration, although no one forbids installing them in the house.
- The first option is good for wet rooms and outdoors. Externally, it does not look very attractive, so this finish can be classified as budget.
- MDF panels also don’t look much like brick, but they look nicer than plastic ones. They are used only in dry rooms, since the material is very afraid of water and quickly becomes unusable upon contact with it.
- High quality fiber cement panels may have a ceramic coating on the surface, which will visually make them almost indistinguishable from real brick, but these materials are very expensive.
In addition, there are other types of panels:
- Hardboard.
- Fiberglass.
- Plaster and more.
There are several installation methods for such panels. Some, as already mentioned, are attached to a frame made of wood or metal, others are simply glued to the base with glue. All information about this can be found in the instructions for the specific material.
Video - Japanese fiber cement panels: features of facade finishing
Original ways to create imitation
Agree, buying a high-quality product that will skillfully imitate brick will cost the buyer a decent amount of money. Is there really no way to make such a solution for your interior more accessible? Of course there is! Nothing is impossible for a person, and they came up with various original methods, which we will talk about in this chapter.
Let's consider several options in which we will use different mixtures. You can get the job done by mixing gypsum plaster with tile cement glue using clean or decorative plaster or thick paint.
Option 1
Step 1 – applying plaster to the wall surface.
The first option is very simple to implement, but the work itself is quite painstaking and time-consuming, but the texture turns out to be very expressive. So, let's divorce plaster mixture and apply it with a spatula to the wall in a layer of 1-2 cm - it depends on the depth of the relief you want to get. The mixture must be applied unevenly so that the result resembles natural stone.
Step 2 – extruding the texture.
Then we take a deep rectangular mold, moisten it in water so that it does not stick to the plaster and begin making impressions, thereby creating the desired imitation.
Prices for popular types of plaster
Plaster
Step 3 – shading.
We take the wet one paint brush and start smoothing out the edges. The “brick” will begin to resemble natural stone.
The finished wall needs to be sanded and painted in the desired color. An excellent result for the most modest investment. If you use the mixture with tile adhesive, it will be very durable.
Option 2
Step 1 – stick the stencil.
The base is processed and then painted white. Then a thin checkerboard-shaped masking tape is applied to the wall. This way we get a stencil that will help to very quickly form seams on the surface.
Step 2 – painting.
Now we can start painting the wall with dark, thick paint. After walking a few squares, we partially remove the stencil, and in its place the perfect brick texture will remain.
Of course, the result is not very voluminous, but for interior decoration this is quite enough. And given the simplicity and speed of the method, it becomes a priority for many.
If you want to get a more realistic effect, then use a thin layer of plaster instead of paint - the tape is removed when the mixture has set a little.
Option 3
Step 1 – applying plaster.
We start by applying gypsum plaster to the base. Its surface must be made as smooth and even as possible, so beacons are mandatory.
Step 2 – cutting the relief.
After the plaster has set a little, take the rule, apply it to the wall with a certain step and use a wide screwdriver to cut the seams. It turns out very beautiful and impressive.
This work is very painstaking, but the appearance of the wall will be on par, the treasure will have smooth edges.
As you can see, there are many ways to decorate your home with brickwork. Choose the best option for yourself, and go ahead - you will definitely succeed.
Video - Plaster brick
Many people remember the Soviet washable paper wallpaper for the corridor with a brick wall print and green sprouts. Many decades have passed since then, but decorative brick on the wall not only has not lost its relevance, but has also smoothly moved into the interiors of living rooms and kitchens, becoming a style-forming element of many modern styles.
Types and features of tiles
Certainly, real brick can rarely be found in the interior. Only owners of brick city new buildings, who, by agreement with the developer, refused plastering work, and owners of private brick houses can afford such a luxury. In all other cases, to implement this bold idea, you will need imitation decorative finishing material.
Flexible
Flexible brick tiles are used quite often for interior decoration. The reason for this is its good decorative qualities and ease of installation. This modern material is made from cement, sand, acrylic polymer and colored pigments. On sale you can find a huge variety of color schemes for brick tiles: all shades of brick, white, sand, gray and even black.
This material bends softly at any angle, you can use it to decorate external and internal corners, window and doorways, columns and other curved surfaces. To do this, the finishing element is simply heated with a hair dryer to 50 degrees and glued to a curved surface under pressure. A slightly heated tile will hide any unevenness in the base. You can cut it with a simple knife.
Thanks to combinations of different color shades of tiles from one collection, you can achieve unique design walls. Deviations in shades will further emphasize the naturalness of the masonry. Due to their good performance characteristics (frost resistance, resistance to natural factors), the tiles can also be used in exterior decoration - for example, to cover a loggia.
It can be noted the following advantages flexible modern material:
- provides additional heat and sound insulation;
- thanks to light weight, easy to work with;
- practically waste-free material;
- warm to the touch;
- has a certain resistance to mechanical stress;
- you can put it on a cheap one cement mixture or cement glue.
Plaster
Brick-like gypsum tiles are absolutely environmentally friendly and allow the surface to breathe, which is why they are as popular in finishing as they are flexible. By appearance and in terms of manufacturing technology it is not much different from cement. In production facing material from gypsum with the addition of plasticizers. It is light in weight, which makes it easy to work with and has a certain range of applications: for example, it can be mounted on drywall. Gypsum tiles painted in the mass do not lose color during long-term use, have soundproofing characteristics, high decorative properties and an inexpensive price.
However, some of its technical characteristics significantly reduce the range of its application:
- Gypsum tiles absorb moisture from the environment, swell and, as a result, become painted. Therefore, it is not advisable to use it in rooms with high humidity: bathrooms and kitchens. Or you will have to apply a special varnish to the tiles, which will significantly increase the amount of investment in repairs.
- This is a brittle material that can easily crack from mechanical stress. The fragility also complicates the installation process somewhat.
- Gypsum tiles are an excellent dust collector. The textured surface easily accumulates dust.
Unfortunately, the low heat resistance and fragility of the tile make it impossible to use it in kitchens near stoves, for facing fireplaces, and also for finishing areas near heating elements.
Cement
Cement tiles have excellent performance characteristics and can be used for decorative cladding in rooms operating at any temperature. For example, for finishing walls in seasonal homes. A huge advantage of cement tiles is its inexpensive price and a variety of colors and textures.
The basis of cement tiles is mineral chips and the best brands of Portland cement containing binder silicates, sand and water. Casting or pressing manufacturing technology allows you to imitate the surface with any accuracy. Slightly inferior to clinker in mechanical strength, polymer-cement tiles have less weight, chemical resistance, and a high variety of colors and textures. Color pigment is introduced into the solution immediately during mixing, which ensures color fastness and resistance to fading.
Clinker
Clinker tiles are made from the same slate clays as traditional bricks - the differences lie in the manufacturing technology. To make clinker clay, high-temperature firing is used until the components of the mixture are completely sintered. The resulting clinker tiles have minimal porosity, excellent strength, excellent thermal insulation, frost-resistant, moisture-resistant and decorative characteristics. Therefore, clinker is most often used for cladding facades.
In an apartment, clinker tiles are an excellent solution not only for rooms, but also for decorating kitchens and bathrooms, since their moisture resistance and resistance to temperature changes determine their durability when used in difficult conditions.
Brick panels
Brick-like wall panels made of PVC, MDF, and glass fiber reinforced concrete are also widely used for interior decoration. This material is easy to use, and its protective coating can withstand moderate impacts and friction. Bars and restaurants widely use it to create authentic interiors. It is also convenient for home use. The advantages of panels include:
- Duration of operation - up to 15 years without loss of performance characteristics.
- The ability to hide uneven surfaces or communication systems with minimal time investment.
- The light weight and small thickness of the material allow it to be used even for finishing plasterboard partitions.
- Ease of processing the material (cuts with a regular knife) and ease of installation.
- Resistance to high levels of humidity, fungus, mold.
- Various designs, a large number of color shades, varied textures, no need for final painting.
Wall panels have small drawback- with significant mechanical impact they may crack.
Based on the base material, the panels are divided into:
- PVC panels - safe lightweight decorative panels, which are glued to the surface.
- MDF panels are made from wood chips. Such panels have high performance parameters: resistance to wear, thermal insulation properties and durability.
- Panels made of glass fiber reinforced concrete - a modern material that is a mixture of quartz sand, white cement and reinforcing fiberglass. This is a modern flexible, lightweight, environmentally friendly, highly frost-resistant, fire-resistant, moisture-resistant, sound-insulating material that is resistant to corrosion and chemical attack. Glass fiber reinforced concrete has high strength under impact, bending, tension and compression.
Advantages and Disadvantages
When choosing tiles to create interior decorative masonry, you must carefully read technical characteristics finishing material. For example, to install a kitchen apron, you need to choose a moisture-resistant material with a surface that is easy to clean. The use of gypsum tiles for these purposes will create certain difficulties. The same applies to the use of tiles in the bathroom.
The installation time factor when choosing a material also plays a big role. It’s easier and faster to make brick decor from soft tiles or using wall panels. Working with hard tiles will take much more time. Due to some complexity of installation, in some cases it is better to invite a professional.
The price factor also plays an important role - more budget solution The question will be gypsum or cement tiles, but clinker is a rather expensive material.
In general decorative tiles under brick allows you to create a durable, beautiful interior in modern and classic styles, will look original and noble and will last as long as possible.
DIY tiles
Some craftsmen prefer to make decorative tiles with their own hands, creating their own unique textures. This process is not particularly complicated and does not require the use of high-tech equipment.
Made from polystyrene foam
Foam bricks are an easy option to transform the interior of your home. To make bricks, fine-grained foam is taken, which is cut to the size of a traditional brick - 25 by 12 cm. If the walls are perfectly aligned, you can glue the bricks directly onto them. If you don’t want to level the walls, you can make a base panel from gypsum plasterboard or plywood.
The bricks are glued using PVA onto a primed wall or base with a gap that imitates natural masonry of 10-15 mm. To imitate naturalness, cracks and gouges are applied with a regular soldering iron or knife (spatula, any sharp object). The base is glued to the wall. After this, you can begin painting the bricks with acrylic paints. You need to paint in several layers, starting with more dark shades and ending with lighter ones. It is better to paint using spray cans.
Tiles using a stencil
A brick imitation can be made using a plastic or rubber stencil. To simplify the work, you can purchase a ready-made stencil from the well-known manufacturer of dry plaster and adhesive mixtures, Ceresit. The manufacturer offers a whole line of stencils imitating brickwork London, Boston brickwork, etc. The surface of the stencil repeats the texture of a brick wall.
Work should be carried out on freshly laid plaster that has not yet set. The stencil is lightly moistened with water and applied to the wall with pressure. After you remove the stencil, the imprint of the brick wall will immediately be visible. The stencil is moved along the wall along one straight line. You need to level and correct the imitation masonry with your hands, not with a tool. This creates an imitation of natural texture.
After the mortar has dried, use a scraper to make the borders of the bricks a little clearer. Then use a brush to brush away the debris from the masonry and begin painting.
Made from plaster and silicone molds
To make brick tiles from gypsum, you can, of course, use store-bought silicone or polyurethane molds, but their prices can leave anyone confused. However, if the question is about designing a brick insert of a small area, then you can buy one mold, usually for 8 bricks, and sequentially make the required number of bricks.
If you plan to decorate the entire apartment in a loft style, for example, or at least decorate a couple of walls in brick style, then it will be easier to cast several molds with your own hands and quickly use them to make the required number of bricks.
To make a silicone mold, you will need a large laminated chipboard board with aluminum corner sides to fit the future mold and decorative bricks. The bricks need to be glued onto the board with a shift or evenly, depending on what kind of masonry you want to get in the end, maintaining the evenness of the masonry joints ranging in size from 3 mm to 5 mm. The bricks must be glued tightly, over the entire surface, so that the polyurethane does not flow under them. After this, the entire surface is treated with a release agent.
Polyurethane is mixed in accordance with the manufacturer's instructions. The best hardness polyurethane for these purposes is 40 shore. The first layer of polyurethane is applied with a brush, and after a couple of minutes the polyurethane can be poured onto the surface. The polyurethane should dry for a day, after which you can take it out and put it in for another 5 days to rest. After this, you can start working with it.
The simplest gypsum mixture for making bricks:
- 6 parts plaster;
- 1 part slaked lime;
- water at the rate of 1 to 0.7;
- color.
The ideal option is to have a vibrating table. With its help, air bubbles will be removed from the poured solution. If there is no vibrating table, the plaster in each mold must be pierced with any pin for the same purposes. After 20 minutes, the plaster has already set and can be carefully pulled out of the mold. The bricks need to dry for another day.
This is perhaps the simplest method of creating imitation brickwork and does not require any special investment. To plaster the wall, you can use ready-made dry mixtures by mixing the plaster and adhesive cement mixture in a 1 to 1 ratio. To further increase the plasticity of the solution, you need to add 1 tbsp per 5 kg. Fairy detergent.
For building masonry on the wall, masking tape 14 mm wide is better suited. To simplify the work, the surface of the wall can be pre-drawn with a pencil. The distance between the lines is calculated based on the size of the bricks and the size of the masonry joints. The tape is evenly glued along the drawn lines so that the edges of the horizontal strips extend beyond the boundaries of the wall being decorated, and the vertical strips must be glued on top of the horizontal ones. To prevent pencil marks from being visible on the masonry, it is better to glue the tape above the lines and slightly to the side. The tape needs to be pressed tightly against the wall and checked that it is firmly glued together.
Now the prepared solution is applied to the wall on top of the tape with a spatula in a layer 5-6 mm thick. If you apply a thicker layer, you will then have to spend time on additional grouting. If the mixture is pre-tinted, no coloring will be required. You can walk over the applied solution with a wet rubber glove to create a textured surface.
After the solution has set, but has not yet completely hardened, you can remove the mesh from the tape. Using the ends of the tape, moving from top to bottom, it is removed along with the plaster applied to it. After the plaster has dried a little more, you can use a spatula to smooth out the contours of the bricks. Small dents and scratches will only add naturalness and naturalness to the masonry.
If further painting is planned, then the dried wall will need to be primed. If the tile is already painted in the mass, it will be enough to coat it with varnish for decorative coatings.
Style solutions
Decorative masonry imitating brick not only does not create a large load on the walls, but also allows you to decorate the interior, both in classic (English style, retro), rustic (country, Provence), and modern (Scandinavian, loft, industrial) styles. Let's look at some examples.
Loft
The brutal texture of brick has literally become a calling card modern style Loft. In such an interior, it will look at home in any room - in the living room, bedroom, kitchen and hallway. As a rule, in a loft, one wall is decorated with brickwork - the accent wall. The color of the masonry can correspond to the taste preferences of the owners - light, white, light gray masonry will help visual expansion space, while rich colors- brick, brown and even black are acceptable only in spacious apartments.
Loft goes well with modern furniture and with bright colors. Its main companions are metal, wood and glass. To create a stylish interior, you can paint the remaining 3 walls white. As a representative of the minimalist movement, the loft does not accept small, cluttered decor. Windows in this style do not need to be curtained, and blinds will look good on the first floors. Wooden floors will add coziness to the room.
In the kitchen, a kitchen apron made using the brickwork technique will add a zest to the loft style. However, you can also make a working wall with bricks up to the ceiling.
Country
In country style, brick as one background wall will look perfect in the kitchen. Rooms are often decorated with brick inserts - along arches and doorways. The main feature of country style is its lightness, ease and simplicity. And it is very important not to disturb this harmony with a rather heavy brick.
Decorating living rooms with natural materials is a good tradition in interior design. To the long-loved stone, forged metal, wood was joined (from the mid-20th century) by brick. Becoming a successful mainstream in the home improvement segment living space, this material gives rooms an individual aesthetic. The apparent deliberate roughness of the brickwork in the interior emphasizes the originality of the room, its figurative contrast and immediately attracts attention - the desire to touch it with your hand involuntarily arises.
White brick in the interior gives the room a special aestheticsA white brick wall favorably sets off the decorative elements of the room: furniture, textiles, decor. Against its background, color accents sound in a new way and texture nuances in the interior of each room are revealed. Moreover, this is not only affordable way original finishing, but also the possibility of creative use of various functional designs:
protrusions;
arched recesses.
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Style secrets
Brickwork – distinguishing feature various style directions.
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characteristic pastel colors;
Provençal textiles;
other decorative elements.
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eco-design elements;
natural materials;
pastel colors;
minimum amount of decor;
white as a base (in northern countries there is so little sun, so a light background is out of competition).
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Rules for using masonry in the interior
Rule #1
Don't be afraid to experiment!
Rule #2
Be guided by a sense of proportion and knowledge of style.
Rule #3
Having decided to experiment, use brick finishing in reasonable proportions, highlighting with it:
fireplace area (or hearth area);
individual architectural elements: niches, columns, arches, partitions;
accent wall.
By over-decorating the walls with white brick, you can get an uncomfortably cold atmosphere instead of the expected stylish sophistication.
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What will we make bricks from?
There is a large selection of materials for decorative masonry (or its imitation). Differing in appearance, texture, and price segment, they will be able to satisfy any consumer demand.
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drawing a masonry joint on fresh plaster that preserves the shape and size of the brick;
applying plaster/putty mortar through a stencil imitating a brick texture;
Having previously glued the plane with masking tape (insulating tape) along the lines of the masonry joints, putty is applied to the marked area (in a continuous layer of the required thickness); the electrical tape (scotch tape) is removed along with part of the mortar, exposing the natural masonry joint and creating a natural look of brick imitation.
When choosing a material for finishing, the main criterion (after aesthetic and financial) is its functional purpose for a certain type of room. So, in a small hallway, textured wallpaper with imitation is best suited, and easy-to-clean white clinker tiles as a kitchen apron.
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White design secrets
Living room
In the case of a non-standard room layout and remembering the use of only one plane with a brick surface, try to make it the most bizarrely shaped wall (with protrusions, niches, recesses). In this case, masonry under white brick will adequately emphasize its individuality. If the shape of the living room is standard rectangular, then the main element of decor will help determine the “necessary” surface: it will be placed on it.
The recreation area will also be located along such a wall. If there is a fireplace in the living room, then the question of choosing a surface for decoration disappears, since the area of the hearth and fireplace is always highlighted by masonry elements.
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Bedroom
A white brick wall in the bedroom is an excellent design solution. The seemingly rough white brick accentuates the comfort and softness of textiles: blankets and pillows. Decorative elements will successfully appear against its background: panels, paintings, mirrors, wall lamps.
The advantage of the decorated area is that, despite all the “flatness” of the pure, white, “sterile medical” color, such a surface is not uniform, but relief and textured.
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Kitchen
Decorating its interior with masonry is used for the following purposes.
Installation of a kitchen apron.
The main requirement (besides design aesthetics) is increased functionality, moisture and heat resistance. Therefore, white clinker tiles are an excellent choice for the kitchen.
Kitchen zoning.
Highlighting the dining area, the white background of the wall will favorably emphasize the bright colors of individual decorative elements.
Installation of a bar counter or kitchen island (if space allows).
![](https://i1.wp.com/couo.ru/wp-content/uploads/2017/11/primer-primeneniya-beloj-steny-v-otdelke-kvartiry.jpeg)
Summing up
While giving the design a special originality and sophisticated charm, using a white brick wall in the interior of a room still has some disadvantages. Of the minuses it is worth noting:
relative high cost of the material;
labor-intensive installation;
reduction of room space with some types of such finishing.
![](https://i2.wp.com/couo.ru/wp-content/uploads/2017/11/variant-ispolzovaniya-beloj-steny-v-remonte-komnaty.jpg)
And yet there are much more undeniable advantages. Colored and white brick:
durable;
compatible with many interior styles;
especially durable;
resistant to moisture and temperature fluctuations;
goes well with wood, metal, glass.
When using this type of decoration in the interior, you should remember the dimensions of the room and achieve harmonious interaction with other design elements.
Video: Do-it-yourself brick wall in the interior
According to architects and designers, brickwork in the interior today is one of the leading trends. It is often used in loft and eclectic styles. Bricks harmonize well with glass, cast iron, natural wood. However, designers notice that it is necessary to use this element in finishing in doses, because decorative masonry is always bright accent. However, this decor is expensive and heavy. natural material, which sharply limits its use. Brick plaster is an imitation that has become an excellent way out of this situation.
Ways to imitate brickwork
Purchased products.
There are ready-made products on sale from various materials that can be used to imitate brickwork for interior decoration. This:
- embossed wallpaper,
- plastic panels,
- flexible, ceramic and clinker tiles
- plaster plates.
Self-production.
To reduce the price, decorative bricks are made independently:
- cutting them out of polystyrene foam or corrugated cardboard,
- sawing natural building bricks using a grinder or circular saw,
- casting gypsum plates in plastic molds.
Cutting natural brick is a dangerous task, try to avoid this method of decoration
The blanks are glued in the appropriate order to the wall.
- The brick-masonry look is also obtained by depicting masonry by applying a pattern to the wall. To do this, use rollers, ready-made or homemade stencils.
- To obtain the desired decor, plaster can also be removed from the brick walls of the apartment. In this case, after cleaning the wall, the natural texture of the masonry is revealed.
- However, brick imitation for interior decoration is often done using. At the same time, large areas are covered with decor quickly and look neater.
Videos have been added to the article below that show how brick plaster is done with your own hands.
The main advantages of brick plaster decor
Any finishes have their pros and cons.
Decorative plaster brickwork has its advantages:
- Light weight of the coating - compared to natural brick, it does not overload the load-bearing elements of the building structures;
- Imitation brick made from plaster mortars is highly durable and resistant to various types of mechanical damage;
- Making a brick wall with your own efforts is easy and simple. You can save on the services of specialists;
- Imitation brick looks great in the interior of rooms of various styles (from loft to gothic);
- Can be used for interiors or facades;
- During operation, no special maintenance is required;
- Changing the decor when changing the interior is done by painting it in any color.
Brick finishing also has disadvantages:
- The need for more frequent removal of dust accumulated by the terrain;
- Ability to perform work only at temperatures above +10 C;
- The need to knock down the relief coating when changing the surface texture.
What is required for brick plaster?
Naturally, imitation brick with your own hands is a job that requires appropriate tools, devices and building materials.
For any of the wall decoration methods you need:
- containers for water and mixture preparation,
- spatulas for applying decorative mixture to the wall,
- as a rule,
- trowel,
- roulette,
- masking tape,
- brush,
- cutter,
- trowel,
- marking pencil,
- laser or bubble level,
- mixer for mixing the mixture,
- roller for priming or varnishing,
- brush,
- rags
- cord,
- floor protection film.
Depending on the method in which you create bricks on the wall with your own hands , may need:
- roller or stencil for brick plaster,
- scraper - a tool used for jointing,
- metal strip for rustication.
It is possible that other equipment may be required, for example, a sponge, a respirator, gloves.
Preparing the wall for work
Before making an imitation brick:
- Old finishing (tiles, wallpaper, cracked paint, etc.) is removed;
- Check the curvature of the wall surface, if necessary, make a correction by leveling the walls with building or plaster mortar;
- Chips, potholes and cracks are repaired;
- Apply primer to increase adhesion.
Brick plaster hides minor imperfections very well, but it is unacceptable to leave serious defects such as cracks. All this damage must be eliminated, otherwise it will transfer to the coating itself.
Selecting a material to create an imitation
Decorative finishing is performed using various mortars. Imitation of white brick can be made of gypsum. Suitable with sand as a textured base for imitation.
In general, in order for the imitation of any brickwork with your own hands to turn out to be of high quality, you need a high-quality plaster mixture, with good adhesion (adhesion), workability, and a setting mode suitable for applying relief. Ready-made formulations are available for sale, the binding components of which are either polymers. These compositions are easy to install due to their high plasticity; they also have strength and high adhesiveness. In addition, they contain antifungal and anti-mold additives.
There are also many recipes that can be used at home decorative composition cook it yourself. To do this, you need to know how to make plaster for this work correctly. By choosing to prepare the mixture yourself, you can save additional money. Do-it-yourself decorative plaster is prepared in the following sequence: dry ingredients are mixed, water and color are added to the container, decorative mixture mixed with an electric mixer.
You can also use tile adhesive as a base to form the finish.
However, compositions with different astringent bases should not be mixed with each other. This dramatically reduces the strength of the decorative coating.
An example of such a composition:
- 1 part cement
- 3 Pieces of sand
- Per bucket up to 2 liters of tile adhesive. Add glue by eye.
Video. Decorative plaster for brick
Creation technology
Both professionals and amateurs need to know that decorative plaster in the form of a brick surface is performed in various ways.
For example, to create rustications on the base, stuffing is done using metal slats, the thickness of which is from 5 to 15 mm:
- Superimposed facade plaster from cement-sand mortar is marked;
- A strip is placed on the line and pressed into the surface with blows of a mallet hammer;
- Then the rail is removed very smoothly and carefully;
- The surfaces of the resulting large “bricks” are given the texture of stone before the plaster dries.
There is a technique in which a brick wall is created with your own hands from plaster by applying a grid of seams using beating with a thick cord. To do this, the cord is pulled along the future seam (two assistants are needed), the middle of the cord is pulled back and released. A strong blow to the joint with the cord creates a depression.
The methods described above are rarely used; there are more common and less complex techniques:
- Drawing or punching a seam (with a sharp object - a knitting needle, scraper, wooden stick, etc.);
- Forming seams using tape;
- Applying an imprint.
General step-by-step instructions:
- First of all, we prepare the base on which the brickwork will be done with our own hands.
- We mark the wall necessary for the chosen method.
- We prepare a solution for imitation putty, ready mixture or we make the stucco mass ourselves. The mixture, ready for use, should be thick enough so that it slowly slides off the spatula, but does not flow or fall off in pieces.
- If necessary, color the mixture by adding color.
- We apply the mortar mass to the prepared section of the wall and process the layer using the chosen method. We plaster the area only of such an area that we can fully process it before the layer dries.
- Let the layer dry and apply the finishing touch.
We will tell you about each stage in detail.
Wall marking
Do-it-yourself imitation of a brick wall from plaster mortar, plaster, tile adhesive or putty requires preliminary marking. Usually, for imitation, the width of the inter-brick joints is 10-15 mm, the dimensions of the bricks themselves are close or equal to the standard ones. But you can imitate masonry with other basic dimensions.
Sometimes preliminary calculations are required. This is done when it is necessary to fit entire rows in height, or to imitate masonry on protruding corners. Then on one wall there should be a long side of the brick, and on the adjacent wall there should be a short (butted) side.
After calculations, a grid is drawn on the base. This can be done with a pencil. As in a real wall, the longitudinal rows must be strictly horizontal. Therefore, when marking, horizontal and vertical seams are ensured by using a bubble level.
The marking work also includes sticking tape. More details about it below. To work with gypsum plaster, stationery tape is suitable. For other compositions, a painting agent is used.
Imitating a brick wall using masking tape
- The surface is prepared (small irregularities do not require cleaning), primed, marked, and masking tape is applied (horizontal, then vertical on top of them).
- Mix the plaster mixture or a plain or colored putty solution.
- The solution is applied to the resulting mesh. It is smoothed out and textured.
- When the joint dries a little, the tape is removed and scratches remain on the layer - interbrick depressions. Irregularities are corrected.
- When the layer is completely dry, the finishing is done - painting, waxing or varnishing.
In this way, imitation of brickwork is performed without a special tool - the method is accessible to everyone without exception and requires only perseverance and accuracy.
Video of the whole process.
Brickwork made of gypsum plaster in loft style
In a cheap and fairly simple way, a finish is created in which decorative stone made from gypsum plaster is similar to brickwork. This method is similar to that described above, with the difference that ordinary tape and a quick-drying gypsum mixture are used for finishing.
To do this, the primed wall is lined out “to fit bricks” of natural sizes (250 x 65 mm, necessarily taking into account the 1 cm seams between the bricks), using a bubble level.
Ribbons are used to create seams packing tape 1 cm wide.
To do this, you can cut a roll of adhesive tape into 4 rings using a grinder with a disc for concrete or ceramics (the metal disc overheats and melts the adhesive tape).
The edges of the ribbons should be uneven to obtain a natural texture. First, horizontal tapes are glued to the wall, leaving spare ends for ease of subsequent removal. Vertical strips are glued on top of them (this is mandatory).
To control the thickness of the gypsum mixture layer, beacon strips are attached to the wall on plaster strokes.
Plastic gypsum mixtures with microfiber are best suited. It is advisable to avoid diluting excess solution. The consistency of the solution should not be too liquid or too thick.
The applied gypsum mass is leveled by the rule, the beacons are removed and the voids after them are also filled with gypsum. A smooth surface is not required. On the contrary, you will need to add additional texture, which is done using a plastic bag crumpled into a ball.
After a short period of time (it is necessary for the plaster to just begin to set), the tape is pulled out perpendicular to the surface. The resulting bricks are rounded with a dampened brush, trying to avoid sharp corners. After drying, the gypsum plaster is painted with PVA in 2 layers.
The entire process is shown in detail in the video.
Using a stencil
A simple but expensive way to imitate brickwork using plaster. Requires a rubber or plastic stencil. concentration and accuracy, because you need to make sure that the horizontal lines are connected and there is no vertical displacement.
The work is done like this:
- A layer of plaster with a thickness of at least 4-5 mm is applied to the base to obtain an expressive texture;
- The stencil is moistened with water so that it does not stick to the solution, applied to the surface of the solution and pressed, carefully removed from the solution with a smooth movement; It is wetted again, applied, pressed in and removed (if necessary, the impression is immediately corrected);
- Finally, the resulting masonry is primed, painted, and waxed.
The second method is to use a "middle" stencil (a bit like the masking tape technique). The stencil itself is cut out of linoleum. The cut mesh is attached to wooden frame so that it can be used to remove the mesh from the stack. A layer of solution is applied to the base. Leveling out. A stencil is placed on top of it so that the linoleum mesh is adjacent to the surface. A new layer up to 0.5 cm thick is applied on top of the stencil. Smooth and give the surface texture (with a brush, a bag, or your hands). Carefully remove the stencil and correct any flaws. After the solution has dried, the layer is smoothed with a trowel, removing burrs with a brush or grater.
Formation of individual bricks
Brick plaster can be done by excavating the joints using a scraper. This finish is very similar to. Formation using a scraper is carried out after a short break, when the applied layer dries a little. You can first mark the seam lines with a pencil using a rule or a strip, or you can make notches right away by applying the rule to the surface and running a scraper along it.
For this type of decoration, the working composition can be applied to the entire surface of the wall. You can use a narrow chisel as a scraper or make a device by bending a steel strip and attaching it to the handle.
Using a special roller technology + video
Another way to imitate brickwork is to emboss using a roller decorative plaster. A specific texture is applied to the wall by horizontal rolling of a roller. In one pass, recesses in the form of seams from 2 to 4 rows of masonry can be obtained.
The force when pressing the roller and the speed of movement must be uniform, then a solid canvas is obtained. For better rolling, you can moisten the solution with water before the roller using a spray bottle. When rolling, make sure that each next row has the required offset of the vertical seams. You can purchase a decorative brick roller or make it yourself.
To work with the roller you need a “stuffed” steady hand. Practice before working on large areas.
Finishing
After the finishing layer has gained strength, you can begin to add gloss. Remove all pellets and sharp protrusions and sagging that disrupt the pattern. To do this, use sandpaper. After this treatment, dust is removed with a brush.
Next they start priming and... It is better to do this with a brush, since using a roller may leave unpainted areas. The coloring can be plain or with the seams highlighted in a different color. The bricks themselves can also be made multi-colored. The more color, the closer to natural look false brick.
First, general priming and painting of the entire surface is carried out. After the first paint layer has dried, the seams are painted over with a narrow brush. The topmost layer of finishing is. Without him decorative coating quickly darkens from dust and absorbed vapors. The varnish provides high moisture resistance, allowing you to wash the wall during use.
How to paint brick trim
The color of the final paint is selected according to the design of the room. The wall can be white, have a color palette close to natural, or it can have bright, unexpected tones. Most often they resort to mixed dyes containing gray, reddish, red-orange and brown shades.
Alkyd, latex or acrylic compounds are used for painting. You can also use water emulsion. For finishing coating use acrylic matte varnish.
Brick plaster has become a very popular solution for interior decoration in modern homes. The ease of implementation and variety of options allow even beginners to get the job done.