Can plaster be repaired, or does it have to be replaced with drywall?

Most cracked or damaged plaster can be repaired and kept, which matters in an older house, where the plaster and its mouldings are part of what the house is. We will tell you honestly when a section is past saving.

Do you repair ornamental plaster as well as flat walls?

Yes. Matching broken or missing ornament is the work this studio was built on: we model the missing piece from photographs or a surviving fragment, cast it in Seattle, and fit it so the repair does not show from the floor.

Seattle and the Puget Sound region, from our studio at 6011 12th Ave S, Seattle, and anywhere else in the United States for larger restoration jobs. Washington contractor registration ORNAMPA830PC.

What does a plaster repair cost?

It depends on the size of the damage, how much ornament has to be matched and how easy it is to reach, so we quote from photographs rather than publish a price list. Send a few photos and you will get a real number rather than a range.

Seattle · Puget Sound · Washington State

Plaster repair and restoration in Seattle

Cracked ceilings, water damage, holes left after a rewire, a cornice broken by a leak, ornament that came down and shattered. We repair plaster walls and ceilings and restore ornamental plaster across Seattle and Puget Sound, with our own crew. Where a piece is missing, we model the replacement at our Seattle studio and cast it to match.

Send photos for an estimate Call +1 (206) 396-6228

Restored with care, down to the last leaf

Fine restoration is patient work: damaged plaster cut back to sound material, missing ornament modelled to match what is still there, and every repair finished so it disappears into the room. That attention to detail goes into every job, large or small.

A damaged plaster wall in a living room being repaired with a trowel, furniture covered — Repairing a living-room plaster wall

A large ceiling medallion being restored from a scaffold in a period drawing room — Restoring a ceiling medallion

Restoring a shell and acanthus plaster relief with a fine brush and spatula — Restoring an acanthus relief

An acanthus ceiling rosette being hand-finished with carving tools — Hand-finishing a ceiling rosette

Satin paint being brushed onto an ornate plaster fireplace mantel — Painting an ornate mantel

A plaster acanthus appliqué being fitted and pointed on a panelled wall — Fitting an acanthus appliqué

What we repair

Cracked walls and ceilings

Hairline cracks, cracks that keep coming back, and ceilings that have started to pull away. We find out why it cracked before anything is filled, then repair and make good so the crack does not open again.

Water damage

After a leak: soft, stained or fallen plaster cut back to sound material and made good. Any ornament that came down with it, a medallion or a length of cornice, is matched and put back.

Holes from rewiring and plumbing

The openings an electrician or a plumber leaves in old plaster walls and ceilings, patched and finished flush so they disappear under paint.

Walls past patching

Where a wall or a ceiling has too much damage to patch, it is re-plastered and finished smooth, ready for your decorator.

Broken or missing ornament

Cornice, ceiling medallions, capitals and friezes repaired in place, or the missing piece modelled at our Seattle studio and cast to match the original.

Churches and historic buildings

Sanctuary ceilings, ribs and capitals restored and lost ornament matched, working with your building committee from the first photographs.

Matching a piece of ornament? See the cornice, ceiling medallion and capital collections, or custom work made from a fragment. For sanctuaries, see churches.

How a repair goes

Send photographs. One of the whole wall or ceiling, one close up, and one with a tape measure in the shot. The photo estimate form takes up to four.
We look at the cause. A crack or a stain usually has a reason behind it: a leak, movement, a fixing that let go. The repair is planned around it.
Repair and match. Damaged plaster is cut back and made good; missing ornament is modelled and cast at the Seattle studio to match what is still there.
Made good. Finished flush and left ready for paint, so the repair disappears into the room.

Questions people ask first

Can plaster be repaired, or does it have to be replaced with drywall?: Most cracked or damaged plaster can be repaired and kept, which matters in an older house, where the plaster and its mouldings are part of what the house is. We will tell you honestly when a section is past saving.
Do you repair ornamental plaster as well as flat walls?: Yes. Matching broken or missing ornament is the work this studio was built on: we model the missing piece from photographs or a surviving fragment, cast it in Seattle, and fit it so the repair does not show from the floor.
Where do you work?: Seattle and the Puget Sound region, from our studio at 6011 12th Ave S, Seattle, and anywhere else in the United States for larger restoration jobs. Washington contractor registration ORNAMPA830PC.
What does a plaster repair cost?: It depends on the size of the damage, how much ornament has to be matched and how easy it is to reach, so we quote from photographs rather than publish a price list. Send a few photos and you will get a real number rather than a range.

Where the crew works

Out of the studio at 6011 12th Ave S, Seattle, across the Puget Sound region and, for larger restoration jobs, anywhere in the country. Washington contractor registration ORNAMPA830PC.

Seattle
West Seattle
Queen Anne
Ballard
Beacon Hill
Rainier Valley
Bellevue
Kirkland
Tacoma
Olympia
Everett
Shoreline
Renton
Burien
Federal Way
Lakewood
University Place
Spokane

New ornament rather than a repair? See installation and plaster for homeowners.

Send us the damage

A few photographs are enough to start. We will tell you what it is, whether it can be repaired or matched, and what it costs.

Send photos for an estimate Request a quote