Color Cement Handicraft

by Pedro J. Lemos; Reta A. Lemos

CARVING ON BOWLS AND VASES and other forms can be done, care being taken that the carving does not go so deep as to weaken the surfaces. Motifs or spaces can be carved out of cement bowls and vases and bits of stained glass or mosaics, or color cement can be put into the spaces and neat color cement used to bind the additions into the spaces.

SLIP-PAINTED PORTIONS MAY BE ADDED to the carved tile. After the tile is carved and properly moistened in preparation for the cement to be added, the color cement is mixed to a thin slip and a background pattern or decorations can be added to the surfaces of the carved tile. The tile is then placed in shallow water without permitting the water to reach the surface of the tile, and permitted to remain for four to six days before removing. It should then be placed in a cool location until completely dried.

THE UNIT TILE or the small tiles made to be assembled in patterns, may have modeled or carved cement surfaces combined with the units to complete the pattern. For instance a number of tiles representing leaf forms may be combined with others representing flower motifs. These may be imbedded into a panel of cement or concrete, the units grouped in some form of design growth, the stems and other related portions being modeled in the cement, or carved in the surface after the cement is somewhat hardened. The units can be in color or mat finish, the background remaining in dull finish.

MODELED CEMENT TILES differ from the cement tile with a modeled surface. In the first the modeling is done on wax or clay and the cement tile is made by duplicating the effect by the use of plaster molds. The modeled cement tile is a modeling of the cement by hand while it is still in a plastic stage.

TO PREPARE CEMENT FOR MODELING, pour a concrete mixture into the mold so as to allow for a second added layer of about one quarter inch of neat cement. This last layer of neat cement is the part which is to be modeled and can be made into a color by the addition of color to it. This color should be added in the dry form to the dry cement, mulled or ground well into the cement and then mixed with water until it becomes a thick cement paste that will pour slowly onto the concrete mixture first placed in the mold, until it covers the entire surface. A gentle jarring of the mold will settle the color evenly and it should then be permitted to stand until of a good modeling consistency.

A GOOD MODELING CONSISTENCY for cement is determined by testing it with a tool or small pointed stick making a small incision or trying a small section to see if the mixture holds its form. If the cement as laid up on edge stays in position and does not have the tendency to fall or settle, it is then ready to model, as it will hold its form when built in relief.

PROMPT ACTION IS NECESSARY when the mixture is at this point and the tool should be promptly used scraping or sketching the subject by incised lines in the surface. Then parts of the cement are scraped from the low portions and placed on the parts to be in higher relief until the general rough forms are massed in. The smaller parts are then detailed in and the different parts finished just as one would in working with clay or modeling wax. If it is found that parts do not hold up, it is because under sections of the cement have not dried sufficiently and it will be necessary to wait until it hardens a little more.

THE FINISHED RESULT may be complete with the strokes of the tool or the modeling instrument showing over the entire surface.

If the technique is shown in this way, care should be taken that the strokes are pleasing in direction and not carelessly left. As the tile hardens it will be found that the surfaces or edges can be shaped, and even when the surface is almost hard, it can be slightly indented or carved to produce different textures and varying qualities.

GOOD MODELING TOOLS are those that are made from pear wood for sculptors use. Metal modeling tools also can be used. Good home-made modeling tools can be made from manicure sticks, pencils, dowel sticks or ordinary small hardwood pieces shaped with a knife. These pieces should be smoothed down very evenly with fine sandpaper and then rubbed with beeswax or paraffin to avoid any rough surfaces. Rough surfaces will cause the cement to stick to the tool. Experience will be a good guide to the worker in color cement for determining the best shape to make the modeling tool, as individual needs and ways of working will determine the best form for each person.