The Worshipful Company of Painter-Stainsrs
PDA Trophy Awards Competition 2008
We're so excited about winning the "Small Contractor" Category of this prestigious competition that need to tell everyone! - and being as you're here...
It all started last year when we were approached by the Worshipful Company of Painter-Stainers who wanted up "update" their "Court Rooms". Actually, as it turned out, this was to be the second project we had completed for them - you can read about the first one (Painters Hall) by clicking here.
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| A "Thank you" Letter from The Master of The Worshipful Company of Painter-Stainsrs |
A letter confirming our "shortlisting" for the PDA Trophy Awards Competition 2008 |
You can read about the "Court Rooms" project in detail below.
The Worshipful Company of Painter-Stainers paid Quality Decor the highest of compliments by approaching me when they wanted to update and add sparkle to a principal function suite which had become rather tired and dated. The Client was looking for a design and execution that would reflect its historic craft associations and which would provide a suitable backdrop for its collection of important paintings and fine antique furniture. The new decor and associated specialist lighting was to highlight the existing classical features of the suite and to provide a suitable milieu for a variety of purposes from meetings and presentations to formal dinners.
This was a small but complex and prestigious project for an important client with high professional expectations. After preparing an initial proposal the Architect and I enlisted the enthusiastic support of ICI Dulux Colour Studio's computer visualisation team to illustrate the complex colour and lighting scheme the team was proposing. This enabled us to make several essential refinements and also, importantly, assisted in gaining the Client's approval. Following this approval the necessary plan and schedule of work were prepared in close co-ordination with the specialist lighting contractor, and the Contract was agreed with the Client.
I am a member of the Painting and Decorating Association, Dulux Select and A Fellow of the Faculty of Decoration. At the 2005 London Construction Awards, we won Employer of the Year for our apprenticeship and trainee scheme. This project with its quality and specialist requirements, such as graining and gold leafing, was an ideal opportunity to bring forward some promising junior staff and I determined to proceed on that basis, with its concomitant need for greater supervision. I cleared my diary of all other commitments for the duration of these works.
Site preparation and protection is always important, but here it was critical. All movable items of furniture and pictures were carefully packed and removed to safety elsewhere. Two important CI6th stained glass panels also had to be taken out of their frames and removed. This left the hardwood floor, a number of finely moulded pilasters, a stone bust in a niche, and of course, the fine antique dining table. I had allowed for all of this. The floor was completely covered in a triple layer of cotton base, polythene sandwich and corrugated plastic topping with all edges taped, to give complete protection for us to work over, using mobile towers and platforms as and where necessary. The vertical features and stone bust were similarly wrapped in the "proverbial cotton wool". The dining table was given its own protective boxing.
Now for the preparation of the substrates. The walls and ceilings were comprehensively cleaned using sugar soap. All cracking in the fibrous plaster was cut out, filled and abraded. The walls and ceiling were then blotted out in white undercoat, essential in highlighting any remaining minor imperfections, which were then dealt with to give a consistent base for the "fine work" to follow.
Using ICI Dulux Trade paints, the team of 3 decorators and 2 trainees applied four coats of Diamond Matt Emulsion to the main wall and ceiling beds. I had specified this to achieve the durability, together with the richness and depth of colour that was required. Feature work to cornices and mouldings were painted with three coats of oil based eggshell to ensure no sinkage of the subsequent gold sizing. The final decorative flourishes were provided in the form of hand drawn coach lines in the selected contrasting colours.
Two more specialist operations remained to be completed. The stained glass window surrounds together with the archway and surrounding panels to the connecting doorway were grained, using hand mixed glazes to match the medium oak finish of the existing pilasters. On the ceiling, the mouldings were highlighted in the traditional way, using 220 books of quarter cut loose sheets of 23¼ carat gold leaf.
Now all that remained to do was to clear away the protection that had done its work so well, re-instate the stained glass panels with their backlights, re-hang the pictures, install and focus the lighting system, reset the furniture for the first banquet, then turn on the lights...
What a difference!
Ivor Macklin