The finish that makes a room
A perfect skim coat transforms everything. Cracks, bumps, old artex, patchy surfaces all disappear under a glass-smooth finish that takes paint beautifully. It’s the single fastest way to make any room look brand new.
Our plasterers deliver a finish so flat you could check it with a spirit level.
Two thin coats of multi-finish plaster, each trowelled to a mirror-flat surface. No ridges, no trowel marks, no imperfections. The kind of finish that makes paint and wallpaper look their absolute best.
Textured ceilings and walls belong in the past. We either skim directly over artex (where safe) or remove it entirely before applying a fresh, modern smooth coat. We test for asbestos before any artex work.
Most rooms can be skimmed in a single day. Walls are ready for a mist coat within 3–5 days depending on ventilation. We work efficiently and leave every room clean and tidy.
A good skim starts with proper prep. We PVA or blue-grit all surfaces, fill large cracks, tape joints, and ensure suction is consistent. Shortcuts in prep show up in the finish, and we don’t take them.
Clean, efficient, and done right first time.
Furniture is covered, floors sheeted. Surfaces are scraped, filled, and primed with PVA or bonding agent for consistent suction.
A thin coat of multi-finish plaster is applied and flattened with a speed skim or trowel to create a consistent base layer.
Once the first coat has firmed up, a second thin coat is applied and trowelled to a glass-smooth finish. Edges and corners are cut in cleanly.
The surface is given a final polish with water and a clean trowel. Dust sheets are removed, the room is swept, and you’re left ready to paint.
Skimming is a thin coat of finish plaster, two to three millimetres, over an existing surface to make it smooth, flat and ready to paint. It is the right job for walls with hairline cracks and old filler, plasterboard that was taped but never finished, artex ceilings, and walls stripped of wallpaper and left rough. It is not the right job for plaster that is blown, hollow or damp, which has to come back to the brick and be replaced, and we tell you which you have on the quote visit because a skim over a bad background comes back off.
A good skim is two coats of multi-finish, trowelled up as it sets until it is glass smooth, with sharp corners and clean lines at the ceiling. The preparation underneath is what makes it stick: sealing dusty backgrounds, bonding agents on painted or glossy surfaces, scrim over joints and cracks, the right primer for the surface. Artex is sealed and skimmed where it is light and overboarded where it is heavy or cracked, and never sanded, because older coatings can contain asbestos.
A room usually takes a day. The plaster dries pale over two to four weeks, takes a mist coat of watered-down emulsion, and then the colour. We have skimmed thousands of rooms across the North East since 2009 and the finish is the thing customers mention most.
If a wall or ceiling we skimmed is not right, we come back and sort it. We prepare the background properly, which is why that rarely happens.
The problem, what we did and the result, each from a real review.
A converted garage room, 15ft by 7ft, skimmed across up to five walls and ceilings and left ready for painting.
A customer in Blyth had us back for a second job after we plastered their kitchen, and trusted us to get on with it while they went out.
Two to four weeks, until the plaster is uniformly pale with no dark patches. Then a mist coat of watered-down emulsion before the colour coats. Painting too soon traps moisture and the paint peels.
Wallpaper has to come off; plaster will not bond to it for long. Painted walls can be skimmed once cleaned, keyed and primed with a bonding agent. Gloss and silk need more preparation than matt.
Every week. Light artex is sealed and skimmed; heavy or cracked artex is overboarded first. We never sand old artex because pre-1985 coatings can contain asbestos.
A guide for each town: the homes there, how we work on them and the questions people there ask.
Practical advice and in-depth guides related to this service.
When fresh plaster is ready for a mist coat, what slows drying, and the mistakes that ruin a new finish.
Read more arrow_forwardBoth have their place, but choosing the wrong one can cost you time and money. We break down when to use traditional wet plaster and when plasterboard makes more sense.
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A little bit of prep goes a long way. Follow these simple steps to make sure your plastering job runs smoothly from day one.
Read more arrow_forward9.75/10 average rating across 65 verified reviews
“On pricing this job, the customer used an 'experienced tradesman' who used a steamer to remove wallpaper from plasterboard walls and they were removing the jointing tape and the skin from the plasterboard, thus leaving an unlevel surface. I suggested reboarding but they said they didn't have a lot of money to play with. While the 'tradesman' was removing the wallpaper the customer demanded via text that I go that very minute to see what a mess this tradesman was making. While we were working, her husband commented on how we were the best tradesmen they'd had, as we just got on with the job. I'd mistakingly missed out a price for a ceiling, so I skimmed that for no extra charge as the price had already been agreed. (No mention of this was in her review however). We always ask customers to check the work before we leave and both said they were 'over the moon' with the work and they paid via bank transfer a few hours after I'd left. It's clear the 'tradesman' hasn't prepped the newly plastered walls properly, as the paint has now blebbed. That's not a fault with the plastering, but with the lack of preparation on the decorator's behalf. It took 7 days for the customer to let me know she wasn't happy (and that was after the walls had been painted!).”
Checked & Vetted“I contacted Dean about the job and he was on hand to review damage, give a reasonable estimate within my budget and was on stand by once property dried out. Work started promptly and done with the estimated 3 days to a very high standard as always by Dean and his soon. Clean and tidy work too. .”
Checked & Vetted“Dean and his team started the job Tuesday and was done in 3 days. Very professional, workmanship to very high standards was told the ins and outs of process of work to be carried out and very clean. Amazing job for the price. Always on time, would highly recommend. Will definitely be using dean in the near future. .”
Checked & Vetted“Dean came out to give me a quote, he knew what needed doing and I was happy with what he quoted. He took down 2 ceilings, replaced them, skimmed and then put up some coving. I can’t fault his work at all, the ceilings look amazing, he left my home clean and tidy. I’d highly recommend. .”
Checked & Vetted“Dean at Absolutely Plastered is the only tradesmen I know that I can rely on! He always responds to requests! In this instance, we wanted some pretty poor brickwork covered at back of house & Dean advised other options that I was not aware...”
Google“I had Absolutely Plastered out to inspect a damp problem in my home, he was knowledgeable and we agreed a price. Dean was prompt, came out when he said he would, installed a new damp course and plastered. Very reasonable and I’d highly recommend.”
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