Seven steps to a room you will love for years
Nothing is rushed and nothing is a surprise. You see each step before it happens, and you approve every choice before we begin.
Talk with Greg or Gabriel now, until 10 p.m. Text us any time. Greg or Gabriel will reply first thing in the morning.
Every step, in order
A fireplace or feature wall takes three to five days on site, once your design is approved and your materials arrive.
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A design visit, with no commitment
We come with samples and listen: how you live in the room, what it must stand up to, and how it should feel. Most visits take 20 to 45 minutes. If you are ready, we leave you with one fixed quote, and you owe nothing either way.
Why it matters
We look at the room’s light at the hours you use it, and at the colors already there: floors, stone, wood, and fabric. Screens change every color, so you choose from real materials, held up in your own light. We measure as we go. Bring your questions; the harder, the better.
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Your date, held for you
Once you approve the design and the quote, we set your start date and order your materials. They usually arrive within a week, and we keep to the date we agree on.
Why it matters
Holiday dates fill first. To be ready for a holiday, approve your design about two weeks ahead, so the order, the shipping, and the work all fit.
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Your home, protected first
Before any finish is opened, we cover floors and furniture, close off nearby surfaces with paper and plastic, and put up scaffolding for high walls.
Why it matters
Plaster, lime, and clay are wet trades. Everything we are not finishing, we protect, so the only thing that changes in your home is the wall.
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A glass-smooth wall underneath
We repair the wall and skim it to Level 5, the smoothest grade of wall preparation, then prime it for its surface and its finish.
Why it matters
Low light across a mineral finish shows every dent and ridge, so the wall has to be flawless before the first coat. A finish also has to grip for years, and every surface calls for its own primer. Choosing the right one is how a finish stays put.
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Two or three coats, by hand, with time to cure
Each coat is troweled or brushed on by hand, then left to cure before the next. Lime and clay set on their own schedule, and we respect it.
Why it matters
This is why a finish takes days, not hours. A coat laid over one that has not cured can trap moisture and weaken the finish. Waiting is part of the work, and the layers are where the depth you see in the light comes from.
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Sealed, then cleaner than we found it
Where the room needs it, the finish is waxed or sealed. Then we clean, obsessively, until the room is cleaner than we found it.
Why it matters
Roman clay takes a final coat of wax that deepens its color, like stone after rain. Finishes near water and cooking are sealed to stand up to them.
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Years of loving the room
Then the room is yours, and our workmanship is guaranteed for five years. We keep your colors on file for touch-ups and future rooms.
Tips for an easy project
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Clear the walls and nearby surfaces
Take down frames, mirrors, and treasures from the walls we will finish, and clear the tables and counters beside them. Nothing precious stands in the way of a ladder, and our hours go into your walls.
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Move large furniture to the middle
Pull sofas, beds, and cabinets into the middle of the room, or out of it, before we arrive. We cover whatever stays, and open space along every wall lets us work in long, even passes.
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Keep pets and children clear of the work
Ladders, scaffolding, and open buckets are no place for curious paws or small hands. Plan a closed door, a gate, or a day with the grandparents while we are on site, above all while scaffolding is up.
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Call us while the walls are bare
Building or renovating? The best moment to call is mid-construction, when the walls are prepared and bare, no furniture is in, and no wrong primer or paint has gone on. Every finish starts from the right surface.
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Ask your builder to hold the primer
An ordinary drywall primer can keep limewash and clay from bonding. Tell your builder a mineral finish is coming, and we will name the primer it needs, or prepare the walls ourselves.
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Wire the lighting before the finish
Settle the sconces, picture lights, and LED channels before the walls are finished. The wiring goes in once, the finish goes on once, and nothing has to be patched later.
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Mark the TV and shelves in advance
Decide where the TV, the shelves, and heavy art will hang before we begin. We can finish around the brackets, or leave you the exact spots to drill once the wall has cured.
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Tell us where to park and rinse
Let us know where to park and where we may rinse tools. A utility sink or an outdoor faucet keeps your kitchen sink spotless.
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Keep a clear path to the room
A clear route from the front door to the room we are finishing protects your floors and keeps the work moving.
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Give the samples a full day
Leave the sample boards in the room for a day, and look at them in morning light, at noon, and by lamplight before you choose. The right one will look right at all three.
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Approve the sample on your wall
A sample in your own light, approved before we begin, is the surest way to love the result. The sample you approve is the wall you get.
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The middle of the work looks rough
A first coat often looks patchy and unfinished. That is how depth begins. Judge the wall when the last coat is on and it has dried in your own light.
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Wet walls look darker
Lime and clay dry lighter than they look while wet, and can take a few days to show their true color. Judge the color once the wall is dry.
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Keep the air even while it dries
Keep the room at an ordinary living temperature, and keep fans and space heaters from blowing at the walls while a finish dries. Even drying gives even color.
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Approve early before a holiday
Materials can take a week or more to arrive, and holiday calendars fill first. Approve your design early, and the date you want is still open.
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Walk through it twice
See the finished room twice: once in daylight, once in the evening with your lamps on. A mineral wall has two characters, and you should love both.
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Look from where you live
At the walk-through, judge the wall from where you sit and stand, not from an inch away. A finish made by hand is meant to be seen at a room’s distance, where its movement reads as one.
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Ask about care before we leave
Before we pack up, ask how to clean the finish, what to avoid, and how touch-ups work, and keep the answers with the leftover material.
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Let the finish cure
A mineral finish keeps hardening for weeks after we leave. Be gentle at first, and wait a little before you hang heavy art or push furniture against the wall.
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Photograph every finished wall
Take a few daylight photographs of each finished wall. If a wall is ever damaged, they help match the repair to the original.
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Touch-ups, years from now
We keep every color and formula on file, so a scuff, a new doorway, or the next room years from now can be matched to the walls you already love.
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Ask what the guarantee covers
Before you hire anyone, ask what their guarantee covers, for how long, and what it leaves out. Ours is written out in plain words.
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Know the signs of a rushed wall
Peeling, chalking, lap marks, and blotchy patterns usually start with one rushed step. Paint and plaster problems shows what to look for before you hire anyone.
Questions to ask before you hire anyone, including us
Good questions protect your home. Here are our answers.
Who will actually work on my walls?
Greg or Gabriel, on site for every job and doing the work, with a few skilled, trained employees who help. We choose the materials, tools, and technique. Everyone we bring is vetted and shares our standards: a spotless site and real care for you.
Will anyone practice on my wall?
No. Your home is never a training ground. Experiments stay on sample boards in our workshop, and if you ask for something new, you approve it on sample boards before a trowel touches your wall.
Are you insured?
Yes. Wall Magicians is insured.
What if I do not love the finish?
Then the Change-of-Heart Guarantee applies: within 30 days of completion, we level a mineral finish you dislike and repaint the wall in any Sherwin-Williams or Benjamin Moore color at no charge. The original invoice stands.
Why does it take several days?
Because each coat cures before the next goes on. A fireplace or feature wall takes three to five days on site, and rushing a coat could weaken the finish you are paying for.
Will it crack or peel?
It should not. Cracking and peeling usually start with a poorly prepared wall or a rushed coat, which is why we never skip the preparation or the curing. Our workmanship is guaranteed for five years. See paint and plaster problems, and how we prevent each one.
How will you protect my floors and furniture?
We cover them before any finish is opened, close off nearby surfaces with paper and plastic, and clean until the room is cleaner than we found it.
Why hire a father-and-son studio instead of a big company?
Because an owner is in your home on every job, doing the work. You talk with Greg or Gabriel from the first call, and the same people who quote your project stand behind it for five years.
How long does the design visit take?
Usually 20 to 45 minutes, depending on how complex the project is and how much you would like to explore. A color story for several rooms or a whole home takes longer; see whole-home color design.
Start with step one
Tell us about the room. Greg or Gabriel replies today, or by the next business day, to set a time for your design visit.
Prefer to talk? Call or text (317) 795-6378.
Thank you
What happens next
- We reply today, or by the next business day at the latest, to check your dates and set a time for our visit.
- We visit with samples in the colors and textures you like.
- You receive one fixed quote, in writing.
Before we visit, gather two or three photographs of looks you love, and keep any fabric, tile, or stone you want us to match nearby.
To speed things up, text us a photo of the space.
Greg and Gabriel