Your wall is absolutely fantastic. I assume you carved in the flagstone effect. I just can't imagine the scope of the project. I just use wood stain. You may want to get a color that slightly offsets that one section. Perhaps you can experiment with a little swatch of it in a bottom section that won't be noticed. My "mud clubber" hat is off to you and your project.

Thanks- yeah, it took nearly 2 weeks for DH & I to complete. We are exhausted.

How do you apply the wood stain? Could it be sponged or sprayed on, perhaps with 2 colors to make the "rocks" look more realistic?

I just take an old brush and paint it on. I only hit the high spots, so it has a real textured look.

I don't know about coloring tufa after the fact but I was wondering if you could tell me how you did your wall? It looks great! I haven't made anything "big" but I do need to do a rock wall and this may be the best way to go.

That is absolutely fantastic. What wonderful work; have you recovered yet? What is the hypertufa applied to? Just guessing that hypertufa isn't holding back that banking. Don't notice the color difference from the picture. However, rocks come in various colors in nature, so maybe you could just leave the wall alone? You could try diluting latex paint with lots of water and paint it on to tweak the color, and then let the weather and time make the changes in due course.

Can't waint to see your next project; hope it's not something "big" :>)

Hi,
The wall is made up of those concrete blocks you can get at the home impprovement stores. Then we hammered long metal rods into the ground & filled the holes in the stacked concrete blocks with cement. Then we left it alone for about 2 years....finally we got around to putting the tufa facing on it a couple weeks ago.

Looks great, but how did you texture (flagstone effect) the tufa facing?

tj

You might want to check out using a homemade concrete stain recipe that incorporates iron sulfate and water. There are several colors available using ingredients found at home improvement centers or ceramic supply dealers.

A few of the recipes (listed on the site linked below) I won't consider using due to potential health risks, but some are very simple and have potential of saving $$$. Just mix and apply using a pump sprayer.

Here is a link that might be useful: DIY Concrete stains

Thanks for the link, I will experiment with those things, they look really interesting to me.

As for the flagstone effect, we just smeared the tufa on the concrete blocks in 2 layers (a thin base layer & a slightly thicker top layer) and then I just used the side of my hand to press the indentations between the "stones". Then I smoothed the fingerprints out of the surface of the "stones" while trying to preserve the "stones'" depth (not smoothing the "stones" perfectly flat). It was all done free hand, no pattern or anything. I just had to be careful not to repeat the same shapes & tried to keep the sizes within a certain size range.

Artsymama,

Wow, I can't say that I've seen anything like this project yet. I'm quite new to the idea of building my own rocks and walls and stuff, and I've been doing some research over the past few days. I stumbled upon your post in my travels and clicked on the picture links. Wow! That is an incredible undertaking, and it looks really nice.

I'd like to ask about the process a bit, if you don't mind typing answers...

1. I can't quite fathom the design behind the hypertufa "facade" front. When you say concrete blocks, do you mean cinder blocks (hollowed 2 cubes in the middle) or the semi trapezoidal style cookie cutter ~10x6 style blocks with the interlocking lips for stacking? I also want much more than the cookie cutter style block look and refuse to accept what every other homeowner does in my area by buying the same things at home depot. The idea of covering the wall afterward with a sculpted natural design like yours is brilliant.

2. What held the blocks together to support all that weight of the hill behind it? What do the rods go through? The center of the blocks? Did you have to drill the holes out (if they aren't cinder blocks)? Do the rods go through multiple layers of blocks and then into the ground, fairly deep? Is it rebar or similar? Do you have any "in process" pictures you would'nt mind sharing? Any pics of the concrete blocks being stacked, then the rods being placed, then the concrete being added to the holes in the system? That would really clarify a lot of things since a picture is worth a thousand words. As I said, I'm new to this and your brilliant design seems to be exactly the idea I want to try to do (only much smaller in length...more like 25 feet!)

3. Do you remember the approximate recipe for your hypertufa mixture? Whatever it was, it was a great mix to get it to do what you wanted in a vertical fashion against the blocks behind it. I still can't quite picture this process and how it held on, being a vertical wall, without tumbling or collapsing on itself when you got to the top.

4. Finally, at what stage or time after the application of the 2 layers did you do the hand sculpting of the "stone" indentations? In the same day? Same hour?

5. Did I mention yet that you and your husband are geniuses?! ;)

If you would be so kind as to touch on these many questions, whenever you have some time, and supply some in process pictures I, and I'm sure many others, would benefit greatly and be hugely appreciative. I hope they aren't too much to ask.

Thanks much,
Brian