Marmorino
The classic lime finish. Depth and movement without the mirror polish.
Venetian plaster training
Learn Venetian plaster properly, from people who still install it.
Online masterclasses and hands-on workshops covering marmorino, grassello, marble effects and microcement — plus what most courses leave out: how to price the work and find the clients.
Over 6,500 students trained worldwide.
- Taught by working plasterers
- Supplier access & discounts
- Private student community
- Support on your first installs
Who this is for
A skilled trade that's kinder on your body and pays better.
Most people who train with us already work with their hands — plasterers, decorators, plumbers, electricians, general builders. Some have never picked up a trowel. Both work.
- Tradespeople who want higher-value work without more hours or heavier days.
- Decorators and plasterers adding a premium finish to what they already offer.
- Career changers starting from nothing — no experience assumed.
- Existing applicators who can lay plaster but struggle to charge properly for it.
What you'll learn
The finishes clients actually pay a premium for.
Every course covers the full process — priming, base coats, application, burnishing and waxing — on walls, pillars and sample boards, not just the showreel moment.
Grassello & polished plaster
High burnish, glass-like depth. The finish most people mean by Venetian.
Marble effects
Carrara, Calacatta, shadowed backgrounds, veining, gold leaf.
Microcement
Seamless, hard-wearing surfaces for bathrooms, floors and wet areas.
Courses
Four ways in, depending on how far you want to take it.
Start small and work up, or go straight to the full package. Everything includes the private community and support while you're on the tools.
Start here
Online Training Class
The fundamentals — materials, tools, and a first finish you can charge for. The cheapest way to find out whether this trade is for you.
$27One-off
Get startedCore course
Venetian Plaster Masterclass
The full online programme — marmorino, grassello, tools, technique and the complete process from bare wall to finished surface.
See detailsSelf-paced, online
View courseAdvanced
Marble Masterclass
Four marble finishes plus veining, high sand polishing and gold leaf. Includes supplier access, discounts, help sheets and direct access to Zeljko.
£600Inc. VAT · self-paced
View courseFull package
Business in a Box
Masterclasses, group coaching, marketing course, contracts, a done-for-you website and lead system, tools and materials, and 1-2-1 support from Tom.
£5,000+ VAT
View packagePrefer to learn hands-on? In-person workshops in Serbia run as 1-2-1 or small groups, priced by duration and the finishes you want to cover.
Student results
6,500 students. The ones who stick at it charge properly.
The finish is half of it. The other half is knowing what the work is worth and having somewhere to put a quote. Both are taught.
TESTIMONIAL_1 — replace with a real student quote. Two or three sentences, ideally naming a specific outcome: a job won, a rate charged, a finish they'd never have attempted.
TESTIMONIAL_2 — replace with a real student quote.
TESTIMONIAL_3 — replace with a real student quote.
Who's teaching
Tom Power — still on the tools.
I've spent seven years installing decorative finishes — Venetian plaster, microcement, marbling — on commercial and residential work. I trained the traditional way, made the expensive mistakes, and worked out the pricing the hard way.
Italiwalls started because the training that existed was either a two-day taster that left you unable to actually take on a job, or a manufacturer course that only taught their product. Neither told you what to charge.
In-person workshops run alongside Zeljko, a Serbian master craftsman with projects across Europe and the Middle East. We also work with Stucco Italiano on materials and technique.
Common questions
Before you book.
Do I need plastering experience to start?
No. Roughly half of our students come from another trade and some have never plastered at all. Venetian plaster is a different skill to flat plastering — a background helps with confidence, but it isn't the thing that decides whether you'll be good at this.
How long before I can take on paid work?
Most people can produce a saleable finish on sample boards within a few weeks of consistent practice, and take on a small paid job — a feature wall, a fireplace — within two to three months. The variable is practice hours, not course length. People who board out a wall at home and repeat the process get there considerably faster than people who only watch.
What can you charge for Venetian plaster?
Rates vary by region, finish and site conditions, and anyone quoting you a single figure is guessing. What matters more is that it's priced per square metre with materials, prep and coats accounted for — which is where most people starting out lose money. Pricing is covered properly in the courses rather than left as something you work out on your first job.
Is online training as good as in person?
They do different jobs. Online lets you rewatch a technique twenty times, which matters more than people expect — most mistakes come from a step you half-remembered. In-person gets someone's hands on your trowel to correct the angle and pressure, which is very hard to self-diagnose. Many students do the online course first, practise, then book a workshop once they know which specific things they're getting wrong.
What tools and materials will I need?
Less than most people assume to begin with — a decent stainless trowel, a burnishing trowel, mixing gear and the plaster itself. Course materials list exactly what to buy and what to skip, and students get supplier access and trade discounts, which usually saves more than the cost of the course on a first order.
Do you help with finding clients?
Yes, and it's the part most training ignores. Business in a Box includes a marketing course, contracts, a done-for-you website and a lead generation system. The lower-tier courses cover pricing and quoting, and the private community is where students share what's actually winning them work.
Start here
The cheapest way to find out if this trade suits you.
The $27 class covers materials, tools and your first chargeable finish. If it's not for you, you've spent less than a bag of plaster finding out.