I Literally Watched Paint Dry, but Only Because It’s from Vasari Malaysia

April 14, 2022

You’ve probably heard of the idiom “watching paint dry”, which refers to something as being incredibly boring or tedious, and I totally get it. There’s literally nothing to see, and also the fumes would suffocate you before anything else. But that was before Vasari Malaysia came to give my walls and ceiling a makeover. This isn’t your normal paint–it’s actually Venetian plaster–and I happily admit that I really did stand there and watch the Vasari “paint” dry. Pretend you’re going on a tour of my home as I take you through the entire process of having Vasari Malaysia liven up my home, and what Vasari Artist Mr Chin said about his craft!

Before

I don’t make it a habit to take pictures of my walls, but it’s easily imaginable. All the interior walls in my house are white, except for two walls in my room, which are turquoise. When I reached out to Vasari Malaysia, a representative visited, and brought samples of their different products, complete with a colour list. Vasari Malaysia products include:

Veneziano: Best for interiors. Smooth finishes, soft and subtle tones, highly polished surfaces.
Marmorino: For interiors and semi-exteriors. Has added fine sand for some texture and depth. Smooth and subtle finish, or mottled and textured.
Stucco: Best for semi-exteriors, can also be used on interiors. Has added coarse sand for lots of texture and depth.
Lime paint: Best for interiors. Made with natural lime and marble dust, its effects improve with time.

I went with Veneziano, which is Vasari Malaysia’s most popular product. Vasari’s representative was friendly and knowledgeable, providing advice as needed when we discussed which walls to remake. He took the measurements of the walls and ceiling, and even gave me suggestions and recommendations on colour selections.

During

In total, I had seven walls and a ceiling that needed to be done. Vasari Malaysia told me that they would most likely take a total of three to four days to complete the work, and I said okay. Mr Chin, MVP that he is, only took a total of two-and-a-half days to finish it all. It was the first time I saw “painting” differently: the Venetian plaster was applied with a trowel instead of a roller or brush, and I got sidetracked from my own work very often to stare, because when applied, it looked like wet patches, and I had no idea what the completed product was going to look like. Accompanying the application were scraping noises, but they weren’t loud, and I highly enjoyed the fact that it’s odourless, saving me from suffocating in my own house.

Conversations with the Artist

Over the couple of days Mr Chin was at my house, my sister and I struck up conversations with him. It was mainly because we were mildly concerned he didn’t stop for lunch, to which he told us he eats a heavy breakfast, and that he stops at 5pm to make it home for dinner, so all good. We learned that he’s the most senior artist at Vasari Malaysia, joining a mere 2-3 months after Vasari launched in Malaysia. Previously, he was in the logistics industry, but switched to this job thanks to a recommendation from a friend, and that he was curious about the effects of Vasari paint. When we asked him if he saw himself as an artist, he became slightly embarrassed and said, “Paintings in galleries are art, right? I’m not that kind of person, but maybe this is a different type of art.”

After

Mr Chin worked methodically, each wall/ceiling requiring two coats each, and when our dining room ceiling was done, we were in awe. From a plain white, our ceiling was now a mesmerising grey, and the effects of the paint were amazing. It was textured and made it look so interesting; and I immediately named my ceiling Storm. Mr Chin told us that it was his first time seeing someone order so many different colours at once: seven! Some of them were even completely new to him, having never painted those colours before. We could really see that his craft was his pride and joy, further confirmed when we asked what makes him happiest in this job: to observe effects of the finished product, especially with new colours. The colours we got were:

Avocado (Entrance)
Apricot (Altar wall)
Off-White Grey (Dry kitchen)
Limestone (Dry kitchen ceiling)
Matcha (Mum’s room)
Tiffany Blue (My room)
Lavender (Sister’s room)

We’re really happy with the finished results, and I still run my hand along the new Vasari walls every time I walk past them, because damn, they’re smooth. Mr Chin did an excellent job, and I personally recommend Vasari Malaysia for your walls, and your home. Not only is it pretty, but it’s also beneficial, which you can read about here. Finally, watch a Reel we made, featuring Vasari’s pretty, pretty products!