The Easiest Way to Stomp Drywall Ceiling

Prepare a small batch of thinned drywall mud or joint compound so you can practice making the crow’s foot pattern. Lightly cover a piece of scrap drywall with a thin layer of drywall mud using a trowel. Dip the tips of a stomp brush into the mud in the mixing bucket and press the stomp brush onto the drywall scrap. Lift it straight up and repeat until there is no more mud on the brush. Load more mud into the brush and repeat until you know how to create the pattern.

Mix a larger batch of mud or compound using a paddle mixer attached to a drill. Do not overmix the mud or it may develop tiny air bubbles that are impossible to remove.

Spread a thin layer of mud onto a section of the ceiling. Make the section only as large as you can stomp before the mud begins to set up.

Dip a stomp brush into the drywall mud. Stomp the pattern you practiced onto the ceiling.

Continue stomping the ceiling one section at a time. For quicker results, have one person apply the thin coat of mud and a second person stomp the pattern.

Scrape off any stomp marks that do not match the pattern you established before the stomp marks dry, using a knife. Reapply mud and stomp the pattern again.