How to Parget Concrete

Pour 35 pounds of sifted masonry sand into a wheelbarrow, and then add 40 pounds of portland cement. Top with another 35 pounds of masonry sand and 40 more pounds of portland cement. Combine these dry ingredients well by mixing them with a hoe, pulling and pushing to mix the ingredients.

Add water slowly to the cement and sand mixture to create the stucco, and stir until it is thoroughly mixed. Pull a hoe, with the blade held diagonally, through the mixture. The stucco is the correct consistency when the mixture holds its shape for three to five seconds before falling back in on itself.

Spread drop cloths around the area where you will be working to protect the flooring. If you are working outside and aren't worried about drips along the concrete wall, don't worry about covering the ground.

Lightly spray the concrete with water to help the concrete form a bond with the stucco. Dip a trowel in a bucket of water. Load the trowel by holding it upside down, then dipping it into the stucco, so the stucco rests on the back side of the trowel.

Smear the stucco onto the concrete in wide arcs, measuring about two to three feet from the bottom point to the upper point. Press slightly inward with the trowel as you drag it across the concrete to force the stucco into the pores of the concrete.

Overlap the first arc with a second arc of stucco, leaving no gaps between the two places. Continue in this manner until the entire concrete area has been covered.

To smooth the surface of the stucco, dampen a clean trowel, and drag it over the damp stucco, eliminating rough areas.

Allow the stucco to dry for four to six hours to be fully cured.