Patent ID: 7185472

Claim:
A method of applying a concrete-based mortar to a building comprising the steps of: mixing a concrete-based mortar, including sand, and water to form a resulting composition that hardens, wherein the sand includes grains approximately 1 millimeter in diameter and grains less than 0.5 millimeters in diameter; applying the resulting composition to an exterior of a building to form an uneven surface; allowing the resulting composition to harden on the building for a time sufficient to prevent reformation of the composition; and scraping a rough trowel against the resulting composition by moving the rough trowel in a circular motion to remove an exterior portion of the resulting composition after the step of allowing the resulting composition to harden on the building for a time sufficient to prevent reformation of the composition and further to remove portions of the uneven surface that lie above the plane so that the surface becomes even without further application of the resulting composition, wherein the surface of the composition defines a plane after the step of scraping, and wherein at least a portion of the grains approximately 1 millimeter in diameter lie along the plate and are removed by the step of scraping so that the surface includes a plurality of divots where the grains approximately 1 millimeter in diameter have been removed.