Tuck pointing pointing
A brick-coloured joint with a fine white line tucked in. A period feature.
Cross-section: brick above and below, mortar in the middle, face of the wall on the right.
Pointing styles
Tuck pointing
Tuck pointing is a decorative technique from the 18th and 19th centuries. The joints are first filled with a mortar coloured to match the brick, so the wall reads as one surface. Then a narrow groove is cut and a fine ribbon of white lime putty is pressed in, giving the illusion of very thin, precise joints between perfect bricks.
It's slow, skilled work and it only makes sense where it's the original finish — usually the front elevation of a Victorian or Edwardian villa, a bay, or a shopfront. We restore tuck pointing where a surviving section tells us what the original looked like, matching the stopping mortar colour and the width of the tuck.
You'll see it on some of the older fronts in Rochdale, Bury and north Manchester.
- Suits
- Georgian, Victorian and Edwardian fronts where it's original.
- Avoid on
- Anywhere it isn't original — it's expensive and out of place on ordinary housing.
The others
More pointing styles
Flush
Filled level with the face of the brick or stone. Plain and clean.
Weather struck
Angled back at the top so rain runs off the face. The hardest-wearing profile.
Bucket handle
Concave, tooled with a round bar. Compacts well and hides irregular brick.
Recessed
Set back from the face for strong shadow lines. Modern look.
Not sure which finish your house has?
Send Scott a photo of a joint up close. He'll tell you what it is and what it should be repointed in.