How to Achieve the Stylish DIY Limewash Wall Trend with Paint

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The limewash look has been making a stylish statement on walls everywhere this past year – from living rooms and bedrooms to powder rooms and hallways. The beautiful and organic paint technique provides a soft, chalky patina that will fill any room with warmth and texture. The best part? You don’t need tons of experience or any specialty tools to achieve the look.

In today’s Paint School lesson, we’re sharing how to achieve this timeless limewash paint technique yourself to create a dreamy accent wall that you’ll love for years to come. Let’s get started!

Materials Required:

BEHR PREMIUM PLUS^® Interior Paint & Primer in Early Crocus, Nimbus Cloud, Pink Mirage and Shea
BEHR PREMIUM^® Cabinet, Door & Trim Enamel Paint in Cameo White
Four 5-inch paint brushes (for limewash effect)
One 1 ½ inch paint brush (for baseboards)
Painter’s tape
Paint tray
Drop cloth
Clean cloth

Step 1: Prep Your Soon-to-be Limewash Wall

Start by thoroughly wiping down the wall you intend to paint using a clean cloth dampened in lukewarm water and a mild soap. Ensure the wall and trim are completely dry before moving onto the next step. If needed, you can prime the walls using BEHR PREMIUM PLUS^® once the surface has been properly prepared. Once dry, apply painter’s tape to protect your baseboards and any electrical outlets or switch plates. Finally, cover your baseboards and floor with a drop cloth before moving onto the fun part: the limewash effect!

Step 2: Achieve the Perfect Limewash Effect

Now that our wall is prepped and ready, let’s start creating the limewash effect using BEHR PREMIUM PLUS^® Interior Paint & Primer. This paint has excellent hide and coverage and has a washable finish too, perfect for projects in high-traffic areas like a living room or hallway.

To create this look, we opted for four different paint colours – Early Crocus, Nimbus Cloud, Pink Mirage and Shea. When painting the wall, the key is to layer the four paint hues on top of one another to achieve the depth and organic strokes that define the limewash paint technique.

Use a thick 5-inch paint brush to apply a very thin coat of the darkest colour first. You’ll need to create an “X” movement (criss-cross style) with your brush to show off the strokes, which will become more pronounced once all the paint colours have been applied and have dried.

This paint application looks nothing like your regular paint job, and the idea is to create as many “X” patterns with your brush as you can, alternating the four paint colours to highlight the various organic strokes across the wall. Let the paint dry for at least one hour and you will notice the subtle texture of this paint technique begin to emerge.

Step 3: Paint the Baseboards

Once your adorable limewash wall is dry, go ahead and remove the painter’s tape from the baseboards and give them a fresh coat of paint to polish off the look. Use BEHR PREMIUM^® Cabinet, Door & Trim Enamel Paint in Cameo White and a 1 ½ inch paint brush to paint your baseboards. Apply a second coat after two hours, and you’re done!