You know when you move into a new house and you love everything about it? And then you sit with it and little things start to nag at you… For me, one of those little things was our red/grey, brick façade fireplace. So, I decided to limewash the brick with Romabio Limewash.
My main issue with the color
When we moved in here, I thought the red brick on the fireplace was charming. But as I began decorating it from season to season, I found the color seems to blend in with a lot of my natural décor elements. Specifically, this fall as I was decorating the mantel {HERE}, I really felt like I couldn’t see the detail due to the color of the brick and the grout.
Maybe if the grout had been lighter, I would have left it alone. I did love the red, but it all seemed so one-note. There was no contrast between the brick and the grout and it all seemed to be cloaked in a muddled grey. I needed a bit of a contrast between it and all of my natural and vintage décor.
Before you yell at me…
Our fireplace is a brick façade. It is pieces of brick that were sliced off and glued to my wall or a wooden base in the case of my hearth. It is not full brick and it is also not vintage. Our fireplace was built in 2017 when the large addition was built onto our 1900 farmhouse. So, while it may have some charming features – Hello big hearth and pretty, natural wood mantel! – we aren’t ruining a piece of history.
What is limewash?
Limewash is a technique of changing the color on brick that has been around for thousands of years. It goes on similar to paint but Limewash is actually crushed limestone that’s been heated and mixed with water. It lightens the space you’re applying it to and bonds with the brick and allows moisture to evaporate through it. In contrast, paint sits on top of brick and seals the surface.
Limewash has been around so long that it was used to create some of the most famous Frescos in all of Italy. Today companies that sell lime wash – like Romabio Limewash – often add natural pigments so that you can get a bit more variety in color. It is specifically made from brick nut you can actually use it on simple drywall too to give the walls some character.
Romabio Limewash
We used Romabio Limewash in Avario White and we only needed one gallon to complete our fireplace. The Romabio Limewash is made from Dolomite lime in Northern Italy, which I love because it just makes it more authentic to me. It is a European slaked-lime, aged and the formulated to be durable for generations while giving you a natural, authentic look on your stone.
It comes in a concentrate so you must add water before using it and mix it up. Romabio suggests adding 50 -70 percent water to the mixture. We added 50 percent water so there would be more of an opaque look to our final product.
DISCLAIMER: We did not partner with Romabio on this project. This post is a reflection of our true results and my honest opinions on the Romabio Limewash.
What materials do you need to limewash?
It didn’t take much to limewash the fireplace – at all! All we needed was the following:
- Romabio Limewash in Avario White
- A large Masonry brush – This was great for covering a lot of surface area.
- An angled brush ( This is my favorite!) – This was perfect for going and giving some spots a little more coverage.
- A very small brush – Needed for cracks, details and edges. I didn’t use blue tape around any area except for our fireplace box.
- A spray bottle with water
- A ladder to reach the top of the fireplace
- A drop cloth or taped craft paper {HERE} like we used. The Limewash is drippy since you add so much water so even if you’re a painting pro, at least protect the floor.
- Large plastic bucket for mixing
- Paint stir stick
- Small bucket – If you’re doing a space like the fireplace this is nice so you don’t have to carry the large bucket around with you.
- Cloth for wiping down the brick after 24 hours
The steps for Limewashing INSIDE
- Before starting it’s important that the brick or stone is clean. We vacuumed our’s since it has a tendency crumble and then I wiped it down with a cloth.
- Make sure all your surfaces are protected. You can used the kraft paper like we did or a drop cloth. We protected the floor and the fireplace box, but that’s it. No taping on the walls. I just used a smaller brush there.
- Mix 50 – 70 percent of water with your limewash. Again, we used the Romabio Limewash in Avario White and mixed it with 50 percent water right in the bucket. You can use the Limewash bucket to get the water and eyeball the percentage you want.
- Use the spray bottle to spray down the section of the brick you want to paint so it is damp.
- Begin painting! I recommend starting from the top because if your fireplace is like mine, it’s the hardest place to reach.
- Wait for it to dry. The color will look deceiving because it dries lighter. I recommend waiting 24 hours to see the real color.
- Once dry for 24 hours, decide if you want to remove any of the limewash and allow your brick to show through. We decided to skip this because we loved the look as is. But, if you want to do this, take your spray bottle and a cloth and wet the cloth. Then spray the area you want to remove the limewash. Rub lightly.
- The limewash will take a total of 48 hours to cure. This means after 48 hours you won’t be able to remove any of it with water and a cloth. But you have up until then to decide, which I LOVE.
Limewash finish
Whether you’re limewashing brick inside your home, brick outside your home or even using limewash on a wall to create a beautiful texture, it will be a flat, chalky finish. I personally love the way it looks. It really adds a bit of old-world character to my 2017 fireplace.
Limewash bonuses
There’s a lot to love about Limewashing, like the fact that you get a completely unique look to your home. You get to decide how much or how little is used and how much original brick shows. There’s not a lot of products that change the look of something while giving you that freedom. But there’s a few other things too…
- Romabio Limewash is environmentally friendly. The limewash products are mineral based and made from nature. They are not acrylic or latex paints.
- It allows the brick to breath, which is specifically important for brick outdoors that gets wet.
- There’s no smell with limewash. If you hate the smell of paint, this is the better way to go.
- It is naturally mold-resistant
- Limewash has a high UV and is fade resistant, which allows you to enjoy the color for a long time.
What other questions do you have about limewash? Ask me below and let me know what you think of the before and after!
Thank you so much for coming today, friends! If you’re thinking of painting something this year, check out the trending paint colors {HERE}! I hope that you will come back again to see what else we’re up to here are Sugar Maple Farmhouse!
Your fireplace looks amazing and that wash is really special. I have a brick fireplace but changing the look is a great idea.
You’re fireplace now looked absolutely elegant looking after your Do it your own project make over done to it. Well done.👍
How pretty! I love how this came out. It makes me wish I had a fireplace now.
I agree. White is so easy to blend onto different seasonal decors.
This is a really interesting read as I have to admit I know nothing about limewashing, though I do think it looks absolutely fantastic!
This is a nice look. I need to try this on my fireplace as I love it.
It turned out so perfect! Reading all of your posts makes me want to get in my house more and more.
Quite a view you’ve got with a new paint job. I like your creativity around the house.
This is an absolutely gorgeous project. i would love to have a fireplace like this some day.
Great decision! It looks so great and easy to decorate on.
I agree. White is so easy to blend onto different seasonal decors.
The result is so stunning. So neat and you’re right, it would be easier to decorate it with its color now.
Wow what a difference. It looks so elegant now , love it x
It looks so beautiful! It was beautiful before but I love how it brightened the room!
It looks beautiful! I really love the results than the before
I like the new look of your fireplace, it’s beautiful and looks elegant.
Love the new makeover of the fireplace. It looks more fresh and modern!
This is absolutely beautiful! I love how it turned out and the color is so much better than the natural color of the bread. Great job.
That is such a beautiful transformation. I absolutely love the way it came out.
Just beautiful! What a difference! You are so talented! 🍕👓👜
This turned out so good! I love learning new ways to improve my home.
wow!! this turned out so good! I have a wood fire place like onw of the old fashion ones im gonna put tile behind it!
Love your fireplace! Do you know if you can limewash limestone? Our fireplace is limestone and it’s not my favorite.
I saw someone do it on limestone as well. Her instagram is hipandhumble
I’m not going to yell at you, that’s stunning! Love that look and everything is so coordinated!
I’m loving it. The fireplace looks amazing and the mantel shows off beautifully. Great job!
tthose before and after pictures look like something out of hgtv..
Wow I love love LOVE that look! It is just SO beautiful!!! I would love to have a fireplace that looks like this!!!!!
How beautiful! I love your projects! I think our brick home has a limewash finish, but I didn’t know what it was called 🙂
We have slowly been redoing a lot of our home, and have talked about redoing the fireplace. I would love to do this!
Love how bright and airy the transformation is. Very beautiful.
I absolutely love it! I recently used this product and did mine and it really made a huge difference in the room. Can you please tell me what color of paint is on your walls? It looks great with the fireplace. Thanks so much!
HELP! I LOVE your fireplace—and am thinking of doing the same to mine! Here’s my dilemma…I have the same red brick as a walkway that starts at my front door and divides the living and dining rooms. Would you recommend matching it to the fireplace—and if so, can it be sealed since it’s a high traffic area? Any thought are appreciated!
I’ve read limewash can rub off on clothes. After it was completely dry, have you noticed any rubbing off? We have a toddler so it’s a concern in our house! Your fireplace looks stunning!
Romabio also makes a product called “Mineral Shield” which is a coating that locks in the mineral paint finishes.
Love your fireplace! We lime washed ours last night but it appears to have yellowed as it dried. Is there a reason for that? Some spots that had double coverage appear more soft white but others with one coat have a definite yellow tinge. Would you recommend lime washing a second time over the brick now that it has dried 24 hours?
I have a fireplace I want to change. I am trying to decide whether to paint, whitewash or limewash. Yours is beautiful!! If I limewash and I do not like the way it turns out, can I paint over it?
Turned out awesome. Wanted to know what where you bought your mantel and what color stain is on the mantel?
LOVE how this turned out….did you do a sample to see if it would blend with your wall color before doing the whole fireplace? It’s always hard to know if it will look too stark white, grayish or just right. Thoughts? Your fireplace is the first one I’ve seen that I really like…most are too wiped of…love how yours turned out!
YOU DID IT!!! You inspired me to change our fireplace. My brick is orange/red….yuck. Your fireplace looks exactly the same size as mine. How much did you buy for your 50% dilution to do your fireplace? Love the video and your blogs.
I absolutely love your limewashed fireplace! This is the exact color I have been looking for! Just a couple of questions – did you use one coat or two of the Romabio? And it looks like you did not try to remove any of the limewash after painting it? And did you use a sealer on top of the limewash? THANK YOU!