WHAT IT IS. Technically, lime wash is slaked lime—or calcium hydroxide (a natural chemical)—dissolved in water. Strong enough to withstand the elements, it's historically been used as an exterior treatment. It's often mixed with pigment: As the lime wash dries, a natural chemical reaction creates calcite crystals that absorb the color. The result looks slightly aged, while the crystals reflect light with a subtle but noticeable glimmer.
HOW IT'S DONE. Sydney Harbour's ready-made Interno Lime Wash is infinitely easier than the old-fashioned method of combining powdered lime and water by hand. Most walls will need priming and careful planning: You shouldn't start unless you can tackle an entire surface in one go, but you can schedule stops at corners or breaks in the wall. You need two coats (with six hours of drying time between them); keep a wet edge as you paint (using a brush- no rollers), working in small sections. All you need to clean the brushes afterward is water.
HOW TO MAINTAIN IT. We installed reclaimed floorboards, which are widely available at architectural salvage lots and even some lumberyards, and are an incredibly chic (though costly) way to recycle. To spruce them up, we added a low-VOC paint that breathes new life into the vintage wood, then finished with a nontoxic sealant. Safecoat PolyureSeal BP floor finish about $86/gallon, safecoatpaint.com for stores.
THE TOOLS
Brush: Perfect for liming (and with a handle made of renewable 'remnant' hardwoods). 'French' lime $26 environmentalhomecenter.com
Drop cloth: For an organic unbleached cotton sturdy enough to use and reuse try cotton canvas $14.95/yard, at srfabrics.com.
Primer: Painted, patched or new walls will need two coats of this low-VOC primer. Limeproof Undercoat Sealer $73.37/gallon, sydneyharborpaints.com.
