Limewashing is a great way to update brick that may not be your style. Plus, it’s a great, low-maintenance, healthy material for the brick! If you want a tutorial on how to apply limewash, visit the full guide here and watch the YouTube video.
Limewash can have so many different looks, so I’ve gathered 20 very different examples to help you decide what you want for your house. Keep in mind, there are more ways to transform your brick, so I’ve only included examples that I could confirm are actually limewash.
Here are the different types of before and after limewash brick examples I’ll show you:
- Distressed finishes
- Opaque finishes/finishes that look like paint
- In-between examples
Distressed Finishes
When most people think of limewash, they think of houses with some distressing. However, the distressing can be done all over or be extremely minimal, so it’s a good idea to have some different examples when you’re deciding on limewashing your brick.
1. Lightly Distressed White House
- Type of finish: Lightly distressed
- Method used: Done by a team of professionals
- Limewash color: Avorio White
This example is what I envisioned when I originally thought of a typical limewash finish. It uses the brightest white limewash color that Romabio offers, and it makes the house’s black shutters and garage door stand out even more. It’s a beautiful look.
2. Colonial House with Distressed Limewash
- Limewash color: Avorio White and Nube Gray
This house has a very classic look, and it’s interesting that the owners used two different colors of limewash to get the look they wanted.
3. Distressed Two-Story House
This limewash exterior is from Romabio’s Instagram, so there isn’t any information on the color used or the method. However, it’s a slightly different example of how distressing can be done. Instead of distressing the lime wash to show red brick or natural brick underneath, it’s distressed while keeping a uniform color on the whole house.
4. Closeup of Distressed Limewash
- Limewash color: Romabio Riposo Beige
Although this isn’t exactly a limewash brick house before and after, this closeup really shows how limewash can look very different up close and from afar.
Related: Want another way to make your home reflect YOU–for insanely cheap prices? Check out my printable wall art on Etsy in the Black Door Shop. You can even get 20% off your order with the code 20OFF. 🙂
5. Unique Technique to Distress a Limewash Exterior
- Method used: Spraying the limewash with air!
This example is especially interesting, because this is not a commonly known method to create a distressed home look. This limewash was applied with a paint sprayer, and the distressing is being done by spraying air over the brick exterior!
You can see on this porch wall that this technique definitely creates a highly distressed look, with the red brick showing through. It’s not necessarily my favorite style, but that’s the beauty of limewash.
Here’s another, similar video on Pinterest of the same process on limewash red brick.
6. German Schmear Look
This limewash brick is one of my favorites. It’s quite distressed, but really brings new life to the house. It doesn’t look at all like paint, but also doesn’t look choppy. In fact, the faded limewash is a contrast to the dark, modern windows.
7. Heavy Schmear Look
If you like limewash that looks very different than paint, this is another example you’ll love. The limewash looks like it was applied very heavily in some spots, although much of the red brick is still showing through.
Plus, this limewash color almost matches the siding. If you’re doing a full exterior renovation or makeover, make sure you take your existing siding and roof into consideration when you choose the color and style of finish.
8. Limewash Exterior Brick Over Paint
- Method used: Hydrated lime over a green painted house
There are a few examples online of people who did their limewash project by using hydrated lime instead of buying from Romabio. This is an even more affordable option!
So this limewash is distressed, but it looks different because the limewash was applied over green paint.
9. Naturally Distressed Limewash House Exterior
- Limewash color: Bianco White
What I like about this distressed example is that the majority of the distressing is around the entryway, windows, and fireplace edges. This makes it look very natural, which is what is supposed to happen to this limewash over time.
10. Limewash Brick Before and After
- Limewash color: Bianco White
I think this may be the most famous limewash example online! This picture seemed to be everywhere when I was researching this project. With only small changes to the flower beds and landscaping, the limewash makes this look like a brand new house! It even turns the black front door into a focal point.
11. Heavily Distressed Limewash Red Brick
- Limewash color: Cristallo White
This example really stands out, with possibly the lightest application of limewash on this list. In fact, the brick looks almost ombre–with some areas completely showing the natural brick underneath. It’s very unique and I admire it so much!
12. Lightly Covered Brick House
…Did I just say the last example was the lightest application? Well, looks like we have a competition!
Opaque Finishes/Finishes That Look Like Paint
13. Lime Slurry
Okay I admit it! This one is an exception to the rest of the list–it’s lime slurry and not actual limewash. If you truly want the look of a painted house without the maintenance of paint, this is a great option.
14. White Limewash Brick Exterior Before and After
- Method used: Hydrated lime & masonry brush
This is the second example on this list of someone who used hydrated lime instead of a brand of limewash. The natural brick here already has a lot of contrast, and the limewash completely covers it. From a distance, this house looks completely opaque, like paint.
In Between Finishes
The beautiful–and sometimes challenging–thing about limewashing brick is that the looks you can create will vary like crazy. As I was trying to categorize these, I felt that some before and after limewash examples really didn’t fall perfectly in the “distressed” or “opaque” categories.
15. My limewash before and after!
- Method used: Masonry brush, high dilution, and no distressing
- Limewash color: Avorio White
As you can read in my detailed tutorial AND watch in my YouTube video, the end result of my limewash really wasn’t exactly what I was going for. I wanted it to be more distressed–HOWEVER, I didn’t love the look when I wiped limewash away and the deep red brick showed through.
Plus, I felt very rushed and pressured on the day I did this project, so I ultimately ended up applying and not doing any distressing.
In the end, since I diluted it so much to fit it in the deep grout lines, the finish is high coverage… but not exactly completely opaque. You can see from the after photo below that the porch started fading almost right away, but I actually kind of loved that.
Read the details in my tutorial about how to limewash brick (plus my mistakes).
Here’s my limewash red brick before and after:
16. Full Coverage Limewash
If you didn’t quite understand what I meant above about how I *wanted* my limewash brick to turn out… well, this is it.
It looks more natural than paint, but it’s noticeably distressed. Beautiful.
17. Interior Limewash Wall
- Method used: Masonry brush, distressed with a wet sponge
- Limewash color: Avorio White
This is the only interior picture I have in this list. I like how the wall looks natural, but also has full coverage of white–and some areas even look gray! It adds a lot of depth to the space.
18. Limewash + Siding
- Method used: Masonry brush + hose
- Limewash color: Avorio White
19. Beige Limewash
- Type of finish: Slightly transparent limewash over yellow brick
- Method used: Masonry brush + hose
- Limewash color: Riposo beige
This is one of the only examples on this list with a beige color and not one of the brightest whites. I think it’s really great, because it gives a slightly transparent finish but doesn’t leave any of the red color coming through.
20. Barely Distressed Brick Limewash
My final example has me really impressed at their distressing job. It’s very subtle and looks natural.
If you’re considering limewashing your house, don’t forget to read my tutorial and watch the YouTube video–I PROMISE you won’t regret spending that time to learn from my mistakes.
Let me know what other questions you have on Instagram or TikTok. I can’t wait to hear from you 🙂
More related posts:
Pssst, want to show off your love for DIY? Check out some items I made specifically for DIYers! (And ADHDers… and moms 😉 Visit my Etsy shop Black Door Fits–you can even get 20% off your order!
