While you may consider these products practically the same, they are incredibly different and give incredibly different end results. Consider the pros and cons of each before deciding which is best for your project.
| Romabio | Giani | ||
|---|---|---|---|
| VOC Count | 0 | 85g/gal | |
| Allows Brick to Breathe | yes | no | |
| Color Choices | yes (7) | no | |
| Comes with Everything You Need | no | yes | |
| Indoor or Outdoor Use | yes | no (indoor only) | |
| Distressed Look Possible | yes | yes | |
| Full Coverage Possible? | yes | no (not in the nature of whitewash as a product) |
Limewash is a finish designed for raw wood or unsealed masonry and has been around for centuries. While a simple limewash just consists of water, salt, and hydrated lime, a more complex version is an aged lime putty mixed with natural pigments that the user dilutes with water to create a usable wash. As it dries, it can be distressed by spraying on water to remove some of the finish.
Limewash has incredible properties. It’s antimicrobial, antifungal, and an insecticide. It allows the surface it’s applied on to breathe naturally, which preserves the strength of that surface. It is equally applicable in indoor and outdoor settings and only looks better over time.
Limewash is also completely VOC free.
Whitewash is a finishing technique for raw wood, masonry, and even previously painted surfaces. The user chooses a white or off-white paint color and dilutes it with water. Especially when used on brick, the user can remove excess paint with a rag to allow some of the natural brick to show through
Whitewash is just a mixture of white paint and water. It is better for brick than a solid coat of paint, but it doesn’t allow the brick to breathe naturally like limewash. Whitewash is not designed to hold up over time and will need to be reapplied in outdoor settings.
The VOC count of whitewash will depend on the type of paint used in the process.
Romabio’s limewash is crafted in Italy. It has all the fantastic qualities of limewash listed above, and it comes in seven different color choices.
While the product is mainly marketed to the exterior of brick homes, it can be used on any natural brick or stone, inside or outside.
The product is shipped in a paste form that needs to be diluted before application.
The whitewash kit by Giani comes with everything you need to complete your project including paint, lint-free cloths, drop cloths, etc. It is an interior product marketed for fireplaces.
The paint is low VOC and specifically designed for brick. The paint must be diluted with water before use.
The Romabio limewash paste was about the same texture as softened butter. I expected it to be more difficult to work with (something along the lines of solid ice cream), but it was very easy to scoop out of the container.
It does take a little effort to get it thoroughly mixed with water. I would recommend using a metal mixing tool attached to a drill as opposed to a wooden stir stick.
As I applied it, the product looked very streaky, but the brushstrokes were much milder when the product dried.
Once the product was mostly dry, I started to distress it. I definitely recommend waiting as long as possible to start distressing.
Because the wash was not completely dry, even the drips from the water I sprayed on it removed a lot of product. I ended up using a lint-free cloth to blend the finish and get it looking the way I wanted.
The Giani paint was about the same texture as sour cream. When I was shaking the can, I thought it sounded really thin, but it wasn’t that much thinner than the Romabio. In fact, when diluted, both products had about the same consistency.
Again, it did take a little effort to get the product fully blended with the water. The company claims you can do it with just a stir stick, but I ended up having to really work the paint into the water with my paint brush.
Initially, the product gave a very full coverage. I did find it difficult to get the distressed look I was going for, but I think it would have been easier on real brick, which is much more porous. (I was using a faux brick board.)
The days of ugly red brick are over. It's 2024, and chances are if you're reading this then you're probably ready to do away with that old fireplace brick that's making your house feel dated. Luckily, it's easier (and cheaper!) than ever to transform your fireplace, instantly making it feel fresh and modern.
Here's our list of the top 5 brick paint products of 2024:
Check out our post on Romabio Limewash for a more in depth review!
Have you had a positive experience with a different brick painting product? Let us know if we've missed something in the comments below!
Stone fireplaces work as a great focal point in any home. With a unique texture and rustic feel, their texture and design can add so much to any room. However, a bad paint job can easily make a fireplace a sloppy, outdated feature. Understanding that your ugly fireplace can be saved with a simple paint job can totally inspire an indoor renovation. Check out these modern paint colors that can update your fireplace, and your entire home.
While beautiful painted stone fireplace before and after photos look great, understanding how to achieve these looks might seem overwhelming. These projects aren't always as impossible as they seem. It could be as simple as a layer of solid paint, but so many possibilities exist when it comes to painted stone fireplaces.
Painted white stone is an extremely popular trend in home design right now. While it may sound boring, or even too simple, but the bright pop of color can completely change the dynamic of any room. Opting for white stone will make the painting process easy, as well as choosing the colors. As you can see, having a solid, opaque layer of white paint can modernize an otherwise dated style of fireplace. The great thing about white paint is that it can match any room design, and the decor surrounding it can be taken in so many directions. Completely playing off the clean, white look is a great way to brighten a home.
This stone fireplace makeover by A Beautiful Mess truly emphasizes this brightening effect a coat of white paint on your stone can have, dramatically opening up what was already a very dark room to begin with:
It's hard for your jaw not to drop when you see this, as Laurel Home puts it, "Gorilla Dung" fireplace transformed into a beautiful French/old world look. Just goes to show that even the ugliest of stone fireplaces can be salvaged with the right paint job!
Here's another great example of solid white painted stone courtesy of Most Lovely Things, this time with a slightly different shade of white:
Another great color option for a clean but understated painted stone fireplace is to use neutral shades like greys or taupes. Or you could utilize the best of both worlds, like this stone fireplaces painted with grey-taupe via Snazzy Little Things:
Notice at the the top of the fireplace where Jeanette left a bit of the original stone for comparison's sake... what a difference!
A grey or taupe color is also popular for maintaining the integrity of a more classic stone look. These colors mimic more of the natural shades of stone, but new paint freshens the color and cleans up the overall appearance.
Here's another great example from The Inspired Room of a grey painted stone, this time using a chalk paint:
Take the grey tones one step further and combine several different colors to achieve a more complex and layered look.'
We love this stone fireplace transformation from Brick-Anew, which utilizes a several different neutral tones to achieve a textured, dimensional look:
Here's another great example from Pam at The Birch Cottage, who combined a white and a grey shade to give the stone a bit more depth:
You can see how this stone fireplace transformation from Paper & Fox not only gives the room a breath of fresh air, but is also able to maintain the look of natural stone:
Have you seen or used another paint or method on your stone fireplace and achieved some breathtaking results? Comment below to let us know what you did!
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