The specialists guide to Chinese window screens, carved wood panels & decorative lattice screens.

Collection

Whitewashed furniture: bleached, limed, cerused and whitewashed finishes.

Updated on December 7, 2023

Bleached? Whitewashed FURNITURE?What does this mean? #

Recently we discussed the popularity of furniture constructed from salvaged materials (link at the bottom of the page) like reclaimed elm wood dining tables and therefore it should be no surprise that the according to design guru’s like House Beautiful, the whitewashed look along with lightened wood, bleached finishes and limed finishes are growing just as much in popularity whether in asian home furniture or European styles. Known in Chinese as “Shini,“ Lime ie “whitewash,” is a naturally occurring calcium compound which has a wide range of applications and used from livestock products to concrete.

Limed finishes as sometimes also called Cerused or “pickled finishes” and the overall final look will vary depending on the nature of the underlying materials. Using reclaimed wood as a base will generally produced a more rustic and “aged look,” whereas new materials will feel a bit neater – even if deliberately antiqued.

A look at two sample below illustrates the differences seen in materials. Both have been given a limed finished.

The first board is reclaimed material. In other words this wood is antique. The second is new but “antiqued” to look more aged by digging out the wood grain slightly thus offering some depth. The difference is even more pronounced when viewing whole pieces.

Lets look at two pieces from a recent factory visit.

The first is a rustic farm table from ACF China and is constructed using salvaged materials.
The second is a rattan chest on a stand from Four Hands and is from new materials.

Both have “pickled” finishes although the technique used is quite different. The chest has had white lacquer rubbed into the grain. The farm table has been properly “limed.”

How do you create this whitewashed finish? #

Basic materials needed are usually just lime, wax and often some wood stain depending on the desired final color. The process (in brief) tends to be as follows:

In order to enhance the effect, the grain of the wood is exposed sometimes with a wire brush.
The surface is then dusted clean and color then applied is desired.
After any applied color is thoroughly dry, a coat of lime and wax is also applied and hand rubbed into the grain of the wood.
After the lime and wax is dried, any excess is removed and a final top layer of wax is applied.

Its also worthy to note that limed and bleached finishes are a different than finishing effects achieved using lacquer like this antique sideboard (and like the chest above) which has a faux limed finish, achieved with white lacquer hand-rubbed into the grain of the wood. It may look similar but the technique used to create this effect is very different.