How to Paint a Color Wash

You could spend days with a float and a trowel trying to make your walls look perfect. But where’s the fun in that? You’d be much better off if you just embrace that old messy plaster and play up its rough surface and worn-out paint. Or if you’re in a new house, infuse your too-pristine drywall with a little old-world character. All it takes is a little paint trickery.

With a few brushes and a series of complementary hues, you can mimic walls created long before the paint roller came along. As This Old House senior technical editor Mark Powers shows, brushing on your colors will hide imperfections—or create them with intention on smooth walls. What you’ll end up with when you’re done is a room that’s so delightfully imperfect, it’s perfect.