Pixie

Pixie is a colour in Portola Paints' Lime Wash series. Portola calls it a "playful, sophisticated peach", mixed from its El Matador and Potter's Clay shades.

Portola is a Los Angeles paint maker known for its lime wash and Roman Clay finishes. Its Lime Wash is a traditional lime-based finish with zero VOCs.

Lime wash dries matte and mottled, so Pixie never reads as one flat colour. Light picks out the brush movement and the shifts in depth across a wall.

Portola publishes no LRV for Pixie. It is a mid-light peach, so it will glow warm in sunny rooms. Sample it on the wall, because lime wash reads differently from any printed or on-screen swatch.

In the John Ruggiero Studio living room on this page, photographed by Gieves Anderson, Pixie covers soaring walls between tall windows, with a red sofa, green velvet chairs and a sculptural rug.

The second photograph shows it continuing through a doorway with a marble fireplace into a deep plum room beyond. Portola also recommends lime wash for exteriors and historic restorations.

Portola recommends two coats with a 5-inch stain brush, keeping a wet edge. Lighter colours sometimes take a diluted third coat.

Drywall needs Portola's Limeproof primer first, and Matte Wall Sealer makes the surface wipeable. On this site, compare Pixie with Southwest Pottery and Coral Spice, two warmer clay tones.