I’m trying to paint an existing wall with a “lime wash” technique. It’s in an old building that had walls that were probably painted many times.
Before we painted we tested several colors and methods on the wall, let it dry, and then covered the sample area with a white paint. A friend of mine who was helping added “binder” to the paint because he thought it would help cover the samples better. We didn't use any primer, which I think might have been the problem.
The next day we started with our first layer. We added a lot of water to the paint to start with a light color. We wanted to add subsequent layers to give it a darker effect.
On the outer edges of the wall, we saw the effect that we expected. When we got to the center part of the wall, where we did the samples, the paint layer would barely stick.
Obviously there was something about the white paint we used that caused it not to absorb. We don’t know, though, if this is something that was caused by the “binder” that my friend added? Or was it because the paint in the middle is newer compared to the paint on the outside?
And the biggest question: How do we fix this? Use a layer or two of primer for the entire wall?
I would love for the entire wall to have the same absorbability as the edges.