Tonachino sand-textured plaster in Los Angeles

Graded sand in a lime binder, floated flat with a sponge or plastic float. The grain is not a texture applied to the finish — it is the finish, and it changes completely with the size of sand chosen.

What it is

A thin lime coat carrying washed silica sand at a chosen grade, floated while it is still open so the binder drops back and leaves the aggregate proud. Coarse sand gives a garden-wall render; fine sand gives something close to suede.

Where it works

Whole rooms, stairwells, exterior walls and courtyards. It is the most robust wall in the range — the grain hides scuffs the way a polished finish cannot — which makes it the sensible choice in a house with children or a busy hallway.

What to expect

Quick to lay compared with anything polished, and cheap by the square foot, but the sand grade has to be decided on a sample board: it is the entire look, and it cannot be adjusted once the wall is floated.

The colour range

Tonachino in 16 colours

Rendered, not photographed · indicative only

Graded sand in a lime binder, floated rather than polished. The grain is not a texture on the finish — it is the finish.

Whites & lime2

**Fine White***Sand you can see and only just feel*~~#EDE9DF~~

**Bisque***Warm pale; the safe one in this finish*~~#E4DCCC~~

Sands & clays2

**Semolina***Golden sand, dry and very even*~~#DCCDAF~~

**Shore***Cool sand, with grey under it*~~#D0C4AE~~

Blush & rose2

**Rose Sand***Pink grain; unusual, and very good in sun*~~#D3B4A8~~

**Blush Grain***Pale pink with the sand still visible*~~#DFC7BC~~

Earth & rust2

**Almond Shell***Mid tan; the grain reads strongly here*~~#BFA184~~

**Clay Sand***Terracotta held down by the aggregate*~~#A9805F~~

Greens2

**Olive Sand***Dusty green with the aggregate showing through*~~#A4A488~~

**Sage Sand***Paler and cooler than Olive Sand*~~#B4B9A6~~

Blues2

**Harbour***Cool blue-grey, gritty*~~#94A2A8~~

**Sea Grain***Pale blue-grey, and gritty with it*~~#B0BCC0~~

Greys & stone2

**Mortar***Reads like a rendered garden wall*~~#B0AAA0~~

**Ash Sand***Pale grey render with the tooth left open*~~#C0BAB0~~

Deeps2

**Char Sand***Dark, and the grain shows most of all here*~~#5D564C~~

**Peat Sand***The darkest sand; the grain is everything here*~~#4E4740~~

Every colour here is the studio’s own, and every swatch is drawn from its hex value rather than photographed. Screens differ, and so does the light in your room — we make sample boards on site before anything goes on a wall, and that is what the colour is decided from.

Where we have used it

Nothing published yet under this finish. It is applied on jobs that are not in the portfolio — tell us about your space and we will send comparable work and a sample.

The other finishes

Roman Clay·Limewash·Marmorino·Intonaco·Microcement·Béton Ciré·Stone Effect·Venetian Plaster·Tadelakt·Travertine Plaster

Ask about Tonachino →