I Covered My Whole House in This Plastic-Free Paint
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At the end of last year, my partner and I bought a house. Blessedly, there were no major renovations required — except that all the rooms were various shades of greige (and, in one case, a rather putrid lavender), meaning we needed to repaint them immediately.
The thing about wall-paint selection is that it seems exciting at first, then morphs into a completely destabilizing experience that will have you questioning your very ability to see. We spent weeks studying color families, Googling “Is it a mistake to paint your living room dark brown, or is it actually so off-trend that it’s cool?”, and wading through the mind-bending world of interiors on Pinterest, trying to suss out which ones were actually AI.
Then one day, flipping through a 1,232-shade deck of Benjamin Moore swatches, on the verge of a very bourgeois meltdown, I opened Instagram to find its disturbingly accurate algorithm pointing me toward a company calledAlkemis, the “world’s first wellness paint.” A lofty assertion, to be sure. I rolled my eyes at first. But then I went a little deeper and learned that this paint is quite literally made from stone instead of plastic.
Most conventional paints, including those labeled “water-based” or “latex,” literally coat your walls in plastic — specifically, petrochemical-derived polymer binders, one of the largest sources of microplastic pollution in our oceans, according to arecent study. In contrast, Alkemis uses binders made from clear quartz and other natural earthen minerals to form a permanent yet breathable bond, eliminating toxic chemicals and microplastic contribution altogether. This is why it’s one of the only paints in North America that’sCradle to Cradle GOLD Certified, a designation for products manufactured safely and sustainably for a circular economy. In short: better for your lungs, better for the planet.
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Alkemis also claims to be far more durable than traditional latex or acrylic paints (20 years versus the typical five-to-ten before you need to repaint), zero-VOC, and water vapor permeable, meaning it prevents mold and fungal growth without toxic biocides — a huge plus for me since I’m allergic to everything. At $135 a gallon, the price is higher than conventional paints like Benjamin Moore, which will run you somewhere between $55 to $105 a gallon depending on the line, but lower than luxury brands like Farrow & Ball ($165 a gallon). And perhaps best of all for fellow sufferers of decision paralysis, the color palette is highly curated (119 shades to Benjamin’s 1,232), inspired by nature, and really beautiful across the board.
After further online research turned up no red flags, we went ahead and ordered enough paint for the whole house. The bedroom would be Feral, a rich olive green that lowers my blood pressure when I look at it. The kitchen: Hoodoo, an orangey-pinkish terra-cotta named for the rock formations of Bryce Canyon. And the living room: Hair of the Dog, a sexy reddish brown that reminds me of expensive chocolate.
From the moment we opened the canisters, it was clear that our big bet had paid off. Alkemis has zero “paint smell”; instead, just a subtle, claylike earthiness, which means we didn’t even need to crack the windows during application (a blessing, given it was 17 degrees outside). In fact, Alkemis claims to actuallypurifythe air as it dries. A gallon allegedly absorbs as much carbon dioxide as nine trees in a single day while curing — as opposed to conventional petrochemical-based paints, which pollute the air and off-gas for up to a decade.
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What I can also tell you is that Alkemis requires no primer (unless you are painting over brand-new drywall or covering up holes and cracks, in which case it does sell one). It dries in ten minutes and results in a color and texture that is absolutely gorgeous — lush and matte and kind of velvety-chalky, like actual stone. You can even create that sought-after limewash effect if you do your brushstrokes in an X pattern on the second coat. We used that method for our bedroom; the results were more subtle than some of the official limewash paints, but I love the multidimensional effect it has when exposed to sunlight. While I haven’t had to clean it yet, mild soap and water with a microfiber cloth is what’s recommended.
Also, I saved this part for you ride-or-dies who stayed with me to the end, but as someone who is mildly into crystals in a more woo-woo, magic kind of way, I’m aware that clear quartz — one of Alkemis’s primary ingredients — is specifically associated with clearing negative energy (including bad dreams), enhancing mental clarity, and supporting the immune system, which sound like pretty excellent side benefits to me. My history of night terrors is long and vivid, and I’m not sure the peaceful sleeps I’ve enjoyed since painting my bedroom Feral are a coincidence. A wall-to-wall dreamcatcher? Okay, maybe a stretch. But I certainly can’t imagine ever going back to the chemical stuff.
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