If there's one trend the design world isn't ready to move on from, it's jewel tones. The rich, vibrant hues exude a certain luxury and opulence that make any room feel more sophisticated. The only way they could be made better? When they're styled to imitate natural gemstones, of course.
Besides their shimmery luster, precious stones like agate, onyx, and malachite are admired for their striking banding — distinctive layered lines that reveal variations in color and composition (akin to the rippling finishes of moiré silk or burlwood). It's this striking contrast that's typically lost when we decorate with jewel tones in the home, but it turns out, it doesn't have to be. Armed with some paint, a piece of cardboard, and a bottle of acrylic glaze, you can mimic these beautiful ripples with a genius paint trick.
This innovative technique was dreamed up by interior designer Jewel Marlowe, who combined the rich textures of malachite with a bold jewel-toned palette on the surface of two storage doors. The result? A striking faux paint finish she's dubbed "Jewelachite". As far as paint trends go, this is one you're going to want to recreate at home, and below, Jewel tells us how to do it.
Use smaller waves for details like framing, with a larger forms reserved for the main door panels
The best living room DIYs don't look like DIYs — they look like custom jobs that cost a fortune. Jewel Marlowe's bespoke paint idea is the perfect example. Working on a $16 million home (just under £12 million), a budget look was not on the cards.
"While designing my space in the Hamptons Designer Showhouse, I wanted to think outside the box with ideas that would take the space from merely pretty to truly memorable," she explains. "Conceptually, I loved the idea of a warm-toned faux finish in a malachite pattern. I knew it would be impactful in berry and red tones, but once I arrived in the Hamptons, I almost chickened out."
After some convincing words from a friend, Jewel decided to bring her idea to life on two storage doors in the living room. To begin, she painted the surface of the doors with her contrasting base color. She used Little Greene’s shade, Carmine, a hue she calls a "Pepto-Bismol-like pink".
You'll need to use a matte latex finish for this first coat, and the lighter the shade, the more contrastive your "Jewelachite" banding will be.
Once the base coat was dry, Jewel mixed acrylic reds, purples, and browns in a small bucket to create her desired shade. "Using a brush, I layered this blend with acrylic glaze (scumble) over the latex-painted door," she says.
You'll need approximately one-third acrylic glaze (available from Amazon) to two-thirds paint to achieve enough translucency for this paint idea, as this will act as the contrastive luster color on top of your basecoat.
Using a piece of torn, jagged cardboard as her application tool, Jewel then scraped an imitation malachite pattern on the doors using this scumble glaze. The trick is to use the card as a sort of pivot to achieve the curved, wavy strokes that mimic the natural forms of malachite.
"It’s important to work in small sections and to keep scale in mind when choosing your cardboard," Jewel adds. "Larger areas look best with longer pieces, while smaller scraps can be used to quickly fill in details."
And remember, "If it isn’t going well, you can easily 'erase' mistakes with a brush and start again," adds Jewel.
Bold, sophisticated drama was the brief for this Hamptons showroom.
After you've applied the glaze coat, Jewel notes that a marine-grade gloss topcoat can then be used to seal the deal and help the paintwork to really shimmer. Once dry, you'll be left with expensive-looking doors that barely left a dent in your wallet.
Although I'm utterly obsessed with the dramatic storage doors in Jewel's Hamptons showroom, this isn't solely a paint technique for walls and doors. It could easily work on furniture, door frames, or even ceilings for an alternative jewel-inspired look.
Of course, you can also play with the colors. For a true malachite effect, use a teal base and an emerald green acrylic glaze, or choose blue tones for a look more akin to azurite. The opportunities are truly endless.
The subtler adjacent tones in Jewel's living room help her "Jewelachite" doors to really pop.
Complete the Look
I love how practical trays are, and they have so much versatility as a decor piece. This marble green number from Dunelm is the perfect accompaniment to a malachite-inspired door or wall.
There's something so alluring about a jewel-toned palette, especially in the living room. Why not offset your rich "Jewelachite" surface with these blue agate coasters to really make your room shine?
If you plan to replicate Jewel's paint hack and really want to go the extra mile, customize your doors with some hand-chosen knobs. These glazed emerald green pulls will glisten beautifully against a deep red backdrop.
While this DIY calls for a bit of patience, it doesn't require pricey tools or an expert hand. The result speaks for itself — a truly unique and striking paint effect that guests won't be able to ignore.
Jewel's space isn't your typical Hamptons home. Thanks to her ingenious paint trick, it's now an eye-catching space dripping in opulence, and proof that affordable IKEA-style hacks don't have to be expensive to look expensive.
