I hate picking paint. Â On my list of things I hate to do, this is VERY-VERY-VERY high on the list. Â I especially hate paint cards that have four colors on them and the colors graduate from light to dark. Â UGH!! Â How am I suppose to know what will look good on a wall??
This house has been harder for me than any other house. Â I think it’s because I am getting older and honestly don’t want to paint and repaint walls as the whim of what’s popular changes. Â As a kid, people wouldn’t dream of painting a wall a dark color as it made rooms look small.
My niece bought a house recently that was all mauve and blues…I grew up in the avocado green, orange, gold era. Â Right now it seems the dark colors are in…but even that I am seeing fade a little and grays are really popular.
So what do I do about the color?? Â We have antiques and I want the antiques to look good. Â Right now the dining room in the house is a red and I like it…Hubby, hates it. Â I walked in on him and the dry wall guy having a chat about dark colors and how they suck the light out of everything….oh well. Â There went my chance of convincing him of anything different.
To be honest, I was debating about going with traditional colors for the most part….no not white-white but off white. Â We tried to make the kitchen cupboards and cabinets look historic. Â I want the old red counter tops so it seems strange to have anything but off white on the walls. Â Plus, we do have lots of wood everywhere so the light white might be best.
Our son ended up telling me about paint that they have at the Restore in Cedar Rapids, Iowa. Â He said it’s $14 a gallon and there are limited color choices. Â Well that sounded interesting to me. Â So I checked it out. Â These are their colors.
I ended up deciding on the Ivory White for the kitchen and entry way. Â Island Sand for the dining room, living room and office. Â It will go up the hallway and down the hall too. Â The upstairs bathroom with be Dessert Beige. Â I did actually decide on Vintage Buff for the sewing room…that one I didn’t have to clear with Hubby. Â Part of me wishes I would have went with bolder colors but a bigger part of me is so relieved that I can live with these colors for a LONG-LONG time without being worried about trends or fashion.
White and beige go with everything….I can easily seasonally decorate around those colors too. Â In the end after debate after debate about colors I am just happy to say it’s over!!
You might be wondering about the bedrooms…To be honest, I bought the paint for them about six months ago and I don’t have a clue what colors I picked. Â I simply can’t remember. Â I guess when I get that far and open the can I’ll just be surprised. Â It won’t be the first surprise I’ve gotten with the house.
And that’s the story of paint colors…Soon I will be able to show you how it all looks on the wall!! Â I can’t wait.
I really applaud your colour choices…I don’t think you will be sorry at all. Your antiques will love you for it! Merry Christmas Jo to you and your family…I love checking in with you each day…I admire your energy levels!!!
I so agree with you. It is hard to choose also because the light a room gets from bulbs and the sun can change a paint color also. Your choices will let your eye rest and also make your quilts and decoration stand out.
I love the brighter darker colors but need time with a house to figure out what to use. Once I chose a dark rich royal blue (my favorite color) as the base and everything grew from it. Used it with a sheen for the staircase wall and always loved it. But selectively.
What is your absolutely favorite to die for color and can you use it in one place or wall for just you? Or will a quilt on the wall with your color be just as good?
I like the whites and off whites to beige for my walls. It’s a lot easier to change the accents in a room than repaint the wall. If you use good paint you shouldn’t have to paint again for a long time. I love to paint so wish I was there to help you.
Merry Christmas to you and your family.
Have you thought of having just one wall in a color you love? It can help with the darkness issues. Also, look at where your light source is–does the room get a lot of direct sunlight or is it a north facing room? That can affect color temperature–and how cool or warm a room feels. Also, gray is one of the only colors that reduces the after-image effect (when you look at a color, then at a neutral, the complementary color appears as an after image) so in a room with many colorful objects/artwork, like quilts, it can reduce “noise.” I think your house is going to be lovely!
I really like the colors that you picked out. I have dark woodwork and the lighter colors work make it stand out. Also you can decorate with whatever color quilts you want.
Love your colors! I like the neutrals, makes the antiques look richer and it is so much cheaper to change out accessories rather than re-paint. Can’t wait to see the finished house!
I’m with you on choosing paint colors. I tend to choose one and paint everything with the one color.
Great choices! I think you’ll be happy. I like the “warmer beige you picked for the dining room, living room and office. Nice to have some fun with the sewing room, the yellow is happy, happy!
I like off white and beige as well since they go well with anything. We bought our condo almost 4 years ago and EVERYTHING was white. I have finally gotten around to picking out a color for the living room and main part of the home. I chose a light soft yellow. It’s the color that hubby & I both really like. One day we’ll actually be finished with the painting! lol
You’ve picked out some nice colors that will go well with everything…your woodwork included. I always think darker woodwork limits the colors you can use, but maybe that’s just me. White woodwork just seems to allow any color. One thing, paint a swatch of that Vintage Buff on the wall and let it dry before you paint the whole room. It looks like a sort of gold and those yellow shades can fool you. I painted my sewing room what was supposed be a pale butter yellow and when it dried I needed sunglasses to look at it. The can was about half empty so I filled it up with white and mixed it well. Repainted the whole room and it turned out perfect. Merry Christmas and Happy Painting!
I like the neutral colors myself and you are right anything will go with them
I picked similar colors to your selections when we painted our house almost 20 years ago. I love the way the light changes them… they are soft in the morning, true in the middle of the day, and take on shades of gray in the evening. It is so easy to decorate with a punch of color in window treatments or pillows to liven things up. I think you will be pleased.
I remember visiting my Aunts house when I was young and her kitchen was red (my fav color) and it always felt warm & happy to me and a smell to it (all I can think of is maybe all the coffee grounds n the trash) I painted my kitchen a warm dark red color & love it but my coffee grounds just don’t smell the same.
Jeri
I like the colors you picked. And yes, picking colors is hard for me too. I only get to paint every 10 years or so so it has to be a color I can live with that long!