Decorating Advice
KellieGaines
occupied room in the house that has yet to be painted, papered or
decorated. I've been thinking about what I want in there for months,
and as of yet, I haven't really had the inspiration "hit me". So
today, I was straightening up the room and thought about doing dark
green walls (more forest than hunter).
Pros:
That room gets the hot afternoon sun, so a dark room would probably
make it feel cooler
Matches the bedding we have yet wouldn't be impossible to match to
another pattern later down the road
The room is large enough that using a dark color won't make it feel
too small
The adjoining bathroom is already a sage green (ragged), so it would
blend
Cons:
I've never done a room that dark before and am concerned that it will
be *really* hard to paint over later
Not sure that our furniture (pine) will look good against a dark
background
Ditto with the carpet (dark taupe)
Anyone want to take a look and see what you think?
http://www.shutterfly.com/osi.jsp?i=67b0de21b33e41ff2532
I've seen several people here who have painted rooms dark burgundy or
plum colors - how much harder is it than light paint? I'm imagining
that getting the coats even is much harder. Also, the hallway leading
into the room will be the same yellow as we painted the living and
dining room - too weird to go from yellow to dark green?
kellie
HollyLewis
>green walls (more forest than hunter).
Kellie, what on earth is the difference between forest and hunter? :-) (I
think of them as interchangeable names for the exact same shade of green.
Forest is just more PC.)
>Pros:
>That room gets the hot afternoon sun, so a dark room would probably
>make it feel cooler
I'd think the opposite would be true, actually. You know how dark cars absorb
more heat than light ones? The same thing will happen with your walls.
Our darkest room is a converted rear deck with large windows and no insulation.
It's cold at night and on cold days, and hot when it's sunny and warm. But
it's hard to tell how much the color contributes. :-)
>I've seen several people here who have painted rooms dark burgundy or
>plum colors - how much harder is it than light paint? I'm imagining
>that getting the coats even is much harder.
You need more coats, but evenness isn't too much of a problem unless you're
using semigloss.
Have you considered painting the room the same sage as is in the bathroom, and
then ragging or sponging forest green on top of that? Unevenness becomes a
*feature* that way. :-)
Also, the hallway leading
>into the room will be the same yellow as we painted the living and
>dining room - too weird to go from yellow to dark green?
Nope. Yellow and dark green are nice complementary colors, and with the
lighter color in the hallway and darker in the large room, it'll be fine.
Since it's a bedroom I'm assuming there's a door and some wood trim in between,
so it's not as if there's just a line where yellow becomes green.
If you're still concerned about that, mix in some yellow with the sage and
forest and sponge three layers. :-)
Holly
KellieGaines
> Kellie, what on earth is the difference between forest and hunter?
I would be wrong (it happens =) but to me, hunter is a bit more
yellow-green, forest is a bit more blue-green.
> I'd think the opposite would be true, actually. You know how dark cars absorb
> more heat than light ones? The same thing will happen with your walls.
Yes, and for some reason we always end up with dark cars. Got to stop
doing that. But I digress - our family room (which is directly below
the master bedroom) has gets the afternoon sun and we found that the
dark taupe ragged walls have made it feel cooler in the afternoon,
whereas our sun yellow rooms, on the east side of the house, feel
warmer. Maybe it's the tone as well as the darkness?
> You need more coats, but evenness isn't too much of a problem unless you're
> using semigloss.
So, would you suggest matte/flat instead? I generally do a satin,
just for cleaning purposes.
> Have you considered painting the room the same sage as is in the bathroom, and
> then ragging or sponging forest green on top of that? Unevenness becomes a
> *feature* that way. :-)
If I thought I could get away with ragging the room, it would be my
first choice! =) However, I'm not entirely crazy about the sage in
the bathroom, and I think this room needs something soothing and calm.
In our last house, I did the master bedroom in a dark taupe sponge
and noticing the patterns or uneven-ness of the paint application
bugged me (and generally I'm not one to notice small details).
> Nope. Yellow and dark green are nice complementary colors, and with the
> lighter color in the hallway and darker in the large room, it'll be fine.
> Since it's a bedroom I'm assuming there's a door and some wood trim in between,
> so it's not as if there's just a line where yellow becomes green.
Yes, it has a doorway (and door) which are slightly off-white (so are
the baseboards and ceilings in the bedroom, which I'll leave the same
color). The doorway has a thick trim all around, so there won't
really be a paint line there. As for the bathroom, there is a door
way but no door and no trim. I'll probably just do a sage and forest
ragging on the inside of the doorway so that it blends.
Thanks Holly!
kellie
HollyLewis
>the master bedroom) has gets the afternoon sun and we found that the
>dark taupe ragged walls have made it feel cooler in the afternoon,
>whereas our sun yellow rooms, on the east side of the house, feel
>warmer. Maybe it's the tone as well as the darkness?
>
It's the tone *rather than* the darkness. Taupe is much cooler (it has a lot
of grey in it) than yellow, which is the very definition of a "warm" color.
Green is a mix of yellow and blue, so it can work as either a warm or a cool
color, depending on the exact shade and how it's accessorized.
Sage is a really interesting color to me because it's also got the grey tones
in there, so there's this infinite variety of shades that can be called "sage".
You might be a lot happier with the sage in your bathroom if you chose
something with a bit more yellow or less grey in it.
>> You need more coats, but evenness isn't too much of a problem unless you're
>> using semigloss.
>
>So, would you suggest matte/flat instead? I generally do a satin,
>just for cleaning purposes.
>
Depends how fussy you want to be about the paint job. Satin will show roller
lap and touchups a lot more than flat will, but still much less than semigloss.
If it were Jenna's bedroom, cleanability would be more important and I'd go
with satin, but in the master bedroom, flat ought to be fine. Or ask for
'eggshell' which is in between flat and satin. (For this you probably have to
go to a real paint store.)
> In our last house, I did the master bedroom in a dark taupe sponge
>and noticing the patterns or uneven-ness of the paint application
>bugged me (and generally I'm not one to notice small details).
>
Whereas I *like* the way my eyes travel over my bedroom walls noticing
variations in the pattern (it's an orangey-gold color over a rather yellow
green, both sponged on, very diluted, over an offwhite base).
As for you not noticing small details -- yeah, right. ;-)
Holly
lissi
>
> Nope. Yellow and dark green are nice complementary colors, and with the
> lighter color in the hallway and darker in the large room, it'll be fine.
> Since it's a bedroom I'm assuming there's a door and some wood trim in
> between,
> so it's not as if there's just a line where yellow becomes green.
Actually, yellow and green are analogous colors (colors next to each other
on the color wheel). Complementary colors are those that are across from
each other on the color wheel (yellow and purple, green and red).
Lissi (Feeling like Hillary)
..
Lynn A.
> Cons:
> I've never done a room that dark before and am concerned that it will
> be *really* hard to paint over later
This is so true. When my mom lived here, her bedroom was a very
dark brown. (Don't ask, I don't know.) :) That was the first room we
painted. Even using 2 coats of Kilz and 2 thick coats of a light
robin's egg blue, the brown still managed to find its way through. I
recently repainted that room using a thickish coat of lilac latex paint
and that seems to have covered everything pretty well.
Lynn
lissi
> Our master bedroom is really starting to bug me. It's the only
> occupied room in the house that has yet to be painted, papered or
> decorated. I've been thinking about what I want in there for months,
> and as of yet, I haven't really had the inspiration "hit me". So
> today, I was straightening up the room and thought about doing dark
> green walls (more forest than hunter).
>
><snip pros and cons, etc>
Okay, a couple of things that I've learned in my years of studying color:
Since your bedroom and bathroom do not have a door between them (and even
if there was a door, in a master bedroom suite the bathroom door usually
stays open), the best way to blend with the color in there is to either use
a complimentary or analogous color (with green your analogous choices would
be yellow or blue, your complimentary choice is orange), or stay with green
and do a darker shade of the *same color* that is in the bathroom. Pick up
the color swatch card that you chose the sage green from and use a color
that is at least two colors below (darker than) the color that you used.
This way you are just using a different tone of the same color, and they're
guaranteed to blend.
Another idea, which I've seen and liked in model homes' bedrooms, is to
paint one wall a dark color as a focal point and paint the other walls a
neutral color. Looking at your pictures, I'd suggest the wall that your
headboard is on would be the best choice for the darker color. For the
lighter color you could use a variation of the off white that is your trim
and doors. I'm guessing that you want to keep the bedding that you have on
the bed in the pictures, but it was hard for me to tell exactly what colors
are in there. If you choose a dark green like I described above, you'll want
to make sure the bedding matches (or replace the bedding, but that's
expensive). I think I saw some red in the bedding, though, so you could
always pull that color out for the focal point wall, and it will look fine
with the green in the bathroom since it's complimentary. I'm not sure what
shade the yellow in your hall is, but most of the lighter yellows (like
butter) can be used as neutrals and will pretty much go with whatever is in
the next room (just be careful if you end up choosing another neutral for
the walls in the bedroom-- make sure the two colors look nice together). In
order to make the transition look purposeful, you can add the same yellow as
an accent in the bedroom with throw pillows or the like.
For the paint, I think you should go with satin. I don't think I'd use a
gloss in a bedroom, and flat paint marks too easily IMO. Realize you will
need *at least* three coats to make a dark color look even. If you are
planning to prime, you can have the primer tinted so you may only need two
coats on top of one coat of primer. It really depends on the paint, though,
and don't try to put it on too thick to get better coverage because you'll
end up with sagging paint. I had a friend who did that with a red wall, not
a good thing.
I could probably write a book on all this stuff, so I'm sorry if this is too
much information! Don't even get me started on the color scheme I devised
for my house, most of my friends go glassy-eyed when I explain it and then
say "Will you come and do my house?" I think it's fun as long as you're
willing to experiment, commit and go!
Lissi (getting the most use out of the color theory class I took in college)
..
HollyLewis
>on the color wheel). Complementary colors are those that are across from
>each other on the color wheel (yellow and purple, green and red).
>
>Lissi (Feeling like Hillary)
Analogous, huh? I'll remember that term. :-) I never did take any visual art
classes.
I meant "complementary" in the common-usage sense of "they go well together",
of course.
Holly
Hillary Israeli
lissi <li...@four-seven.com.xx> wrote:
*On 5/8/03 9:27 PM, "HollyLewis" wrote:
*>
*> Nope. Yellow and dark green are nice complementary colors, and with the
*> lighter color in the hallway and darker in the large room, it'll be fine.
*> Since it's a bedroom I'm assuming there's a door and some wood trim in
*> between,
*> so it's not as if there's just a line where yellow becomes green.
*
*Actually, yellow and green are analogous colors (colors next to each other
*on the color wheel). Complementary colors are those that are across from
*each other on the color wheel (yellow and purple, green and red).
*
*Lissi (Feeling like Hillary)
Oh boy. Am I that bad?
--
hillary israeli vmd http://www.hillary.net in...@hillary.net
"uber vaccae in quattuor partes divisum est."
newly minted veterinarian-at-large :)
Robin
> In <BAE155AE.19214%li...@four-seven.com.xx>,
> lissi <li...@four-seven.com.xx> wrote:
> *Actually, yellow and green are analogous colors (colors next to each other
> *on the color wheel). Complementary colors are those that are across from
> *each other on the color wheel (yellow and purple, green and red).
> *
> *Lissi (Feeling like Hillary)
>
> Oh boy. Am I that bad?
>
So, so, so much worse.
:D
--
Robin, who loves Hillary's long drawn out explanations because she
always learns something from them.
(Trying out a new email system. This address *does* (well, "should") work.)
Sarah
> I've seen several people here who have painted rooms dark burgundy or
> plum colors - how much harder is it than light paint? I'm imagining
> that getting the coats even is much harder. Also, the hallway leading
> into the room will be the same yellow as we painted the living and
> dining room - too weird to go from yellow to dark green?
If there's a door between the two (which there is, presumably, being a
bedroom?) it shouldn't be a problem in any case, but I think that yellow
and green would transition very nicely.
Our color flow is interesting. Our house is a standard 1 story, 3BR
1950s ranch. The hallway is the same dark green as the kitchen (there
was no good place to stop the color) and the three bedrooms which open
off it are now painted sage green, capuccino brown, and ocean blue.
Each has a different way of transitioning with the dark green, but I
think it looks nice. Of course, I'm probably biased because it's mine. :-)
FWIW, I haven't had any trouble with painting darker colors. I haven't
done the red in the living room yet -- that'll be the big experiment --
but the other colors went on very well. I find that the cutting in is a
little bit more annoying than with lighter colors, but I've not had to
put up any more than two coats anywhere (we actually managed to paint
the brown room with *one* coat -- I'm not sure how on earth DH managed
that) and it all looks very even and nice. We used satin paint; I've
had similar experiences in the past with eggshell (but I prefer the look
of satin).
Sarah
KellieGaines
> You might be a lot happier with the sage in your bathroom if you chose
> something with a bit more yellow or less grey in it.
You are right about that - I picked up a paint sample today (the kind
with 3-5 shades from light to dark) and the lighter sage color from
that sample I like much better than the current color of sage on the
walls. I think the current sage is too pastel-y, while this color
sage is a bit more blue/grey.
> Whereas I *like* the way my eyes travel over my bedroom walls noticing
> variations in the pattern (it's an orangey-gold color over a rather yellow
> green, both sponged on, very diluted, over an offwhite base).
Sounds like a very nice combination.
> As for you not noticing small details -- yeah, right. ;-)
Uh, in painting that is! I generally do not notice/am not bothered by
painting errors (which is why Mark is in charge of taping off).
kellie
Sarah
> holly...@aol.com (HollyLewis) wrote in message news:<20030509033641...@mb-m18.aol.com>...
>
>> You might be a lot happier with the sage in your bathroom if you chose
>>something with a bit more yellow or less grey in it.
>
>
> You are right about that - I picked up a paint sample today (the kind
> with 3-5 shades from light to dark) and the lighter sage color from
> that sample I like much better than the current color of sage on the
> walls. I think the current sage is too pastel-y, while this color
> sage is a bit more blue/grey.
IME, sage can be a difficult color to get right! In our last apartment,
we painted the bedroom walls sage (or at least, what I *thought* was
sage, from the paint chip) and they were *far* too mint-y and pastel-y.
I hated it but was too lazy (and cheap!) to try again to get it right.
This time around, I cheated -- I happened a friend who had just
repainted several rooms in her house, and asked her very nicely what the
name of the living room color was. :-) I put it on our bedroom walls
last night, and it's *perfect*. On the color chip, I thought it looked
far too olive-toned, but on the walls it's exactly what I wanted.
Sarah
KellieGaines
> stay with green
> and do a darker shade of the *same color* that is in the bathroom. Pick up
> the color swatch card that you chose the sage green from and use a color
> that is at least two colors below (darker than) the color that you used.
I think this is what I'll end up doing. I found a paint sample that I
really liked today - with the darkest green probably going on all of
the walls in the master bedroom, and the lightest green going for the
repainting of the master bedroom.
> Another idea, which I've seen and liked in model homes' bedrooms, is to
> paint one wall a dark color as a focal point and paint the other walls a
> neutral color.
You know, I like that on other people's walls but I think it would bug
me and eventually I'd paint the other walls to match the dark wall.
Besides, if it were only on the headboard wall, I'd never get to the
see it - and then I'm back to looking at neutral walls again =)
> If you choose a dark green like I described above, you'll want
> to make sure the bedding matches (or replace the bedding, but that's
> expensive). I think I saw some red in the bedding, though, so you could
> always pull that color out for the focal point wall, and it will look fine
> with the green in the bathroom since it's complimentary.
Yes, the bedding pattern has leaves which are very dark green and a
lighter sage green (it also has an rusty-burgundy, melon, dark
lavendar and a gold color, on an ivory background). I also like that
because it's a solid color, we could have a couple of different
comforters/quilts for different times of the year (ie, it's not
decorated to the bedding, which is what I was originally wanting to do
- but the bedding set is already 6.5 years old, and I don't want to
have to redecorate in 3-4 years when we replace it).
> For the paint, I think you should go with satin. I don't think I'd use a
> gloss in a bedroom, and flat paint marks too easily IMO. Realize you will
> need *at least* three coats to make a dark color look even. If you are
> planning to prime, you can have the primer tinted so you may only need two
> coats on top of one coat of primer.
What do you think about eggshell (as Holly mentioned in another post)?
Also, our walls are brand spanking new, and the current "paint" on
them is very thin. We've noticed in other rooms that the walls
literally soak up the paint. I've never used a primer before - do you
think it's necessary?
> I could probably write a book on all this stuff, so I'm sorry if this is too
> much information! Don't even get me started on the color scheme I devised
> for my house, most of my friends go glassy-eyed when I explain it and then
> say "Will you come and do my house?" I think it's fun as long as you're
> willing to experiment, commit and go!
Not at all! I love the information. Mark was pretty skeptical when I
told him about it last night but I'll do a wall first and see how we
like it before commiting to the whole room.
kellie
aMAZon
KellieGaines wrote:
> What do you think about eggshell (as Holly mentioned in another post)?
> Also, our walls are brand spanking new, and the current "paint" on
> them is very thin. We've noticed in other rooms that the walls
> literally soak up the paint. I've never used a primer before - do you
> think it's necessary?
Yes! It's cheaper for the walls to drink in the primer. IIRC, the
primer is less expensive than the paint is.
When I lived in an apartment, I was the second person in it. I lived
there for 13 years. Somewhere along the line, I thought I'd like to
paint it. What had been on the walls was very cheap, and it drank up
that primer like you wouldn't believe. It was easier to get the paint
on after the primer dried, too.
When I was a kid, our back porch was done in a battleship gray. I suspect
it may have been military surplus -- many of the porches/basements in
our area were done up similarly.
--
aMAZon
zeszutko at nycap.rr.com
"It's never too late to have a happy childhood."
HollyLewis
>them is very thin. We've noticed in other rooms that the walls
>literally soak up the paint. I've never used a primer before - do you
>think it's necessary?
>
If your walls are still soaking up the paint, yes, use a primer. It will
definitely help reduce the number of coats of finish paint you need *and*
improve the evenness.
Painting on the primer is just like painting with regular paint, really. You
don't need a fancy oil-based primer for this purpose, just a standard latex or
acrylic primer. (Acrylic will be a little harder to clean but is still water
soluable, and it's a bit more effective.) For a dark final color, getting the
primer tinted is a big help. I've done it both ways and it really does make a
difference -- and it makes later scratches and dings much less obvious, because
you've got just got a slighly lighter shade showing through rather than bright
white!
Holly
Puester
>
>
> IME, sage can be a difficult color to get right! In our last apartment,
> we painted the bedroom walls sage (or at least, what I *thought* was
> sage, from the paint chip) and they were *far* too mint-y and pastel-y.
> I hated it but was too lazy (and cheap!) to try again to get it right.
> This time around, I cheated -- I happened a friend who had just
> repainted several rooms in her house, and asked her very nicely what the
> name of the living room color was. :-) I put it on our bedroom walls
> last night, and it's *perfect*. On the color chip, I thought it looked
> far too olive-toned, but on the walls it's exactly what I wanted.
>
Okay, what color WAS it? We painted our kitchen cabinets what
looked like sage on the chip but it turned out to be a really
pukey yellowed green. It needed to be alot more grey. I've gotten
used to it, but I hated it the first few months.
gloria p
who's campaigning for a kitchen remodel
Sarah
> Sarah wrote:
>
>>
>>IME, sage can be a difficult color to get right! In our last apartment,
>>we painted the bedroom walls sage (or at least, what I *thought* was
>>sage, from the paint chip) and they were *far* too mint-y and pastel-y.
>> I hated it but was too lazy (and cheap!) to try again to get it right.
>> This time around, I cheated -- I happened a friend who had just
>>repainted several rooms in her house, and asked her very nicely what the
>>name of the living room color was. :-) I put it on our bedroom walls
>>last night, and it's *perfect*. On the color chip, I thought it looked
>>far too olive-toned, but on the walls it's exactly what I wanted.
>>
>
>
> Okay, what color WAS it?
It's Behr "Laurel Mist," I think, or something like that -- it's on the
same color chip as "Mystic Seaport" but the shade darker.
> We painted our kitchen cabinets what
> looked like sage on the chip but it turned out to be a really
> pukey yellowed green. It needed to be alot more grey. I've gotten
> used to it, but I hated it the first few months.
I can't decide whether this one has a slight yellow hue to it or not.
The room is on the north side of the house so it doesn't get much light
during the day, and we only have one poor-quality light in there at the
moment so it's hard to tell. I know I like it, though. :-)
Sarah
Krista W.
>
> Cons:
> I've never done a room that dark before and am concerned that it will
> be *really* hard to paint over later
Probably, but if you like the walls for all that time, I would
consider the extra work not too big a deal.
We just moved into our first house, and painted our master bedroom
cobalt blue - no, we're not afraid of color at all ;) - with white
trim. We did get a tinted primer, and it helped a lot. We would have
needed at least three coats otherwise. I prefer the satin finish,
myself, but hubby bought all eggshell and it's not bad either.
I will say that we used Behr paint and found it VERY hard to work with
(not to mention clean!), so if you can use another base paint for your
custom mix (we like Glidden Ultra-hide) I would highly recommend it.
As for the should you paint dark green - SURE, go for it! I think a
dark green bedroom would be rather inviting, in a snuggly sort of way.
Good luck!
Krista in Delaware
juniper
> gain...@juno.com (KellieGaines) wrote in message:
>
>
>>Cons:
>>I've never done a room that dark before and am concerned that it will
>>be *really* hard to paint over later
>
>
>
> Probably, but if you like the walls for all that time, I would
> consider the extra work not too big a deal.
>
> We just moved into our first house, and painted our master bedroom
> cobalt blue - no, we're not afraid of color at all ;) - with white
> trim. We did get a tinted primer, and it helped a lot. We would have
> needed at least three coats otherwise. I prefer the satin finish,
> myself, but hubby bought all eggshell and it's not bad either.
Hey! This is what our bedroom is...maybe a touch lighter than cobalt,
but a dark blue! We didn't do a tinted primer though...the walls were
lilac from a paint job I did four years before. I love our room color!
We only used one can as well...the second can ended up on the sprout's
room ceiling. We're going to paint white stars on that. (the walls are
bright yellow in there).
> I will say that we used Behr paint and found it VERY hard to work with
> (not to mention clean!), so if you can use another base paint for your
> custom mix (we like Glidden Ultra-hide) I would highly recommend it.
I think we may have used Behr as well.
>
> Krista in Delaware
- Jennifer in Delaware
Sarah
> I will say that we used Behr paint and found it VERY hard to work with
> (not to mention clean!), so if you can use another base paint for your
> custom mix (we like Glidden Ultra-hide) I would highly recommend it.
It's always interesting how different people's experiences are! We used
Behr paint, mostly, and found it much easier to work with than the two
cans of Glidden we went through. :-)
Sarah
Lynn A.
> When I was a kid, our back porch was done in a battleship gray. I suspect
> it may have been military surplus -- many of the porches/basements in
> our area were done up similarly.
Yup, a lot of our basement here was battleship gray and my dad said
that's exactly what it was, military surplus.
Lynn
Krista W.
> > We just moved into our first house, and painted our master bedroom
> > cobalt blue - no, we're not afraid of color at all ;) - with white
> > trim. We did get a tinted primer, and it helped a lot. We would have
> > needed at least three coats otherwise. I prefer the satin finish,
> > myself, but hubby bought all eggshell and it's not bad either.
>
> Hey! This is what our bedroom is...maybe a touch lighter than cobalt,
> but a dark blue! We didn't do a tinted primer though...the walls were
> lilac from a paint job I did four years before. I love our room color!
Is this another reason why we are AN twins?? ;-) Our guest room is
lilac, btw.
>
> We only used one can as well...the second can ended up on the sprout's
> room ceiling. We're going to paint white stars on that. (the walls are
> bright yellow in there).
>
Well, I can't say I'm doing that, but it sounds cute! We're going w/
light blue - I read somewhere that blue is soothing so I wanted to use
that.
I just love love love having my own house and being able to paint
rooms whatever I want!
Krista in Delaware
juniper
> juniper <juniperjun...@hotmail.com> wrote in message
>>Hey! This is what our bedroom is...maybe a touch lighter than cobalt,
>>but a dark blue! We didn't do a tinted primer though...the walls were
>>lilac from a paint job I did four years before. I love our room color!
>
>
> Is this another reason why we are AN twins?? ;-) Our guest room is
> lilac, btw.
Funny! DH *hated* the lilac, so that's why we got rid of it. My
parents just had their house repainted, and they went with a lilac
bedroom -- we all knew DH wouldn't like it :-)
>
>
>
>>We only used one can as well...the second can ended up on the sprout's
>>room ceiling. We're going to paint white stars on that. (the walls are
>>bright yellow in there).
>>
>
>
> Well, I can't say I'm doing that, but it sounds cute! We're going w/
> light blue - I read somewhere that blue is soothing so I wanted to use
> that.
I love cool colors on walls, and if our hallway and living room wasn't
light blue, I might have chosen that. The bedrooms are all brighter
than the rest of the house - the kitchen is a light yellow (albeit with
a cobalt blue floor and white cabinets), the living room is light blue,
but the bedrooms/study are bright green, deep blue and bright yellow. I
definitely got gutsier with my paint colors when DH moved in...I had
painted the lighter colors before he moved in.
> I just love love love having my own house and being able to paint
> rooms whatever I want!
Me too! I'd go nuts with all white walls. The sprout's room is the
first time we're not painting the ceiling white, though, so that's a bit
of a departure...
HollyLewis
>light blue, I might have chosen that. The bedrooms are all brighter
>than the rest of the house
I tend to prefer warmer colors, actually, but it depends on the room. We ended
up with a bit bluer green in our main rooms than I would have thought, but I
really like it. For bedrooms though I really prefer warm colors. Our bedroom
is a very yellow green and orangey-gold, and DS' bedroom is a golden apricot.
- the kitchen is a light yellow (albeit with
>a cobalt blue floor and white cabinets), the living room is light
That sounds totally fabulous. Is the floor tiled, or what? I've seen cobalt
cabinets before but never a cobalt floor.
(Our kitchen is robin's egg blue walls and ceiling, with golden oak cabinets,
white tile countertops and ugly orangey-brown tile floor. With yellow and
"Kermit green" used as an accent color in things like dishtowels.)
Holly
juniper
> I tend to prefer warmer colors, actually, but it depends on the room. We ended
> up with a bit bluer green in our main rooms than I would have thought, but I
> really like it. For bedrooms though I really prefer warm colors. Our bedroom
> is a very yellow green and orangey-gold, and DS' bedroom is a golden apricot.
We were going to do the study in orange, but I chickened out...so the
green is sort of kermit the frog, but brighter ("Garden party," not that
that means anything...)
> - the kitchen is a light yellow (albeit with
>
>>a cobalt blue floor and white cabinets), the living room is light
>
>
> That sounds totally fabulous. Is the floor tiled, or what? I've seen cobalt
> cabinets before but never a cobalt floor.
It's composite vinyl -- so it's tiled, but not hard like ceramic tile,
and not like regular vinyl. It was one of the special order colors.
>
> (Our kitchen is robin's egg blue walls and ceiling, with golden oak cabinets,
> white tile countertops and ugly orangey-brown tile floor. With yellow and
> "Kermit green" used as an accent color in things like dishtowels.)
Sounds pretty!
- Jennifer from Delaware
> Holly
Krista W.
> Funny! DH *hated* the lilac, so that's why we got rid of it. My
> parents just had their house repainted, and they went with a lilac
> bedroom -- we all knew DH wouldn't like it :-)
>
Ironicially, it was DH who chose the lilac color. We'd initially
selected a spring green, which looked great on the paint card, but on
the wall (we tested) it looked like a leprechaun exploded! We both
hated it. So instead of a lighter shade of green (what I wanted), I
just said screw it and let him pick. He chose well.
>
The bedrooms are all brighter than the rest of the house - the kitchen
is a light yellow (albeit with a cobalt blue floor and white
cabinets),
Drool! I would love that combination! Ours will end up being
black/white/grey when we are done with it. The kitchen is mostly DH's
domain, so he can choose his own colors.
>the living room is light blue, but the bedrooms/study are bright
green, deep blue and bright yellow.
Our living room is a nice cocoa brown, dining room a light yellow (I
was going for champagne, and this was pretty close), and our family
room is white. The family room sounds boring, but there's a lot of
exposed woodwork down there that we really like and I couldn't think
of another color that would maintain the rustic "feel" of the room, so
it works for us.
>
> > I just love love love having my own house and being able to paint
> > rooms whatever I want!
>
> Me too! I'd go nuts with all white walls. The sprout's room is the
> first time we're not painting the ceiling white, though, so that's a bit
> of a departure...
I've been living in apartments for so long that I am not surprised I'm
paint-happy now that I'm a homeowner! I'm surprised, a little, that
all ceilings are turning out white, but I guess I'm not that daring
yet, even in the Bean's room.
Krista in Delaware
Krista W.
>
> It's always interesting how different people's experiences are! We used
> Behr paint, mostly, and found it much easier to work with than the two
> cans of Glidden we went through. :-)
>
> Sarah
Well, I will say that we used two different kinds of Glidden. One was
"ultra-hide" and the other was just a normal Glidden. We really liked
the ultrahide (found that it covered nicely AND was the least
expensive), but the other normal stuff was just... meh.
I do wonder if the color had anything to do with the Behr being so
difficult to work with for us, considering the reputation that
dark/bright colors have for beign difficult. Maybe the extra pigment
makes a difference?
Krista in Delaware
Sarah
I think it must. Having said what I did above, we just (last night)
painted the living room bright red (we were going for cranberry; it's
more red-red than that, but oh well). We really like the color, but the
paint itself (the same exact Behr we used elsewhere in the house, just a
different color) was horrible to work with -- very streaky, drippy, and
hard to apply evenly, even after multiple coats. I don't think we're
going to be able to even it out, so now I'm looking into doing a dark
glaze over the paint to antique it/give it texture. Right now, it looks
like a bad paint job.
Weird.
Sarah
HollyLewis
>room is white. The family room sounds boring, but there's a lot of
>exposed woodwork down there that we really like and I couldn't think
>of another color that would maintain the rustic "feel" of the room, so
>it works for us.
Terra cotta. :-)
> I'm surprised, a little, that
>all ceilings are turning out white, but I guess I'm not that daring
>yet, even in the Bean's room.
>
I've never really understood white ceilings with colored walls. Maybe it's
just what you're used to, but to me the "standard" is to have the ceilings be
the same color as the walls, but often a shade or two lighter.
The only places we have the ceiling a different color from the walls are in the
office, where there was existing white acoustic tile on the ceiling that I
wasn't sure how to deal with (we'd've liked to take it down, but didn't have
time for that involved a project before we moved in), and in DS' room! Which
has crown molding. And the ceiling isn't actually white, it's white tinted
with a significant amount of the wall color, so it's apricot walls, white-white
crown molding, apricot-tinted off white ceiling.
So I guess for me the distinguishing feature of white ceilinged rooms is that
the ceiling is a different material or has some other type of definite
separations from the walls. In your ordinary sheetrocked room with no crown
molding, I'll always paint the ceiling the same as the walls.
Holly
Shelly Wruck
"HollyLewis" <holly...@aol.com> wrote in message
news:20030512145252...@mb-m05.aol.com...
> So I guess for me the distinguishing feature of white ceilinged rooms is
that
> the ceiling is a different material or has some other type of definite
> separations from the walls. In your ordinary sheetrocked room with no
crown
> molding, I'll always paint the ceiling the same as the walls.
Yeah. I just don't have the patience to tape off the ceiling - I won't even
bother with a lighter version of the wall color on the ceiling. Our only
white ceilings are the weird tiles in the den/office (we're not sure what
they are - the surface is almost vinyl-y), and the stucco ceiling in the
dining room. Everything else was painted the same color as the walls.
Shelly
Hillary Israeli
HollyLewis <holly...@aol.com> wrote:
*
*I've never really understood white ceilings with colored walls. Maybe it's
*just what you're used to, but to me the "standard" is to have the ceilings be
*the same color as the walls, but often a shade or two lighter.
Yep, that's exactly what we've always had! Except in Jacob and Naomi's
rooms, the paint is light enough that the ceiling isn't lighter, it's the
same. Well, wait - I think in Jacob's it is lighter, but in Naomi's, it's
the same.
h.
--
hillary israeli vmd http://www.hillary.net in...@hillary.net
"uber vaccae in quattuor partes divisum est."
not-so-newly minted veterinarian-at-large :)
Sarah
> In <20030512145252...@mb-m05.aol.com>,
> HollyLewis <holly...@aol.com> wrote:
> *
> *I've never really understood white ceilings with colored walls. Maybe it's
> *just what you're used to, but to me the "standard" is to have the ceilings be
> *the same color as the walls, but often a shade or two lighter.
>
> Yep, that's exactly what we've always had!
Whereas I don't think I have ever even *seen* a colored ceiling in
person! (Unless some of Leslie's ceilings were colored?) Nor would I
be inclined to do it myself.
Sarah, who has all white ceilings
Hillary Israeli
Hillary Israeli <hil...@hillary.net> wrote:
*In <20030512145252...@mb-m05.aol.com>,
*HollyLewis <holly...@aol.com> wrote:
**
**I've never really understood white ceilings with colored walls. Maybe it's
**just what you're used to, but to me the "standard" is to have the ceilings be
**the same color as the walls, but often a shade or two lighter.
*
*Yep, that's exactly what we've always had! Except in Jacob and Naomi's
*rooms, the paint is light enough that the ceiling isn't lighter, it's the
*same. Well, wait - I think in Jacob's it is lighter, but in Naomi's, it's
*the same.
/me smacks self in head.
Naomi's walls are green, ceiling is lavender to match the door and
baseboard molding.
KellieGaines
> > HollyLewis <holly...@aol.com> wrote:
> > *
> > *I've never really understood white ceilings with colored walls. Maybe it's
> > *just what you're used to, but to me the "standard" is to have the ceilings be
> > *the same color as the walls, but often a shade or two lighter.
Jen's room was the first ceiling that I've ever painted, and that's
only because I really wanted clouds, stars, etc... so it was natural
to use the pale periwinkle blue as the base for that.
In the other rooms, the ceiling is either too high (and we wanted the
contrast, with the yellow) or the paint is too dark (and we used the
white ceiling so avoid making the room seem smaller/lower). We may
paint the ceiling in the family room an offwhite, since that's the
glaze that we used over the taupe - but I wanted to wait until after
the ceiling fan is installed since that may involve drywall repair =P
And *another* decorating question! Yesterday we decided that we
really do want to take out the carpet in Jen's room and do
Pergo/laminate there (we wanted Pergo from the start but it was too
expensive to do the whole house - it dawned on us that we could just
do it a room at a time). Anyway, has anyone installed their own
laminate flooring? We are looking at the snap and lock kind vs. the
gluing down kind. How hard is it to do? How much time does it take?
Any recommendations on brands (we've looked at Pergo, Armstrong and
one other one)? If it makes any difference, the room is practically
square - no weird angles or anything, other than the closet.
kellie
b
news:b5a34900.03051...@posting.google.com:
> And *another* decorating question! Yesterday we decided that we
> really do want to take out the carpet in Jen's room and do
> Pergo/laminate there (we wanted Pergo from the start but it was too
> expensive to do the whole house - it dawned on us that we could just
> do it a room at a time). Anyway, has anyone installed their own
> laminate flooring? We are looking at the snap and lock kind vs. the
> gluing down kind. How hard is it to do? How much time does it take?
> Any recommendations on brands (we've looked at Pergo, Armstrong and
> one other one)? If it makes any difference, the room is practically
> square - no weird angles or anything, other than the closet.
We haven't installed it yet, but we're looking at laminate for our front
room. Co-workers who have installed it told us it's pretty easy and that a
pair of people who know what they're doing can do a medium sized room in a
day. (We're figuring a whole long weekend for people who don't know what
they're doing!).
DH saw a snap together hardwood with pre-applied glue that 'activates on
contact' at Home Depot yesterday and wants me to consider that instead. I
haven't seen it yet, but he said it's about $4/square foot rather than the
$2.50ish we've seen on the lower end laminates. Another option to think
about...
-Bridget
Leslie Deak
> If there's a door between the two (which there is, presumably, being a
> bedroom?) it shouldn't be a problem in any case, but I think that yellow
> and green would transition very nicely.
Ahem. Yes, yellow and green transition QUITE nicely. As do blue and green,
lilac and green, and grayish blue and green. The pink and green isn't so
great. But then again, neither is the pink. (I CHOSE to paint a room pink?
Was I drunk?) Even the green to harvest gold is pretty nice. And the harvest
gold to party time red is great!
-Leslie
Leslie Deak
> Whereas I don't think I have ever even *seen* a colored ceiling in
> person! (Unless some of Leslie's ceilings were colored?) Nor would I
> be inclined to do it myself.
The old house, where we had the ceiling fan put in. We redid the walls in a
medium blue, left the crown moulding white, and painted the ceiling a light
blue. I will never paint a ceiling again, if I can help it. All the ceilings
in the TH have flat off-white (shell) paint. The paint job is a year old,
and it looks fine. I'm sure we'd have to hire someone to do the vaulted
entryway. I also find that painted ceilings often make a room feel smaller.
-Leslie
Puester
KellieGaines wrote:
>
>
> And *another* decorating question! Yesterday we decided that we
> really do want to take out the carpet in Jen's room and do
> Pergo/laminate there (we wanted Pergo from the start but it was too
> expensive to do the whole house - it dawned on us that we could just
> do it a room at a time). Anyway, has anyone installed their own
> laminate flooring? We are looking at the snap and lock kind vs. the
> gluing down kind. How hard is it to do? How much time does it take?
> Any recommendations on brands (we've looked at Pergo, Armstrong and
> one other one)? If it makes any difference, the room is practically
> square - no weird angles or anything, other than the closet.
Kellie:
Martha and Kurt just did their kitchen floor as part of a
general remodel. Halfway through the remodel they decided
to move here so they did the floor in a laminate instead of
the bamboo they had wanted. They did not use Pergo, but a
comparable type they found in a local flooring shop. It
was all lock together then a border to lock everything in place.
They were very happy with the results and ease of installation
of the floor and the Ikea cabinets they chose. Kurt said if
he had any idea it would be so easy they would have done it
long ago.
I'm sure she would be happy to share the information with you
if you call or email her.
(email address and phone number snipped)
Best,
gloria p
Buzzy Bee
wrote:
but then again I might just have mucked up the snipping as usual!
>We haven't installed it yet, but we're looking at laminate for our front
>room. Co-workers who have installed it told us it's pretty easy and that a
>pair of people who know what they're doing can do a medium sized room in a
>day. (We're figuring a whole long weekend for people who don't know what
>they're doing!).
We put it down here when we moved in and did it all ourselves. The
rooms are slightly awkward because of the construction of the building
(there are pillars in the corners of the room and one a couple of feet
into the living room in one corner. The odd shapes made it a bit
difficult.
The one room we have had real problems with is the hall, which has 6
doors in a smallish room. We get a bit of a problem with movement
there, but it was also the first room we did and we didn't do a great
job of it. If you have a room like that I would recommend gluing even
if the system is supposedly glueless! DH plans on taking it up and
re-laying it over the summer.
We got pretty good at it pretty quickly and in fact I managed to do
the small bedroom pretty much on my own (DH helped with the last row,
because we needed to cut planks lengthwise and that needs two people).
We used a hand saw and a jigsaw and that was all, but better power
tools would probably make it easier!
>DH saw a snap together hardwood with pre-applied glue that 'activates on
>contact' at Home Depot yesterday and wants me to consider that instead. I
>haven't seen it yet, but he said it's about $4/square foot rather than the
>$2.50ish we've seen on the lower end laminates. Another option to think
>about...
Probably nicer and you've less chance of delamination with big spills
and stuff. Our laminate is still looking fine after 3 years, there
are a few boards with chips at corners but its not hugely noticeable.
For what it cost, its good value. Sure an expensive carpet would last
a lot longer, but a carpet at the price we paid for the laminate would
need replacing by now I suspect. It was a very cheap way to put nice
looking flooring down (and thats what we needed to do when we got this
place: it had ageing black lino tiles in all the rooms).
Megan
--
Megan
To e-mail use: megan at farr dash montgomery dot com
san...@socrates.berkeley.edu
KellieGaines <gain...@juno.com> wrote:
>And *another* decorating question! Yesterday we decided that we
>really do want to take out the carpet in Jen's room and do
>Pergo/laminate there (we wanted Pergo from the start but it was too
>expensive to do the whole house - it dawned on us that we could just
>do it a room at a time). Anyway, has anyone installed their own
>laminate flooring? We are looking at the snap and lock kind vs. the
>gluing down kind. How hard is it to do? How much time does it take?
we thought about it, and then decided that since a bad installation
would be so hard to undo (not to mention expensive) that it was
worth it to pay for someone who'd already learned from their
mistakes.
We paid $1200 for installation on our kitchen, and another $600 for
the materials. Our kitchen is approximately 10'x12', with a pantry
area another 3'x4'. There were plenty of cuts to make, and corners
to accommodate. He worked *steadily* from 8 am to 4:30 pm, no
lunch.
I have to say - we've since advised DH's bro to have it
installed by a professional - our installation looks great,
and 8 months after installation, we don't mind that we paid
the $1200 - we're just thrilled with its look and its precision.
>Any recommendations on brands (we've looked at Pergo, Armstrong and
>one other one)? If it makes any difference, the room is practically
>square - no weird angles or anything, other than the closet.
We were told that Wilsonart is the brand to get, for 2 reasons.
1) It's laminated on both top and bottom, and thus withstands
water better should there be a faucet or bathroom flood.
2) The edging pieces (which is where a lot of the structural
integrity and strength come from) are thicker, and thus withstands
being trod on more durably.
We got the "Northern Birch" color for our kitchen, and it looks
terrific against the white cabinets. :^)
Sandi
Mieko
>Jen's room was the first ceiling that I've ever painted, and that's
>only because I really wanted clouds, stars, etc... so it was natural
>to use the pale periwinkle blue as the base for that.
I guess most people don't have popcorn acoustical ceiling like I do.
>do it a room at a time). Anyway, has anyone installed their own
>laminate flooring? We are looking at the snap and lock kind vs. the
>gluing down kind. How hard is it to do? How much time does it take?
>Any recommendations on brands (we've looked at Pergo, Armstrong and
>one other one)? If it makes any difference, the room is practically
>square - no weird angles or anything, other than the closet.
I did my 600+ square foot loft 4 years ago, and it was a pain. But it was
before the locking ones, and we had to glue it all. Since they didn't lock
into place, you've got to make sure you tighten them down a lot so there's no
cracks. We spend 14 hours the first day, and 10 hours the next.
I would think the non-glue ones would be a LOT easier. If you're perfectly
square it's not too bad, but anything more than straight cuts gets a lot more
difficult. I'd also recommend to get a table saw, as it's much easier to make
straight cuts. Some smaller saws or a dremel would probably help with strange
spaces.
I think my MIL just did some of the locking ones in my BIL's house. Let me
know if you have any other questions.
Mieko
TaraW
>From: holly...@aol.com (HollyLewis)
>Date: 5/12/2003 2:52 PM Eastern Daylight Time
>Message-id: <20030512145252...@mb-m05.aol.com>
>
>> I'm surprised, a little, that
>>all ceilings are turning out white, but I guess I'm not that daring
>>yet, even in the Bean's room.
>>
>
>I've never really understood white ceilings with colored walls. Maybe it's
>just what you're used to, but to me the "standard" is to have the ceilings be
>the same color as the walls, but often a shade or two lighter.
So what would you do in a dining room that was a dark, dark red (Behr Opera
House, though I'm not sure they make it anymore) but had a lot of white
woodwork -- white crown molding, wide (like 6") trim and molding on the
doorways and two sets of windows, a white built-in corner china cabinet? A
shade or two lighter would still be very, very red and going much lighter would
mean a pink ceiling. I actually think the white looks good here, especially
because of the amount of white painted woodwork, but I'm always open to new
ideas...
-TaraW
Jen in South Florida
>
> I guess most people don't have popcorn acoustical ceiling like I do.
>
We do. In every room except the master bath. Which is painted a
very light yellow to match the walls.
Jen
HollyLewis
>House, though I'm not sure they make it anymore) but had a lot of white
>woodwork -- white crown molding, wide (like 6") trim and molding on the
>doorways and two sets of windows, a white built-in corner china cabinet? A
>shade or two lighter would still be very, very red and going much lighter
>would
>mean a pink ceiling. I actually think the white looks good here, especially
>because of the amount of white painted woodwork, but I'm always open to new
>ideas...
>
>-TaraW
In that situation, where there's a crown molding to separate the vastly
different colors and there's a lot of other white in the room, painting the
ceiling white to match the white trim and cabinet makes sense.
But I could also see it being done in dark red, with dark stained wood trim,
which is a look that *I* would find more appealing (if I liked red, that is!).
Or, for the more adventurous, in plum, or gold, or grey, or some other non-red
medium-to-dark color. With a really incredible chandelier light fixture. :-)
Holly
Jan A Cordes
> Ahem. Yes, yellow and green transition QUITE nicely. As do blue and green,
> lilac and green, and grayish blue and green. The pink and green isn't so
> great. But then again, neither is the pink. (I CHOSE to paint a room pink?
> Was I drunk?) Even the green to harvest gold is pretty nice. And the harvest
> gold to party time red is great!
> -Leslie
I CHOSE to paint a room twilight mauve. It looked more lavendery on
the card. In the room it looks more pink. But, its not too bad. I
like it and I'm not a huge fan of pink. It's my office. I'm in here
all the time. I guess the color just sort of grew on me. It does
sort of go with all the Mary Kay stuff on the shelves. :^)
Jan
--
jan(at)panix.com http://www.couchtigers.com
..................................................................
Silicon Valley Friends of Ferals : CAT: A pigmy lion that loves
http://www.svff.org : mice, hates dogs, and
Mary Kay Cosmetics, Inc. : patronizes human beings.
http://www.marykay.com/jcordes : --Oliver Herford
..................................:...............................
TaraW
>Message-id: <20030513174153...@mb-m01.aol.com>
I considered plum and still really want a room that color, but thought it would
be too jarring with the rest of the first level, especially since it's an small
house. But, eventually I'll want to change it *and* other colors on the first
level, and since I'll probably want to stick with a dark color, I might get my
plum after all. :)
-TaraW
joyeux
> In that situation, where there's a crown molding to separate the vastly
> different colors and there's a lot of other white in the room, painting
the
> ceiling white to match the white trim and cabinet makes sense.
>
> But I could also see it being done in dark red, with dark stained wood
trim,
> which is a look that *I* would find more appealing (if I liked red, that
is!).
> Or, for the more adventurous, in plum, or gold, or grey, or some other
non-red
> medium-to-dark color. With a really incredible chandelier light fixture.
:-)
>
> Holly
Oh...my...goodness!! You have the adventure and guts that I've never had!!
When we moved into our house, I couldn't think of a single home I'd been in
(family, of course) that had colored walls, so purchasing yellow for the
dining room was a frightening thing. When Shawn hinted at red for the
living room, I laughed at him.
I've gotten a little better. Did the upstairs bedroom in purple and the
hall in soft blue (which is actually more aqua than I prefer, but too lazy &
broke to change things). I cannot imagine ever having the nerve to do my
ceiling one of the above colors!!
Full of admiration for Holly!
Joy