One of the obstacles I’ve been trying to overcome with our new home is the lack of personality it has. Our home is only ten years old and it almost has a dated feeling to it- as in 80s, early 90s kind of style. One of the first ways that all homeowners can give their house feeling is to paint! And I’m doing that…in just about every room. Our house has been put on a diet. Right now, it has definitely been overindulging in the heavy cream. While I love the color of cream, I don’t love it from floor to ceiling, on all three floors. Thus the painting has been begun and while soon I may not be able to type my blog at all because of the carpal tunnel in my wrists from holding a paintbrush, let me share with you how I chose the first of my paint colors. I think it is almost criminal in this day and age for anyone to have bad taste. With H&G TV, Pinterest and Better Homes and Gardens magazine, there is no excuse. Find a picture that makes sense to you and your home and start there. Be a copycat. It is the sincerest form of flattery. Here is the source of my inspiration for my first paint color choice-
Image courtesy of PotteryBarn
This is the wall color I chose for my foyer. And here is the rational behind it.
First, we have an open staircase in our foyer that is really the highlight of the home. Right now it is all oak and with heavy cream walls behind it, it looks so very builder-grade. But I have plans for that open staircase (for a future post) and therefore when I saw this picture, I knew that the colors of that office desk would eventually be the colors of my staircase. And I really enjoyed how well they went with the wall color.
Secondly, the foyer is a south facing room and it gets a bunch of light. And while I don’t want a house full of dark colors,* I knew I could afford to use a dark color with this lighting.
Lastly, I enjoy drama. Definitely not the personal kind, but in a home. Every room needs a bit of showiness and when the best feature of your home is the staircase, this is the place for drama.
All of that equalled painting my foyer this splendid dark khaki, almost moss color from Benjamin Moore-
Kingsport Gray
So without further adieu, here are the results.
Before-
After-
This is just the start. Hopefully this house can learn to live with only a dollop of cream…
And a big thank you to my sister for help with the painting!
*with exception to small windowless places where it makes sense to use dark colors
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