On the tenth day of Christmas, my favorite thing to share - paint!
Paint is the easiest and least expensive way of transforming a room. If you have white walls - shame on you! Get some color on them....I don't even mean that they need to be vibrant colors. Just by changing your walls from white to a soft warm taupe or a cool gray can make a world of difference. Your artwork, furniture, and windows will pop! Let me also take this opportunity for a little public service announcement - stop painting accent walls!! People have taken what they've watched on HGTV way too far. In general, if you have a space that is all open (open floor plan where you can see living, dining, kitchen, etc. from one viewpoint) those walls should all be the same color. By painting all of those walls different colors, it makes your open space look busy and chopped up. So simplify, pick one. Please.
Now back to my favorite thing of the day......
While it's impossible for me to pick a favorite paint color, I will share with you the paint colors in my own home. All are
Sherwin Williams, all walls are satin finish, and all trim is semi-gloss finish (my general rule of thumb).
SW6126 Navajo White - all of my trim, kitchen ceiling (it's planked), and the master bathroom walls. This is a slightly creamy white, not so stark.
SW6211 Rainwashed - my living room and hallway....and might soon be the guest bathroom ceiling. I love this color. I picked it out about 6 or 7 years ago before the whole blue and brown craze got going. I really thought I'd tire of it by now, but the beauty of this specific color is that sometimes it looks blue, sometimes green, and sometimes even gray depending on the lighting and time of day.
SW6408 Wheat Grass - my kitchen, dining, and master bedroom walls. This color is not for everyone...in fact some might describe it as slightly pea green. I however love it.
SW6127 Ivoire - my son's bedroom walls, guest bath walls, and kitchen cabinets. If I had a favorite color, this might be it. This color, depending on its environment, turns either tan or yellow. In my kitchen, it looks creamy yellow. In my son's room, it definitely looks tan. This is a really versatile color and if you're scared of changing from white walls to something bold, this might be your answer. This color looks great with almost every color family.
One more PSA...don't try to color match one brand for another. Pick from the company you plan to buy. It might be close, but it will not be exact. Different companies use different pigmentation to arrive at their colors.
And sometimes the decision to color match can be deadly. Don't risk a re-paint!
Paint is something that really does dramatically change a space. But it can be very tricky to an untrained eye. Probably 50% of first time calls that I get stem from a person getting stuck or frustrated with selecting the appropriate paint color. Please don't be afraid to ask a professional designer for help - we want to!
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