Things I Love!

Yes, it's time for another installment of, "Things I Love!"  I just mentioned in my earlier post that I wanted to paint my master bedroom walls a dark chocolate.  That color is still a possibility, but when I look at this photo of the master bedroom walls painted light blue, I really love it!  I can picture my bedroom painted this color.

Here's another bedroom painted light blue.  I love this space also!  I really love the beams in this room.

Oh my, there are so many colors and so few walls to paint them on....

Sweater Weather!!

It's still winter so sweaters are a much needed items for the season.  In addition to wearing sweaters, you can also accessorize your decor with sweaters.  Sweater pillows are a great way to winterize your decor.  You can purchase sweater pillows, or you can use old sweaters to make your own.  I purchased my sweater pillows at Target about 2 years ago.

Sweater pillows on my sofa.

Another example of sweater pillows.

You can also use sweaters to decorate candle holders, lamp shades, and ottomans:

Once the season changes to spring, it's time to put away the sweaters and  bring out the spring frocks!

Potential Projects for 2014

Now that Christmas is over and my decor has gone back to a less festive look, I've been thinking about what kind of changes I can make to my spaces.  It's funny, some people can paint a space, put furniture in it, and keep that look FOREVER!!  Not me.  I like change.  Even if it's a small change, I think it refreshes my decor.

At the top of my list for 2014 is:

• Paint kitchen cabinets.  Right now, my cabinets are painted an off white color--SW Divine White.  After 8 years, my cabinets are showing a little wear.  I have a few ideas in mind.  I had a company (Angelfish) come out about a year ago to give me some ideas.  Angelfish can actually make my cabinets look like stained wood.  But, I don't know if I want that look.  My backsplash is brown and my granite has a lot of brown flecks in it, so I think I may want to introduce a color onto my cabinets.  What color, I don't know, but I have been kicking around the idea of something in the green family.

Current look of my kitchen cabinets.

Kitchen cabinets done by Angelfish--used to be off white.

• Re-decorate my powder bath.  In 2005, I rag painted the walls in my powder bath.  Faux finishing was all the rave and I happily jumped on the bandwagon.  I wanted my powder bath to be different than the other rooms in my house.  It's definitely time for a new look.  I have an idea in my head that I need to execute.  I want to paint the bathroom in an egg plant color (flat finish) and use the same color in a satin finish for a tone-on-tone effect.  I am thinking about either a chevron pattern or a harlequin pattern.

• Restyle master bedroom.  Sadly, the walls in my master bedroom are still painted SW Latte.   I've been wanting to paint the walls a deep, dark chocolate hue.  I want my bedroom to feel like a cocoon.  Dark chocolate walls can be a neutral.  You can pair a lot of colors with dark chocolate walls.  It's also time for new bed linens.  Since I just repainted my master bath, I think new bed linens are needed.  

• Restyle my dining room.  I am going to re-arrange a few things in my dining room.  My thoughts are to move the big artwork from the hallway wall to the dining room wall.  Move the server to the hallway wall.  I can't decide if I want artwork displayed over the server or keep the mirror and add artwork on either side of it.  The reason I want to move the artwork to the dining room is to brighten up the space.  Yes, the walls are dark and I plan to keep the color, but by placing the painting in the dining room, I think it will be more of a focal point there and also brighten up the space.

Artwork to be moved to dining room wall.

Wall where artwork will be placed.

So, this takes care of the first quarter of 2014!!!  Hopefully I can get some or all of these things done in 2014.

Master Bath Redo Part II

If you recall, back in November I painted and re-decorated my master bath.  There was nothing wrong with how my master bath looked, but I was ready for a change.  This is what my master bath looked like prior to November 11, 2013: 

 And change is what I did:

Initially, I liked the color, but the longer I lived with it, I felt like the room was SCREAMING!! at me every time I entered.  I still like the color (SW Maxi Teal), but I didn't like it for my master bath--maybe in a powder bath.  The room did not reflect me.  

I can't live with a room that doesn't make me happy, so it was time to change the color.  I decided on SW Rain.  Here's the reveal:

This color is very tranquil and calming.  It's a smokey, dirty blue.  To be honest, I am a little surprised that I picked SW Rain since I am partial to dark hues, but I am glad I did.   My bathroom is no longer screaming at me.  The color gives my bathroom a spa feel.

I always say that changing the color of a room is the least expensive way to re-decorate but it can make the most dramatic change.  A gallon of paint cost around $30.  I always pick Sherwin Williams colors, but I take the paint swatch to Home Depot and have the paint mixed using Behr Premium Plus Paint and Primer.  In my opinion, Behr paints cover very well.  The teal was covered over with one coat, but I always paint a second coat to make the color more saturated.

Let me know how you like the new look!

On the Hunt For a New Color

I spent some time at Sherwin Williams today looking at paint colors for my master bath.  I think I have talked myself out of painting my bathroom red.  My study is red (SW Red Barn) and I want that room to be different than the other rooms in my house.

I keep going back to my friend's master bath in Louisiana.  I love her bathroom.  Yes, it is a pastel color, but I love the look of it.  I always tell people they should go with their emotions when picking out art work and paint colors.  If you have a strong reaction to what you see, go with that reaction.  You'll know it when you see it.

On my latest trip to Sherwin Williams, I narrowed down my search to three shades of light blue--SW Aqua Sphere, SW Rain, and SW Interesting Aqua:

I chose these colors because they had a smokiness to them.  Since my trim color has tan in it, I didn't want a blue that had a touch of red or purple in it.  I needed a blue that had a touch of brown in it so that it would look good next to my trim color.  There are a lot of things to consider when picking out a paint color.  You want to have a connection with that color, but you also want to make sure that it blends well with your trim color.  My master bath also has crown molding, so it is important that my color choice works well with the trim color.

I am leaning towards SW Rain.  It is the color shown in the middle.  It is also on the same color chart with SW Interesting Aqua.  

Stay tuned.....

I think I know what the problem is...

I've been thinking about my bathroom color and realized today why I'm not in love with it--the color is a cold color and I gravitate to warm colors.  I enjoy looking at rooms with pastel colors, but I don't want pastel colors in my house.  I equate pastel colors with little girls' rooms.  I have seen lots of photos of elegant rooms done in pastel colors, but pastels are not a hue that I am in love with.

So, now I am on the hunt for a new color for my bathroom.  The space started out painted Sherwin Williams Latte.  I picked this color for the entire house.  After living here a few years, I decided I needed a change.  I would say that the SW Maxi Teal color is definitely a change.

My best friend in Louisiana built a home about two years ago.  Her master bathroom is painted Robin's Egg Blue.  I am in love with her bathroom.  I didn't think the color would work in my space because my trim work is not painted as white as hers.  Also, my ceramic tile floors have more tan/brown in them than her floor.  So now I am wondering if I should paint my bathroom in a pastel shade?

Or, should I go bold again with a warm color palette?

Decisions, decisions....

A Woman's Perogative.....

I painted my master bath November 11, 2013.  I went outside the box and picked a color that was not typical for me.  The color I chose--Sherwin Williams Maxi Teal--is a deep, rich color, but I'm not sure if I want to live with it for very long.  I liked the color after I finished painting my bathroom, but now I am unsure about it.

The main problem with the teal color is trying to find accessories that will go with the color.  I was afraid that by painting my bathroom teal that it would look like a kid's space instead of an adult space.  I am dangerously close, if not already there, to my bathroom looking like a kid's space.

So, you know where I'm going with this.  I already have a new color in mind for my master bath.  It's still not in the taupe/tan/brown family.  It's another "outside the box" color, but I think it will be a color that better represents my house.

Stay tuned.....