Making it Lovely

Tag: painting

  • The Playroom’s Accent Wall (Featured in HGTV Magazine)

    The Playroom’s Accent Wall (Featured in HGTV Magazine)

    The playroom is sporting a different look from the last time you saw it! I showed a couple of shots while the wall was in progress a couple of months ago, but then I couldn’t show any more until the feature with Glidden ran in HGTV magazine this month.

    Playroom Accent Wall in Progress

    I write for Glidden, so when they asked if I had any painting projects coming up that they could share, I told them about my plans for the playroom. Typically, I’m not one to do an accent wall, as they can seem kind of arbitrary. In this case though, I really liked the white walls on the third floor for the most part, but wanted to bring some of the color over from the curtains on the other side of the playroom. A big block of color (like a traditional accent wall) could have worked, but I thought this would be a good place to try something a bit more playful.

    Accent Wall in the Playroom #makingitlovely

    Playroom Accent Wall #makingitlovely

    The feature is inside a peel-back front cover in the June 2014 issue of HGTV magazine, along with projects by Kate and Eduardo, who also write for Glidden over at My Colortopia.

    Making it Lovely for Glidden in the June 2014 issue of HGTV Magazine

    Initially, I thought about creating a more orderly polka dot wall, but I changed my mind the day before I started painting and went with a bunch of falling bubbles instead. The walls on the third floor are textured, so the design couldn’t be too intricate. I started with the quick marker sketch you see at the beginning of the post, and then drew large circles for the design on the wall, freehand with a pencil. I used an inexpensive art/craft paintbrush to outline some of the smaller circles, and used a 2″ angled paintbrush for the rest, and to fill everything in.

    Circle Outlines

    The other side of the playroom has those floral curtains that I made years ago from Moda’s “Mom’s Couch” fabric. They hung in my stationery studio initially, and were also used in Eleanor’s bedroom in the last house.

    Playroom #makingitlovely

    I chose Glidden’s Red Geranium because I wanted to pull in that bright orangey-red color and bring it to the other side of the room.

    Playroom Accent Wall #makingitlovely

    There are bookshelves for toys to the right of the easel, and along the left side, I hung cubbies to keep art supplies within reach, and also put up three large wall clips to use for rotating artwork on display from the kids.

    Playroom Accent Wall #makingitlovely

    Art Supplies in Reach, and Display

    I’m glad I’m finally able to share this updated space with you! We spend a lot of time in the playroom, and the added color has made it even more fun for the kids. And thank you, Glidden and HGTV magazine for featuring the project!

    Playroom Accent Wall #makingitlovely

  • Black Beauty

    Black Beauty

    I’d hoped to have a painted room to share today, but I underestimated the ability of my right arm to paint and paint and paint. I’ve primed, I’ve put a first coat on, and I’ve done half of the cutting in for the second (and final, I hope) coat of paint, but I still have a few hours of painting ahead of me before it’s done. Such tall ceilings! So many windows and doorways, and a fireplace to cut in! Such strong shoulders I will have! (On the right side, at least.) Luckily my legs are holding up just fine with having gone up and down the ladder all weekend, and I’ve finished all of the up-high work.

    Black Benjamin Moore Paint Swatches - Soot, Almost Black, Polo Blue, and Black Beauty #makingitlovely

    I liked the range of blacks that Benjamin Moore offered, so I stuck with them for my samples. I tried Soot (so close), Almost Black (too light), Polo Blue (pretty and nuanced, but too blue), and finally, Black Beauty (the winner!). It’s the warm black I had been looking for, and it makes the wood trim in the room look amazing. The three huge windows are South-facing, and the room is flooded with light, so it can take a dark, dramatic color. I can’t wait to see it with the furniture back in place!

    Now, off to paint.

  • Almost Black

    Almost Black

    Hey, look, I did some painting this weekend! (My tiny assistant helped.)

    Starting to Paint #makingitlovely

    Black Paint Swatches Against a White Wall #makingitlovely

    I need to find a ladder (the step-ladder isn’t cutting it with 10′ high ceilings), and I need to decide on a final paint color. My friend sent me this video when I initially shared the Instagram photo above of the paint swatches, and yep.

    The room is now painted with black-tinted primer, but the color is a near match for the first sample I tried, Almost Black. I also tried Soot, and Polo Blue, all Benjamin Moore colors.

    Black Paint Swatches #makingitlovely

    Black Primer on the Walls #makingitlovely

    I might pick up another sample or two, but I’m not sure yet. I do know that I want to go darker than the primer, which rules out Almost Black for sure. I’m happy with the direction the room is going in though! It’s a central room on the main floor, and I love the contrast those walls are bringing. I’m eager to bring all of the furniture back in, but I want to get the color just right without rushing it. Normally I wouldn’t be drawn to a green-based black, for example, but against all of the wood it might work. Otherwise, Soot?

  • A Paint Color Palette?

    A Paint Color Palette?

    Maybe? It’s still very likely to change, but I’m thinking black (or nearly so), pale peachy pink, and olive green for the walls downstairs. I love when other people do the whole monochromatic thing, but I’m too into color.

    Paint Swatches #makingitlovely

    Testing Almost Black Paint #makingitlovely

    I forever love pink, and as I was looking at black and pale pink swatches, I thought green would be a nice addition. Then I realized, oh right. I’ve seen this before.

    Botanical Print Color Palette #makingitlovely

    I’m set on a dark color for the second parlor, so that will get painted first. We should be starting on the library soon, and I’ll paint in there (olive?) after the shelves have been built. Then pink for the dining room? The entryway? Like I said… still very likely to change.

  • In the Bedroom

    In the Bedroom

    I’m attempting to make the bed more often. Is it a New Year’s resolution? Not really, but I’m sure I’ll end up breaking it, so let’s go ahead and think of it as one! Make the bed every day in 2014. Two days down, many more to go.

    How many pillows on a bed are acceptable? When does it cross over to being an obnoxious number? I’m testing out the idea of a row of euro pillows with some of the larger throw pillows we already have on hand. They’re 22″ and 24″, versus the euros’ 26″ each, but it’s a good approximation if you imagine that they’re in matching white shams. Yay? Nay? Seven pillows seems excessive, though I suppose they could replace two of the standard pillows in front.

    August, Rumpling Up the Bed

    I’ve never been very good at making the bed, so I assume euro pillows will magically make it look magazine-shoot-ready at all times. That’s how that works, right? To aid in this quest, I chose white linen/cotton bedding. It’s perfectly rumply, but not disheveled, and the bed looks artfully undone in the mornings instead of messy. It’s an arbitrary (and likely all-in-my-head) distinction, but one that I like nonetheless.

    Check the wall color: Sherwin-Williams’ Comfort Gray. So much better against the woodwork than Sea Salt! I shouldn’t have second-guessed it. And I for sure shouldn’t have third-guessed it, having tested an unfortunate greenish color that didn’t even last to the light of day. I hated it and painted over it as soon as it had dried enough. Comfort Gray, FTW. Look how pretty it looks with Brandon’s favorite painting, Dying Flowers.

    Sherwin-Williams Comfort Gray Paint in the Bedroom

    The bedroom needs more artwork still, and better lighting. I did just thrift a vintage yellow banker’s lamp for one corner of the room, and it’s awfully cute. But did you notice in that first photo how the two bedside lamps we have don’t actually match? Isn’t that a nice touch? I bought the white one for our library ($10 at the time, from IKEA) when we first moved into our old house in 2007. Then when we were expecting Eleanor, I stole it for the nursery and went to buy another to put back in the library, but by then they were only available in silver. They’re fine lights, but a mismatched set of floor lamps is not quite what I had in mind for our bedside lighting. Even if I spray painted them, their bases would still get in the way. I usually like sconces flanking a bed, but the windows and layout of the room aren’t going to accommodate a pair, so I’m on the lookout for table/task lamps instead.

    Besides painting the room and changing the linens, I’ve added a jewelry armoire. It is the most ridiculous piece of furniture I’ve ever owned, and also my favorite. Perhaps that deserves its own post.

  • Sea Salt in the Bedroom

    Sea Salt in the Bedroom

    The things I do for you guys. Why’d you all make me paint my bedroom this color?

    Sea Salt Paint in the Bedroom

    Kidding, of course. I was torn between Sea Salt and Comfort Gray, and leaning toward the darker of the two. I’ve always liked Sea Salt though (I put together a whole collection of rooms featuring the color right here), so I gave it a try. I was concerned that it would be washed out next to my unpainted wood trim.

    And yeah…

    Sea Salt Paint in the Bedroom

    With white trim? Absolutely. Gorgeous. In my house? It looks like I sort of committed to a color, then chickened out.

    I only did one side of the room, as a test. We’ve been living with half-painted walls for two weeks because I really did want to give it a fighting chance! I’m more certain of my original choice now though, which is a good feeling. Time to repaint.

    Sea Salt and Comfort Gray Test Paint in the Bedroom