The love & labor of paint
Farrow & Ball - they make really beautiful high quality paint
This is an absolute bear of a topic. It's one of the harder things in design. I have made a lot of mistakes over the years! This is by no means comprehensive but here are some general thoughts I hope are helpful:
-If you saw a picture of a room that was painted pink, and you went into the store to pick that same pink paint, 9/10 people would pick something several shades darker than what was in the picture. You are probably smarter than most people because you are reading this, but it's important to remember. Go light especially with saturated color!
-Paint can look very different in different light. So it's really important to test it out. Someone I know once painted their entire exterior what was supposed to be avocado green and it ended up being a very pale greenish yellow. Doesn't read avocado. Test it out. Again, not rocket science, but needs to be said.
Dead Salmon by Farrow & Ball. Super fun, looks great with black
-When working remotely on projects (if that's what you do), one way I have done this is by testing paint out on large card stock in a variety of different lights. Or, you just go with tried and true paint colors. Emily Henderson is a designer who has great advice and she's got several lists of paint choices that are good.
-Monochrome: walls/ceiling/trim same color. I love it. Super calming. Nobody bats an eye when doing this with white, but for some reason when you do this with color people get weird. I think think you should do it with color. It looks fantastic. Doesn't have to be a dark or saturated color, but maybe just not white.
Fossil 15 by Vasari Lime Paint. If you are interested in lime paint, you can buy their products at Lowes.
-Contrast wall & ceiling color. The more I have done this, the more I have become convinced that if there are two different colors on wall and ceiling (two kinds of white disregard) then there should be either crown moulding around the ceiling, or you want to have ceiling beams/some sort of visual architecture on the ceiling. When it's just two plain walls and one color meets another at 90 degrees, to me, it's less an inspiring. Have seen exceptions, but most of the time find this to be true.
Green Smoke by Farrow & Ball
-Dark trim. This looks great. People are scared to do this because it is a significant commitment. But...that doesn't stop it from looking great.
-Your Wardrobe. Do you like your clothing? Do you feel comfortable in it? Do you take chances with it? Are you proud of it? If you have pieces and colors you look great in, this would be an excellent way to choose paint. In many ways, your home is like a large outfit that you walk around inside.
What's a comfortable neutral you gravitate towards? That might be a nice way to start.
Is there a blue cocktail dress or purple pants you wear on special occasions? Maybe would really work in the powder room or small office or inside a closet.
I'd like to write more but it's time to go into Saturday dad mode. We'll speak about this again soon!
