Painting: Check!

Our new family room slash office is FINALLY painted! My sister and her man Josh came over on Thursday night to have dinner and help us out. My mom happened to be spending the night on her way through town for work, so the three of us had a nice time visiting together while Josh tackled the cutting in (he’s a part time handyman so I hired him to do it for me).

We hadn’t done anything to prep and just pushed everything to the middle of the room when they got here. It was a hot mess.

Josh worked super fast and was done way sooner than Nick and I would have been, plus the result was much cleaner lines. Nobody in this household was blessed with a steady hand so Josh was a real lifesaver here.

Then first thing Saturday morning Nick got down to the business of rolling. His motivation to finish before the Saints game came on had him painting before he could even change out of his pajamas. He usually doesn’t work on stuff like this by himself, but after my whole lead paint freak out the doctor said I should delegate more projects to Nick (and he was there to hear it). Even though the no-VOC paint would probably be fine for me to be around, he seemed willing to go it alone and I wasn’t about to insist he let me help. After two coats and a couple of breaks he was done in time for lunch. It probably could have used a third coat, but one of the benefits of flat paint that I forgot to mention the other day is that towards the end when you’re tired of painting but there are still a few spots where the old color is peeking through you can just touch it up as needed instead of doing another coat all over. Perfect for lazy people like us.

Look at him go. A man on a mission!

The brick fireplace surround has always been the same pale yellow as the walls, which I thought was stupid. We gave it two coats of some white semi-gloss we already had on hand.

Let’s take a walk down memory lane with these “before” shots:

And here’s the finished result with the room put back together (although still in desperate need of some decluttering and organization).

Ta-da! But because this is real life and not HGTV, I’m gonna be honest with you. I’m not thrilled with the color on the walls (Benjamin Moore’s Gray Mirage). It’s way too green and not nearly neutral enough. I’m wishing I’d had it mixed at a lighter strength or gone with another color that was more of a true gray. I feel like some of the punchier yellows and blues I want to bring in are going to clash with it. I spent nearly $100 between paint and labor, though, and it’s kind of a big deal that Nick put as much effort into it as he did, so I’m going to live with it for a while and see if it grows on me. Maybe as I bring in some organization and more colorful accessories the gray-green will fall into place?

What do you think? Do you think it matches up with the pale gray I picked from the palette (left side, second from the bottom)?

I was planning to accessorize with the yellows and blues from the right column, but I just don’t think they will go with this wall color at all. Maybe if I try using similar but muddier, more subdued shades it’ll work? I’m thinking 70′s Avocado Green and Harvest Gold. I just don’t know. This is the first time I’ve ever set out to decorate a room with a specific color scheme and so far I am failing miserably.

17 Responses to Painting: Check!

  1. It looks like a nice color to me. Hard to tell for sure on a picture though. I would just live with it a bit!

  2. I love the color! Actually I was wondering what color it was until I read farther. It will be start bringing the other colors in, I think it will be fine!

  3. I like the color too! Grey is SOOO hard to get spot on, and it normally ends up just like yours, or with a hint of blue underneath, like my living room ended up. :-/ I think your peacock color theme will match perfectly, and you can even throw in some of that classy navy blue you were talking about awhile ago. Good start!

    • Charlotte | livingwellonthecheap

      You’re so right, Kindra! Gray is tough! And thanks for suggesting navy, I love that idea. I’m starting to feel a little better now maybe!

  4. I’m with Shelly: I love the color! I think you will be very happy with it once you start adding other pops of colors to the room. It looks like a beautiful neutral with a bit of zip - definitely not boring.

  5. Janet (Country Mouse

    What a blessing to have a handy man and a willing man in the family! I think it will look fine.

  6. I love the color. I think that you are thinking too much about it. Everything does not have to match. Have fun and let yourself go. Be free to decorate as you please. I am betting that you will eventually grow to like it.

  7. I like it too, and as you said- gray is such a hard colour to get spot-on, I think it will grow on you, have a look at the blog- a perfect gray- it has always inspired me when dealing with gray! Oh and how dedicated was your hubby- so sweet!

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