Brown, Brown and Brown

Over the past year I have been going through a transition. (One that doesn't involve hot flashes, thank goodness!) My design style is transitioning or evolving again. On all the main walls in my home are 3 harmonizing shades of brown. (Tan, beige or taupe if you wanna get fancy...)

I use the colors to highlight architectural interest like these columns.

To create an illusion of a bigger space. This mirror is about 10 inches in diameter. I was able to hang it above the sofa in the gameroom without it looking lost by painting a starburst design around it.

I used a color blocking technique to unify the plaques and to have the lighter color stand out. (Please ignore the crooked tile!)

I just followed around the outline of the plate rack in the kitchen.

I added a few shapes to enhance the wrought iron piece above the door.

The family room is two stories high which is nice but makes it difficult to paint. I haven't rented a bunch of scaffolding to do it myself (too lazy) or paid someone else to do it (too cheap.) So instead I just painted a line following the outline of the fireplace moulding to make it stand out.

So it would get to the point of anytime I would pull out the painting gear the kids would complain that I was painting BROWN again. (Not that they ever heard their father say that...) They didn't care if the house was resembling a landfill or if they had their own dirty sock collection under the couch but boy, they certainly had an opinion on the decor!

My kitchen was a little more adventurous and even had a little sponge painting. Don't worry, the guy in the picture is not me nor is that my kitchen. Years back sponge painting was described as "faux finishing", "textured", "old world" and "stylish." (okay, maybe not "stylish".) If you look up sponge painting now on the web you'll come across these words and I'm not even kidding! (Don't read ahead if you have a weak stomach.) "Feces", "poop", "ugly" and "outdated." (I guess brown is a popular sponge color.) So obviously the sponging is out of style and the people who are buying homes and discovering this outdated treatment are the ones who are so harsh in their descriptions. The home owners who lovingly painted it themselves trying for that "old world" look may still think it looks great. (But won't admit it!) So I decided it was time to bid the sponging adieu.

Color is a very personal choice. Some people are afraid of color and think that their efforts will turn out like this picture from studiocreativejuice.

Or like this.

Bright colors can look very stylish if used thoughtfully. My home isn't very stylish so I decided to go with a much softer color for the kitchen. After much deliberation, I decided on "Southern Breeze" satin interior by Behr.

I absolutely love it and have been trying to use some restraint by not painting the whole house this color.

(Although I wonder what it would look like with a little sponging treatment...)