Let’s argue over paint colors
That’s what Ron said to me yesterday, when we were discussing what to do today. So this morning he and I set off in the wind and blowing snow and hit a few hardware stores. We got a LOT of paint chips. In one store, we were huddled next to another couple who were also trying to find the right paint.
“Let’s ask her,” the woman said, pointing to me, “She seems to know what she’s doing.” And then I explained that even though they wanted an eggshell white color, picking the can that *said* eggshell was not the same thing. It refers to the finish. They almost looked dismayed when I showed them how many whites there were to choose from, and how the lights affected the color. Eventually a clerk came round and I told her she could take over now. 
Ron and I then went to Tim Horton’s for coffee, tea and a couple doughnuts. We sat inside for a change and poured over the charts, discussing which ones were which, what we didn’t want, and how much blue you could put in grey before it was, in fact, blue.
On the way home, we kept track of the house colors near us and discovered they were white with colored trim (usually green), beige, grey or blue. So we are not painting our house any of those colors. Shades of orange and purple never even made the list.
After lunch we headed down the other way into town and with the children this time. Meaghan had written in her blog this morning how she “wasn’t invited”, so this made it up for her. Little did they know, one of the places we stopped at, all we bought them was dirt. They have wanted some potting soil for a month or so, after finding some herb seeds somewhere, and they both have wanted to start them. So we picked up two bags of dirt for them. It kind of bugs me, having to actually buy dirt, but seeing as our waist-high compost barrels are now level with the snow out back, we won’t be seeing real dirt for quite some time.
Again, Emma hugged a clerk. This particular clerk thought it was awesome, as she was studying to be a landscape designer and for this week’s essay she had to write about a famous gardener and their particular quirk. Well apparently Louis Somebody from out West was known for giving hugs out, and that’s who she wrote about. And then was hugged by Emma.
After that, I told her about my plans for the front garden in our house, which she thought was great, and we discussed (as the line grew a little longer) how most people try to pull off formal with a house like ours (turn of the century American foursquare) and wind up too formal. So the English country garden feel I want to have going on sounds great to her.
Since we had been discussing paint colors all day, by the time we got home we were itching to do something. One of the “mistakes” we had made in the last two houses was putting up with small things that bugged us, sometimes for years. Like leaving a simple job until the end because to redo everything was big. WELL. My kitchen, which I mostly love, is not going to be changed for a long long time. The wallpaper and paint color however is UGLY. Now instead of waiting until we redo the whole thing, it is a simple job for us to repaint the kitchen now and like it now and for the next few years until we get around to doing something else with it. I mean, enjoy it now right? Especially if it is a small job (relatively) to change it into something more livable. There is not a lot of wall space in this room. It also frees up some mental room from thinking about it if we just do it now.
So while I cooked supper, I ripped off wallpaper. Ron wandered in and started to help me, and we both said how therapeutic it was. Now, while there’s a big open window area above the sink overlooking the craft room, this has been blocked off by blankets to keep the cold out, so it’s been rather dark in there. The late 90’s country blue gingham checked wallpaper makes the room seem really dark on top of that. So does the dark beige ceiling. No idea what they were thinking there.
Within the month, I expect to have the kitchen walls stripped clean of the old wallpaper. Thankfully, the previous owner still had most of his wits about him then as the new-ish paper was only one layer applied to properly primed walls. It’s coming off beautifully and we haven’t had to wet it. Which is good, as it’s the scrubbable kind… I’m thinking this will also help to deal with the rest of the winter and the endless snow we’ve been having.
Regular readers will be tickled to know that the chosen color for the kitchen is a brilliant yellow. I mean, we still have half a can left from the last house and the last kitchen… (You can reminice over it here.)
At the very least, regulars can rest assured we will *not* be painting the outside of this house in the same color scheme as the old one. Even though there are no green houses around for miles. 
3 Responses to “Let’s argue over paint colors”
I think your kitchen decision is a good one. Redoing a kitchen is such a big job that it always gets put off. I’m a big fan of doing it in pieces. I haven’t even finished repainting mine yet (2 walls to go, with windows in them so not much really). And we put in a peninsula and replaced one bit of wall cabinet. We will probably do the other cabinets this summer (when we can cook outside). It looks a bit weird in the interim but it has elements that I really like. So get that bright yellow paint up and see where you are. We all spend so much time in the kitchen it is worth having it nice.
Coming from a woman who, if left to choose only ONE colour for the whole interior and exterior of her house, would choose YELLOW!, I say paint the outside yellow too! Though I kind of like the red. Why are you changing the red? But a big yellow house with a white covered verandah AND a porch swing….now that makes me sigh. I want to sit back on my wicker rocker with a cup of iced tea and just breathe. I’m thinking that when we add on here, and we add or change the siding, yellow is definitely in the running for exterior colour! And this whole conversation reminds me that there is actually a spring and a summer and an autumn somewhere out there in the future, and it will not be eternally winter. Even though it feels like it will be. The sun WAS feeling warmer today, though.
Selecting the proper color for your house painting is a very tough job. It has to suit your tastes and the mood required for the room. If not selected properly it may lead to total disinterest in life. What a Great Story!