Paint is Transformative- Choosing Paint for your Home
I love making transformations with paint. It is the easy way to change your home’s attitude in a short period of time especially if you are handy! But if not, it can get expensive so please take a peek at our top tips for painting your home whether it is new construction or a remodel! But before we even begin- my most often asked question is what is your favorite gray and favorite greige?
We use Benjamin Moore Gray Owl for a light and fresh gray on walls and Benjamin Moore Northern Cliffs for a rich yet not too dark greige! Now on the fun!
Do you agonize over paint colors?
I have had Designers on our team who will do anything to avoid selecting colors! And sure it could be hard if you do not have all the right parameters set up before hand but if you follow my bakers dozen list of top tips to painting a room or an entire home, it will not be so scary. Some of this is common sense but we all know common sense is not all that common! ( Picture me trying to get the car fob to work on a friends car I borrowed- sweating in fear- and my daughter looks at you tube and gets it done in 10 minutes- hey we all have our things!)
Choosing color can be scary but the rewards for the perfect color on your walls or in your room is what it is all about!
I have included a handy cheat sheet info graphic below too!
1. Always look at paint it in different locations in the room or on boards and look at it at different times of the day.
2. Do not be afraid to buy samples- painting your house is a big investment- get the samples and buy the good paint. Ask your contractor what brand he uses and do your own research. Painters buy what they get the best deal on typically.
3. Never allow the colors you are considering to be next to each other. Painters sometimes like to do this and homeowners do it all the time.
4. Do not color match ever- it is not the same- use the brand. This is where your undertones can get messed up bigly.
5.The easier way to see undertones is have a pure white piece of paper and look at the color next to that- short and sweet but with a trained eye it works as the white isolates the shade.
6. Get a good education in art history- Or lacking the time for this:) Visit every museum you can. You will learn so much about color, texture and layering from art.
7. Do not use fleshy beige or smoker’s yellow – ever. Just don’t.
8. Your contractor will want to know paint colors right away. This is impossible early on and you write all the checks. Remember this.
9. Painting your ceilings is almost always a good idea. The 5th wall. Do not neglect it. Even a light shade is ok.
10. Get a painting estimate or allowance at the beginning of the job from your contractor. If you do not later he will tell you that it will be xxx dollars for every change. I get this to a degree- but if you are doing a custom house- then you should expect custom paint job and not a tract home allowance.
11. Know the type of finish on the walls prior to selecting type of paint.
12. it is a myth that your home will look good in colors that you wear. Maybe but doubtful. I cry when I hear a designer say this.
13. Paint is not forever. Yes is an investment but the cheapest way to update a room later so do not agonize. Get professional help if you need it but not before you know what is going in the room.
Some inspiration from our portfolio!
Project: Kitchen New Construction
Project Girl’s Bedroom
Now in this project- we had all sorts of visual issues but the paint color on the walls was a big win!
Get ready for—the BEFORE!
More color stories coming soon!
Our infographic with all the best tips you need to know about painting your home!
26 Responses
This is a brilliant and practical application on how to choose the right [for you] paint color(s). Love everything about this article because the concepts are easy to digest and implement. Execution is key!
Thank you Preston!!
Such a great blog about paint with wonderful tips. This tip, “Your contractor will want to know paint colors right away. This is impossible early on and you write all the checks. Remember this.” is all too true. I’ve pinned your tip sheet.
Great photos to go with the examples. LOVING the Grey Owl, Porter Ridge Tan, and Mysterious combination!
These are all great tips, Cheryl! And choosing paint colors before you know what else is going in the room is the most common mistake. I too love that line “…you write the checks. Remember this.”!
Thank you!!
Hi Cheryl ~
These are great tips about paint and I love the one where you remind people to paint the ceiling. It makes such a difference –especially if they have popcorn or textured ceilings and get that scraped off and skimmed before they paint.
A beautifully painted and finished ceiling is the #1 thing that, to me, takes a room from really nice to really spectacular.
thank you! This is the type of posts I think are helpful to people and enjoy writing but lots more work! And we rarely leave ceilings white for sure!
Great paint tips, Cheryl! I’ve pinned that Infographic!
OH BOY!Some Carla love juice!
Great tips! And I’ve pinned your infographic too!
THANKS MARISA!
Hey. Thanks for the post, it’s really helpful for all of us. Thanks for sharing these!
Selecting the right paint color or type is very important. If you are the person wondering how to select the best paint just like me, then this is the right blog that you can read for the assistance. This blog is very helpful and providing a good amount of information regarding the paint selection.
I liked how you talked about painting the ceiling. I never thought to paint this part of our rooms before. It’s definitely something that we’ll look into in the future.
I liked what you said about how you should think about what color on your ceiling. That does seem like a good thing to be aware of when you are thinking of a color scheme. It does seem like a good idea to get a professional to help with the painting.
Thanks for sharing info. Keep up the good work top tips for painting your home. We hope you will visit our blog often as we discuss topics of interest to you.
Such a great tip about paint for home as it makes sense for painting the wall while painting you should do such a great thing as it helps you to find easier convenient way to paint the house easily.
It’s great that this article talks about how painting your home allows you to easily change its attitude and that you recommend hiring professionals to get help with knowing what to choose for the room. When choosing a contractor. It would probably be a good idea to research local contractors so you can learn about their experience and reputation. This could help you find a professional that’s easy to work with and provides quality painting services that fit the style you want.
Selecting interior paint colors for home is a big challenge for every single couple, as they sometimes do not know to make the room even more appealing.
You made a great point when you said to look at new paint in different rooms and at different times of the day. My wife and I have lived in our home for 10 years, but we have decided that we want to repaint our living room and bedrooms. We will be sure to find a paint store that can help us decide which colors would work best with our home.
Thanks for mentioning that I should paint the ceiling as well, it seems like it is something that is often overlooked. I’ll have a light shade added to the ceiling so that everything looks good when I have the rest of my living room painted, I want to make sure that the paint job is high quality. I have never painted the ceiling before, so I will hire a remodeling contractor to paint the whole room for me.
The color of the walls set our mood and hence choosing them should be done correctly. Thanks to you for sharing this amazing guide as it will definitely help me in next time when we will painting our home.
Thanks for the tip to avoid color matching so your undertones don’t get messed up. I would like to repaint the interior of my home so parts of my home have more of a modern look rather than an ugly 1970s feel. I’ll be sure to hire a professional painter and avoid color matching so the interiors of my home can look professionally done.
Thanks for explaining that the right paint can be transformative. My husband and I are thinking about having our home painted soon. Your article helped me see why choosing the right paint will be important!
I liked your suggestion to paint the ceiling as well as the other four walls in a room. My living room is looking like it could use a new color. I’ll think about heading down to the store to look at colors soon.
I found it interesting when you said to know the type of finish on the walls prior to selecting the type of paint. My wife asked me if we could consider painting the interior of our house since she thinks it’s outdated. I will definitely share this article with her so she can have a better idea of what colors to choose from.