Can’t see the Paint for the Trim

Thank you all for your kind words and input on my painting conundrum. It definitely helps to have others thoughts.

HOWEVER.

I was not prepared me for what would happen when I started painting samples on the wall.  Remember a couple of them were supposed to be beigeish with a gray tiny or undertone. “Greige” they call it. Really.

Sample 1– looked completely GRAY.

Sample 2- looked considerably taupe-y but with a heavy shade of gray. (HEAVY.)

Sample 3- which happened to be the Revere Pewter that everyone says is the best color ever (which I do not doubt) but on our walls, with limited light and brown trim. WHOA, GRAY for DAYS.

Sample 4- looked slightly different than what was already on the walls with a distinct shade of cool… you guessed it– gray.

And then I went for broke this morning and added Sample 5 to the mix– which did not look at all gray– but more of the color mascarpone cheese and lemon zest looks when mixed together. (YUM! but not good with all that brown trim.)

Then I began the ritual walking into my living room every five minutes, scowling at the walls, and then walking out.

Followed by standing in front of the many, many shades of “Greige” on the walls (not 50, mind you– but almost.) and eating popcorn drizzled with chocolate (leftover from our family movie night the other night.)

Then there was a little bit of standing in front of the walls with the blinds drawn, then open, then drawn, then open again.

Then a friend came by and agonized with me and helped me see the beauty in one particular shade.

Then she left and I tried to decide and decided I couldn’t decide so I did what any normal person would do.

I pitched an internal fit. (because the girls were watching and Abby gets in trouble for pitching fits a lot.)

And then I called someone who said the magic words, “You know you want to paint the trim white. Why don’t you just do it?” 

And then a lightbulb.

A soft hazy lightbulb filtered through the shadiness of the room with way too much brown trim in it. But still I realized. “YES. That really IS what I want.”

All this time I’ve been trying to pick a color that would compliment the trim.. make it warmer… make it not so DARK in there. And the fact is, it IS dark in there. No amount of lamps will help that. And I was so surprised how that room full of brown would affect every single pretty color we tried! (I know. Such an amateur I am.) But it does. And every color either looks too blah or washed out.. or too dark.

So we’re doing it. We’re painting the trim a nice crisp white. And then something pretty for the walls.

I promise I’m not a crazy person. It’s amazing the amount of weight the trim color has on the room’s over all look. We have the same paint color in other areas of the house and it looks almost fabulous with white trim. Clean, crisp and not at all drab.

So here goes. And I promise this will all be over soon and I’ll be sharing a little less about paint and a little more about interesting things— OOOH! Like who won the BOOK GIVEAWAY!!!

Keisha and Whitney (from Beauty in the Mess) have both won a copy of Melanie Shankle’s Sparkly Green Earrings: Catching the Light at Every Turn (affiliate link used.)

YAY— Keisha and Whitney!!!!

Happy Thursday!!!