Our homes…. Interior and Exterior Remodeling Or Decorating

[Knee Deep in Water Chloe]

@pinkcshmere, what did you decide about the paint?

buystoys, I hear-by request pictures of the new furniture. 


raeoflyte, I second the request for pictures of the castle/Zen bathroom. 


azucena, I've never had stairs in my own adult houses, but I do love seeing pictures of statement stairs. I always wanted the locker-esque shelving when my children were younger, but it never happened. 

[azucena]

I've wanted a better entryway setup ever since we moved in 5 yrs ago.  I have one of those ikea 2 row cubbies in place for shoes and hanger above for coats but want to beef up, maximize, and close it off.  Making a point to go for it, instead of convincing myself not to spend the $$.

[Deleted]

Jan 24, 2022 9:45:45 GMT -5 Knee Deep in Water Chloe said:

@pinkcshmere , what did you decide about the paint?

buystoys , I hear-by request pictures of the new furniture. 


raeoflyte , I second the request for pictures of the castle/Zen bathroom. 


azucena , I've never had stairs in my own adult houses, but I do love seeing pictures of statement stairs. I always wanted the locker-esque shelving when my children were younger, but it never happened. 

I still haven’t decided lol. I absolutely cannot decide what color I want, let alone saturation and all that. All I know for sure is I don’t want white, beige, greige, any shade of yellow, or brown. Which was true in the beginning too, so I’ve made absolutely no progress.   Well, I’ve ruled out all the samples I bought last year, at least 20 samples for 4 rooms.

I’ve always used Behr paint when I’ve done the painting myself, and I’ve never had any issues with the product. But I might switch to another brand this time since I’m having so much trouble picking a color. I’m drawn to darker shades, but I know dark won’t be the best choice because that room doesn’t get a lot of natural light. I’ve wanted to believe the white wainscoting might help, since only the upper walls will be dark, but when I’m honest with myself, I acknowledge that it won’t help a whole lot, if at all. 

I’d like to be able to see a lighter shade of the darker colors I’m drawn to, and Behr’s doesn’t have those type cards anymore. They are all just the one color. Even on their website, a specific color might have similar and lighter/darker colors as suggestions, but I still have to click on each one and try to figure out which ones *might* be basically the same color, just lighter. If I find a color I really like and has the right undertones but is just too dark, I want to see the same color, lighter.

So when I get serious about it again, I’m going to have to go somewhere that has that kind of information easily available. It use to be like that with Behr, idk why they’ve made it so difficult.

The guy making my coffee table said he’s trying to have it ready to bring it to me tomorrow. He’s been sending us pics as he built it, and as of yesterday, as far as I could see, he just needed to make sure everything is sanded smoothly and stain it. He also FaceTimed me yesterday to ask if I wanted him to add a particular detail and showed me a board he’d added the detail to, so I could see what it would look like. I preferred mine like it already was.

Today I started looking into DIY kitchen tables so I can be prepared when he’s ready to do the kitchen table. Good thing, because I learned that one of the details that I had decided I wanted, while easy to do, is best done with knowledge of how wood can “move” over time, to accommodate for it. I felt like that was a bit much to ask in this situation, so I scrapped that idea.

I just want a simple table that fits the space. Farmhouse style will work and is described as easy to DIY. So I also screenshot DIY tables that I like, to have visual aids to show him what I want when he’s ready to get started.

I’m doing my own research on building kitchen tables so I don’t ask for something unreasonable for his skill level, tools, and experience. His experience……. He built a coffee table for his house, my coffee table is the 2nd piece of furniture he’s ever built.

[finnime]

@pinkcshmere, Benjamin Moore has an excellent site for viewing and choosing colors. You can even load up a photo of your room(s) and color the walls and trim with anything you choose to see how it would look. They also make a top quality product, for what it's worth.

[buystoys]

@pinkcshmere, I agree with finnime about the Benjamin Moore paints.  Their site is really helpful too.

[Deleted]

finnime and buystoys, I’ve only been on Benjamin Moore’s website for about 10 minutes and their online tools are very helpful, just like you both said. Now I wish I’d started with them, because it looks like their site can make it easy to come up with a good palette for the whole house. I’d been trying to figure all that out too when I was choosing colors. The house is not open concept, but if you’re in certain spots, you can see at least part of the wall(s) in up to 5 other rooms. I don’t want every room the exact same shade or color, so it all needs to work together.

Thank you both for suggesting them. I’m starting to get excited about painting again.

[Deleted]

I’ve decided to fix the lighting in the dining room before I paint it. It doesn’t get much natural light, and I knew from day 1 that the lighting in there is woefully inadequate. The light fixture isn’t my style anyway, and it only uses one bulb. It gives me around 1/4 of the amount of light that I’ve calculated to be adequate for the room size. I want to change the fixture anyway, so it just makes sense to do that before I choose wall colors. Even if I paint the walls a stark white, the room will still be dim because of the lighting. Paint colors with the highest LRV’s still can’t reflect light that isn’t there.

I had to learn how light and the source can have a huge impact on wall colors several years ago, when I wanted to paint some rooms gray at my other house. That house had more natural light, and in the one area I had to fix the artificial lighting, it was just replacing an incandescent light bulb (very yellow light) with an LED bulb that was closer to neutral natural light.

So there’s this light fixture that immediately grabbed my attention again when I looked for a new fixture in today. I’ve looked for something off and on since we moved here. So far, I’ve not seen anything that grabbed my attention like that one always does and I’m tired of looking. It costs more than I thought I’d ever pay for a light fixture, and since I’m not paying for it myself, I asked Mister what’s my budget for that and he said he didn’t know why I was even asking him because I know he doesn’t care. No argument from me sir!

I’ve done my homework and besides the fact that I really like it, it is almost perfect for the space. I’ve measured and read up on the guidelines and advice. The light is already on a dimmer, which is a plus if I err on the side of too bright, but I don’t think I will.

I’m digging chandeliers in rooms besides dining rooms and entryways, so it works for however long that room remains my yoga room and will also work under a table if it ever becomes a true dining room. I’m going to sleep on it, but I’m pretty sure I’m going to buy it. And Mister can’t fuss about how much it cost, because I asked. I even asked what amount of money would upset his nerves if it was “just” for a light fixture. He just told me again that he doesn’t care. Oh, okay. Good to know.

It costs $500, and a lot of people might feel like that’s cheap and be confused about my whole post. But in our world, that’s a lot of money for a darn light fixture. No matter how much HGTV I watch or how fancy I feel, it’s expensive to me, and I know that for Mister more than $200 is probably teetering into ridiculous territory. So I asked him about it.

I’m saving things on the BM website, but I have to either make my decisions by March or copy/save my ideas somewhere else because they are working on changes to their website and their “favorite” thing is going away in March.

[stillmovingforward]

Think about how long you will keep that light fixtures in months. Let's say it will cost $10 per month. Is looking at it going to make you happy? Is that happiness worth $10 per month? If so, buy it guilt free!

[buystoys]

I agree.  If it's something you like and you'll use it for years, it's worth the price.  <br>

[azucena]

I agree too, but you, ahem, forgot to post a link to it.

[finnime]

Go for the light! I just bought a new light fixture for the dining room, love it, and I'm selling the house! It cost $400 on sale, usually over $700. I'm happy. So, go, be happy.

[resolution]

We did something similar, we looked for years for the perfect light fixture for our dining room, and ended up getting one for like $500 off a German antique website, and then had to pay a surprise import tariff to the post office in order for them to release it into our custody. It wasn't anything fancy, just kind of a quirky 1950s chandelier.  When we moved, my husband refused to leave it in the old house, so he replaced it with a cheap Lowe's light fixture before we took the pictures for the listing.

[buystoys]

I just ordered lamps and pillows, so pictures of the living room will be coming as soon as those arrive.  The console table was damaged so that got sent back.  I'm just waiting to find out when they can deliver a good one.

[anciana]

Jan 26, 2022 9:57:27 GMT -5 resolution said:

We did something similar, we looked for years for the perfect light fixture for our dining room, and ended up getting one for like $500 off a German antique website, and then had to pay a surprise import tariff to the post office in order for them to release it into our custody. It wasn't anything fancy, just kind of a quirky 1950s chandelier.  When we moved, my husband refused to leave it in the old house, so he replaced it with a cheap Lowe's light fixture before we took the pictures for the listing.

When we were preparing our old house for sale, our realtor told us to remove anything we want to keep as the new buyers might ask for it and sometimes that turns into a problem. So, we removed the curtains that we loved and wanted to take with us. In the end the buyers did ask for all kinds of things, even the cheapo countertop microwave, and, yes, all the curtains

[Deleted]

Jan 26, 2022 5:59:04 GMT -5 azucena said:

I agree too, but you, ahem, forgot to post a link to it.

link

What do you think? If you hate it, it’s ok to say that, I promise.

I agree with all the reasons given for buying it. I’d already considered that it can move with us if we ever move. When I get hung up on something and keep coming back to I almost always end up buying it. Plus, I don’t want to keep searching endlessly, I really like that one, so I’m getting it. It wasn’t that I needed convincing lol, although I do appreciate the confirmation and reasons why it’s ok. I just didn’t feel like it was right to spend that much of Mister’s money on something I know he’d NEVER pay that much for on his own and not run it by him first.

[jerseygirl]

Pink I like that chandelier. It’s a modernized version of a traditional style that I have. I grew up with the traditional style and felt drawn to put one in my dining room
But like your version!

[buystoys]

Me likey!

[jerseygirl]

Cool you have a blue front door Pink
I have a red enamel front door. A neighbor has a dark gray house and white trim with a fushia pink door. That house looks so neat but the door really makes it special

[finnime]

Love the light fixture, @pinkcshmere!

[Deleted]

Jan 26, 2022 19:54:51 GMT -5 jerseygirl said:

Cool you have a blue front door Pink
I have a red enamel front door. A neighbor has a dark gray house and white trim with a fushia pink door. That house looks so neat but the door really makes it special

I’m jealous! I’ve always wanted a red front door. I never got around to painting the front door at my other house, even though a red door would’ve worked well with the exterior.

Here, a red door would be bad feng shui, because of how the house is situated. I don’t follow feng shui in depth, but some of the principles are things that felt “right” to me before I ever knew anything about feng shui. Things that I’ve learned are easily done to avoid bad feng shui, I just do. Like not painting the door here red. 

Our front door was an ugly very pale green when we moved in. Mister’s favorite color is blue and blue is in my color scheme, so I painted the door blue. Almost 2 years later, Mister still describes the door as “really blue” if the subject comes up. It’s not a bright blue, but it is definitely blue, like he says lol. But he also couldn’t remember what color the door was before I painted it, and it had never occurred to him in life to paint a door, so there’s that. He doesn’t want me to change it though, just because it’s what I wanted, so it’s still really blue.

I painted the door to the garage too, the same color I painted the mud room/laundry room the door opens into. It’s not nearly as bold of a color, so the only time he’s said anything about that door was when he came home from work the day I painted it.

I doubt it will always be blue, but it will always be a bold color. And feng shui friendly lol. To me, painting the front door is an easy, inexpensive way to change something about the exterior view of the house.

[Deleted]

The chandelier has been ordered. 

I will report back once we receive it and it’s installed.

[Deleted]

So I’ve gone down the rabbit hole again, with ideas for furnishing and decorating the house. I had not been thinking about ANY of that anymore, until Chloe asked if I’d ever painted, and y’all told me about Benjamin Moore.

I found a blog last week, and I love her. She says she’s been in the business for 30 years. She’s funny and shares a wealth of information on her blog even though she has guides and stuff you have to pay for. A lot of her information is her opinions on what looks good (and I don’t always like what she thinks looks good), but a lot of it is information about methods professional designers use, and she gives all the designers she references or whose pictures she uses, their credit and/or links.

It’s because of her that I know that I missed one important measurement I should’ve taken for the chandelier I ordered. I knew I needed to, but somehow I forgot. It wouldn’t matter so much if my dining room was really a dining room. And I kinda feel like the problem shouldn’t matter much while it’s my yoga room either, because I’d prefer nobody walk through there anyway, since I don’t like constantly cleaning the floor because….. shoes. There’s no reason to walk through there anyway. The laundry room and kitchen are on that end of the house, but going through the entry way, living room and then the yoga/dining room, instead of just going straight through the den to get there, is like taking the scenic route. 

I already know the light was not the best choice, since I forgot about something important. Idk what to do now. 

[stillmovingforward]

Sounds like a good reason to artfully block the 'walkthru' path with a piece of furniture and turn it into a 'cul-de-sac'. Now the chandelier has no problem. 

[buystoys]

Here are pics of the new living room furniture. I'm still waiting on a couple of pillows.

[finnime]

Reeeeeeally nice, buystoys! 

[stillmovingforward]

That's VERY nice! You picked out some nice things and set it up very well.
I can't do that. I have no artistic genes and I like bare spaces. But I love to see what others can do and it fascinates me.

[Deleted]

buystoys That looks really nice! One of the sofas in our den is almost the exact same style, just a different color.

Thanks for sharing your pictures.

[Deleted]

Jan 29, 2022 15:17:47 GMT -5 stillmovingforward said:

That's VERY nice! You picked out some nice things and set it up very well.
I can't do that. I have no artistic genes and I like bare spaces. But I love to see what others can do and it fascinates me.

I have no artistic genes either lol. I scour the web for guidance and look at pictures of professionally designed spaces to try to figure out what exactly I like about the ones that appeal to me. But even the rooms I see I like, often have too much going on for me to actually live with. Too much stuff. So I understand preferring bare spaces.

[empress of self-improvement]

I don't particularly have any artistic genes either. What I do have is the love of ripping things apart. I just finished ripping the drywall/sheetrock off the studs between the kitchen and living room. Still a little left but that can wait for when I get someone in to put a RSJ. Then I can finish my kitchen. Hell, I may even go nuts and get the new bathroom door and frame put on too! Had to rip it out for DH's wheelchair.

[stillmovingforward]

BTW - I love the little pink doggie stairs to get up onto the chair