Painting the Living Room

About two years ago we painted the living room. It had been a gorgeous dark blue-green, but comments had been made that it was so dark that entering the room in mid-winter led one to dream of slitting one's own throat. So, in an attempt to lighten up, we painted it "Filbert" by Devine Paints.

(first photo, before)

Some of us liked it. Some of liked the lightening effect, but didn't like the color, which (when applied over a whole wall rather than a foot-square patch) resembled a smear of anemic peanut butter (creamy style). Some of us didn't like it.

We couldn't repaint right away; one doesn't. But the statute of limitations has passed, and now we have. It took several ballots, all of us voting across 14 different colors (children included in the vote -- they showed solidarity, both wanting "no change" or a brilliant blue which no one else liked), and in the end I think we got a color that everyone (even the children) likes a lot, and the room looks great. It's the Miller Paint Historical line: Wainscot Green.


(third photo, after)

The big difference, however, was not the paint, but the woodwork. After the discovery of the dining room's box-beamed ceiling, the single line of concave quarter round around the ceiling of the living room looked unpleasantly modern, bare and wimpy. So HomoDommi and I picked out crown molding and picture rail, and created a ceiling edging to balance the dining room. (He did all the actual work: the staining, many layers of gloss, the measuring, cutting, recutting, application, swearing, removal, reapplication, re-recutting, etc. I just supervised and gave opinions about color).

If there's a problem with the new look, it's that, after all that work (and expense, although as housing projects go this wasn't bad) it doesn't show. The woodwork looks likes it's always been there. Which is a good thing, I suppose.

For perspective, Lou and Peter Berryman question, "Why Am I Painting My Living Room?"