Dealing with paint colors the previous owner left behind!!
10/15/2006 12:30 AM by Gretchen Schauffler
My clients moved into a home that was fully decorated by the previous owners. They left behind strong leftover paint colors. You could tell that the previous owners had put a lot of thought into color. All the walls were painted bright, dark or in a faux-finish. The colors were individually great, but as a house palette they were disjointed and overbearing. So much so that you couldn’t see anything else like the nice wood floors, or the natural red of the brick.
Visualizing your wall color over previous leftover wall colors is hard to do. This is why Real Estate Agents for years have recommended painting all the walls in off-white or neutral paint colors so the home can sell faster. In the Northwest, Devine Color changed the mindset of Real Estate agents when our color and paint quality began to show up on walls everywhere with rich colors that made the homes even more beautiful. They began to advertise homes with Devine Color paint as an upgrade feature for the home. The wall colors were personal and beautiful with the wood, stone, lighting, and every surface in the home. My color consulting philosophy is: create a house palette that is beautiful to you and to others and make the world a better place.
When the new home owner can’t visualize new paint colors over the old paint colors, they say, “I have got to paint the trim out, I have to re-stain the floors, I have to retile the fireplace.” Not so fast!
What makes wall color so powerful is that it make or break a home. It can make a not-so-special wood trim look like a rich leather belt or like a dirty old shoe. The wrong wall color that makes orange oak floors seem too-yellow can be repainted with the right wall color to make the same oak floors look radiant like caramelized honey.
So where do you start and how do you ignore the old paint colors without having to repaint everything white first? You go through our legendary process with our paint palettes. My clients and I ignored everything, accepted natural and wood surface colors with the at fabrics my new owners had. We looked at all of the paint colors on top of the dining room table and started to work on a home paint palette that was personal and beautiful for all.
This is the home the new owners first wanted to re-stain the wood floors. Instead, with the new paint colors they became a beautiful color to keep.
BEFORE entry: It was hard to see through all the color that was already there, the leftover paint colors from the previous owners. It did not reflect the style or needs of the new owners.
AFTER entry: Please notice, the ceilings are painted in the wall color to create beautiful canopies of color that surround your peripheral vision. I had to do some fast talking to have the ceilings painted out. The wife thought her husband was going to flip out. Why did they trust me? Because all the colors looked so pretty together on the table, they deep down knew that they would look together no matter what. For this look, try Devine Spice, Ginger or Cabernet on one side of the hall and Devine Teak, Organza or Cafe on the other (including the ceiling)
BEFORE dining: Here you see how this kind of red or yellow can overpower the room. It made the room visually small. Every thing looked choppy and disconnected. The paint itself was cheap looking. (This is important, as walls are the LARGEST color in a room, so paint finishes, like fabric blends, make a huge difference in the quality of color)
Color has such an impact on the furniture and on how good you feel in your home.
AFTER dining: Notice the cool ceiling, and how the new color makes the wood red, the floors blonde. Notice the glow from our Delicate Wall Finish and how nice it transforms light into ambiance.. Notice the room, with dark ceilings, now does not look small, but looks cozy. We could have replaced the red with one of ours, but we chose to put the red in the entry, a more appropriate color to welcome guests and family. For this look, try Devine Swell, Agave, Storm, or Denim. Changing the light was a major improvement.
BEFORE living room: Okay, the cool thing about this was that they were also going to replace the red brick fireplace, but now it looks so beautiful with the entry color, it’s a keeper! Before, it looked outdated.
As your eyes wander, they make connections between the colors that have been perfectly placed throughout the different rooms as a result of making the existing natural surface colors important.
Now the old brick not only connects to the entry, but also connects to the wood.
You are surrounded by 360 degrees of color relationships that your eyes love.
BEFORE son’s room: I always say, “Nice is good but, amazing is better. “For this look, try Devine Manzanita, Cypress and Fescue. Notice the ceiling color. Try Devine Muslin, Macadamia or Custard.
Color is personal and it is a great treat for your kids to live with the colors they love. So, let them choose see TIPS FOR PAINTING CHILDREN”S ROOMS and they will learn not to be afraid of color.
Finally, please, do not NEGLECT the master bedroom. See CHOOSING THE RIGHT BEDROOM COLOR FOR YOU!
For this look, Try Devine Frappe, Shimmer or Chutney
Look around, how does your home feel 360 degrees around you? I encourage you to step into your colors like stunning new attire.
Gretchen Schauffler
Artist and Founder of Devine Color®
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You’re certainly converting my way of thinking when it comes to ceilings. I used to feel like putting a color on them made them oppressive, but not in your photos! The before and after photos in this blog entry are truly remarkable. Thanks so much for your inspirational blog posts.
— Toby 10/16/2006 12:24 PM #
Can you tell me the color of the first bedroom in this blog? Is it Filbert? I am really struggling with finding the right tan/brown for my basement. I really like Sumatra but too dark. I like Filbert but it looks very gold. help
— Debra Koehn 01/18/2007 04:19 PM #
Hello Debra:
Color has to sing to you when you see it…...and this color looks like Devine Muslin. I think it is what you are looking for since you are searching between neutral choices, looking for a red tone. Also take a look at Devine Pecan.
— gretchen Schauffler 01/18/2007 09:35 PM #
I have Pecan on my great room walls, but need another for the fireplace wall. I’m struggling to find a good partner for the wine, tan, and charcoal “rocks”. I love greens and reds, but don’t know which direction to go. I tried Roast, but it doesn’t sing to me. Thanks for thinking of all of us who don’t have white trim!
— Amanda Stevens 01/24/2007 03:51 PM #
I am thinking of doing my dining room ceiling in cocoa and the walls in Mocha. similar to your pix, it flows into the living room where i will also use the mocha on all the walls with Foam above my offwhite fireplace/black marble. Accent pillows with foam/cocoa etc. Just like your story my husband thinks i have gone mad. I am afraid it will look too closed in. what do you think of that dark color in a small dining room with just one window? I will outline the window and baseboards in whip. thanks toni
— Toni Hatzakis 03/18/2007 07:54 PM #
I love colorful places to eat, and the richer, the better. Sounds like you already see it in your head :)
— gretchen Schauffler 04/02/2007 01:58 PM #
What do you think ?
— Beverly 04/03/2007 02:04 PM #
OK, you can check out the blog on ceiling color called Ceilings: Color from Head to Toe! YOu will love seeing ceilings play a big role in how rooms feel. A rich ceiling and wall color in a room can feel like a warm embrace with out the tight squeeze:)
— gretchen Schauffler 04/30/2007 02:37 PM #
I love the entry-AFter, I would like to do something like this but my entry is more like a room and has the stairs,I am thinking I would like to do the wall up the stairway Devine Saffron, and the living Rm next to entry Devine ALmond OR Devine Steamer. What color comos do you think for the entry?
— Casey T 06/19/2008 11:26 AM #
I’m having trouble finding a rich, yet neutral color that goes well with natural maple cabinets. This kitchen space is small and I want the feeling of light and bright. I plan to hang eclectic Mexican Talavera plates on the kitchen soffits. I used a rich olive-like green in my dining/living space which can be seen from the kitchen. Any ideas?
— sarah 09/22/2008 08:44 AM #
I have lots of ideas. Send us a picture and lets take a look if you can. We have amazing rich neutrals to pop those cabinets from Devine Cocoa™, Devine Truffle™, Devine Spice™ and Devine Teak™ to the new devinegreen: Toucan™, devinegreen: Clover™ and devinegreen: Lion™. Check out this blog: http://blog.devinecolor.com/article/96/dos-and-donts-on-testing-paint-colors. It will help you understand how our paint colors work together to give you lots of choices!
— gretchen Schauffler 09/23/2008 03:48 PM #
I need help in finding a tan to browish colors or color for my living room, the room is small so what colors would help it keep from looking smaller than it is?
— Mary Williams 12/20/2008 03:21 PM #
Mary:
Devine’s neutral paint colors work beautifully to create all kinds of different design looks. I can certainly suggest colors for you, like 20! :) But… the best way to really narrow down the paint color you want and match that color with the feeling you want in your home is to read How to use our Devine Palettes and use our Trend-proof Color Collection the way I suggest. They work like a color compass. Our paint palettes point you in a direction towards the perfect neutrals for your home. Start with our Pebbles and Creams palette page—the lightest neutral palette with have. Then move on to the next palettes and soon you have lots of choices and combinations that fit perfectly with the “color feeling” you have in mind. Here is an article about our neutral paint colors to get you started: About our Neutral Paint Colors. After you read this, if you have more questions, let me know….
— gretchen Schauffler 12/23/2008 11:19 AM #
I am getting ready to paint my bedroom and bath. My concern is what color blue should i paint because of the oak color furniture. The accessories (comforter and drapes) The colors or a satin aqua blue and chocolate brown.The drapes or the same Chocolate at the top and satin aqua blue at the bottom. The bathroom the shower curtain the same and I will use chocolate rugs in it. And i want to do white trim for the doors etc. I know I need a cool color blue. So could you tell me what would be a pretty color for the walls.
— Mattie Lewis 01/19/2009 12:03 PM #
Mattie:
Try a shade lighter or darker than the blue or chocolate in the fabrics and accessories in the room…otherwise the space will feel flat..lacking dimension. We have several blues that would be perfect but without seeing the blues you have, it is difficult for me to nail it—dead on. If you really want to do this right from the get-go (and not waste any time getting the wrong color) Read How to use our Devine Palettes and use our Trend-proof Color Collection the way I suggest.
You may end up with a beautiful light blue like devinegreen: Beluga or a strong blue like Devine Cool, a soft neutral like Devine Muslin or a rich neutral like Devine Mocha. If you follow the process, don’t be surprised if you find that colors like Devine Ginger, Cashew, or Devine Skyline shockingly beautiful and allow you to “break out” of the blue and brown box.
— gretchen Schauffler 01/20/2009 09:46 PM #