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Across the Fence:  Color combination opinions wanted  |
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happymama58
True Blue Farmgirl
1210 Posts
Patti
Missouri
USA
1210 Posts |
 Posted - Jul 02 2007 : 3:06:32 PM
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I sure wish I could scan and post this picture I have so you all could see it. Anyway, here's what I want to do with the kitchen, but let me explain first. I have always loved the beach, ocean, etc., and have had a lifetime dream of living in a tiny East coast town. I realize, though, that I'm almost surely going to be a land-locked Midwesterner the rest of my life. Before and as we were building our new house (cottage, really), I kept picturing lots of white, with light blues/greens/pastels.
Our bedroom is painted Nantucket Green (a soft, light green) and I have lots of green, pink, etc., in there. I'm planning to paint the master/main bath the same color, with the white clawfoot tub, and paint the dresser & mirror that was red a soft white. Then I'll use soft green, light blue (an ocean color, not a country blue), and maybe coral towels.
The kitchen has been my biggest challenge because I kept seeing so much red and was drawn to them somewhat. But I've found I want the softer colors there, too. I've been keeping a house idea file for years and have had a picture for ages. The kitchen has white cabinets, oak floors (which I now have), butcher block countertops, and the pottery and main colors are a soft teal, soft blue, and muted green. It looks really good in the picture, but I'm wondering if I can pull it off. Do you think this is one of those things that looks good in theory but not in reality?
I really do want your honest opinions, so tell me the truth -- please! Would you go with this?
Some people search for happiness; others create it.
Please visit me at www.marykay.com/pmiinch |
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BotanicalBath
True Blue Farmgirl
1014 Posts
Elizabeth
Ohio
1014 Posts |
Posted - Jul 02 2007 : 3:29:10 PM
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Paint is cheap. If you keep your cabinets, counter tops and appliances neutral colors... you can paint and add any color accessories you want. If you don't like it, change it.
But before you paint, get all of the paint chips in those colors... and hang them on the wall. As the light changes during the day and night... pull off the ones you dont like. The lighting in a "staged room" is different than reality... and every house is different too. SO what looks good in a picture and in the store, wont look the same in your home.
E-
BotanicalBath@peoplepc.com www.Botanical-Bath.com www.BotanicalBath.etsy.com http://botanicalbath.blogspot.com/
"I do my housework in the nude. It gives me an incentive to clean the mirrors as quickly as possible." |
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Alee
True Blue Farmgirl
22944 Posts
22944 Posts |
Posted - Jul 02 2007 : 3:32:27 PM
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Patti- I think you can pull it off! It sounds very pretty and oceany! I love greyish green and muted grey blues together with a really bright white! Like ocean waves and soft clean clouds :)
Alee
The amazing one handed typist! One hand for tying, one hand to hold Nora! |
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Love-in-a-Mist
True Blue Farmgirl
367 Posts
Shannon
Independence
Oregon
USA
367 Posts |
Posted - Jul 02 2007 : 3:32:36 PM
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I just saw something like that in a magazine and it was beautiful. Ugh! I can't find it right now, but it was from an old cottage living or country home. Anyway it was a kichen in a cabin on a lake. All the pottery and pieces that you could see were blues and greens. The walls were white with some kind of a green wash ragged over it, but they were really light. I say go for it, especially for a beachy look.
http://diaryofafarmerswife.blogspot.com/ |
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summerbreeze
True Blue Farmgirl
277 Posts
Laura
WA
USA
277 Posts |
Posted - Jul 02 2007 : 3:40:12 PM
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I think Love has it right. Keep teh cabinets and countertops netural and you can paint any color. I have a hard time with paint swatches. I go to the paint store and buy the smallest amount of paint they will sell me in about 12 different shades. I thin paint a large piece of poster board each color. I cut up each board and put them all around the room and leave them all up for about three days. Usually I find out I don't like most of them. Then everyday I get rid of another one until I finally pick the color I like. If you find dishes you like they can even match a color out of it. Red is trendy right now. I think you should stick with the colors that have made you happy for a long time. How fun, enjoy your project.
Laura
You only live once,if you do it right once is enough. |
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happymama58
True Blue Farmgirl
1210 Posts
Patti
Missouri
USA
1210 Posts |
Posted - Jul 02 2007 : 4:55:15 PM
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Shannon, if you find that magazine again, please let me know the title & issue. Even if it's an old issue I could probably order it. I'd really appreciate it!
Some people search for happiness; others create it.
Please visit me at www.marykay.com/pmiinch |
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happymama58
True Blue Farmgirl
1210 Posts
Patti
Missouri
USA
1210 Posts |
Posted - Jul 02 2007 : 4:57:28 PM
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I forgot to tell you the walls are white & I'm not planning to paint them. Since the living room, dining room, and kitchen are all one open area, I decided to keep all the walls in there white. Our house is small, so the white really makes it seem larger, and it keeps the cottage feel I really like. We have wainscotting in that large area, and I really like how it turned out.
Some people search for happiness; others create it.
Please visit me at www.marykay.com/pmiinch |
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Bluewrenn
True Blue Farmgirl
1122 Posts
Erin
Texas
USA
1122 Posts |
Posted - Jul 02 2007 : 9:25:34 PM
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(I'm from an East Coast coastal town just like your described.)
I have some dishes that were made in Virginia at one of the pottery places in the Blue Ridge Mountains. Anyhow, they are a creamy white with a ocean blue, light green and leafy green pattern of waves on them. I have them paired with some light green and ocean blue mixing bowls that I found one year at Garden Ridge. And our kitchen right now is a pale wintery ice blue with cobalt blue tiles behind the sink. It's really pretty and matches what you are trying to do with yours.
Keep in mind however, that if you want an authentic seaside theme, esp. New England or the mid-Atlantic, that dark grayish blue, pale driftwood grey, cream or tan sand and algae green are the colors you will usually see. That and the occasional white and gray seagull.
I think your color scheme will be pretty. If you want to make it seem "beachy or oceany" then just use nautical themed accents - like a lighthouse lamp or a small basket of sand dollars or shells. Or put a small piece of driftwood on the mantle. Or use hemp rope to accent the top of a lamp or something. Can you find any buoys? They are fairly inexpensive on ebay and you should be able to find some. They might make interesting wall hangings...
My Homesteading Journal http://toomyvara.livejournal.com
My craft journal http://bluewrenn.livejournal.com
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Edited by - Bluewrenn on Jul 02 2007 9:30:50 PM |
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catscharm74
True Blue Farmgirl
4687 Posts
Heather
Texas
USA
4687 Posts |
Posted - Jul 02 2007 : 10:01:36 PM
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We are very similiar in tastes- my home is what I call Shabby beach- minus the lace and too many flowers. Most of my furniture is white and I prefer paler colors on the wall and in fabrics. One idea that was recommended to me when I consulted the designer at Ethan Allen (for free because we just started chatting) was that the colors should be washed out or bleached out- like many years of use. I have a large jar I keep seashells in and one for those smooth black rocks/pebbles you find on the beach. There is a paint collection at Lowes that is by Martha Stewart and it is organized by the look you want. Look at this link and mess with the paint colors...
http://www.valsparatlowes.com/get-inspired.html
Good luck!!!
Cheers,
Heather |
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Lavendar fields dreamer
True Blue Farmgirl
1032 Posts
little monkeys mommy
washington
USA
1032 Posts |
Posted - Jul 02 2007 : 11:10:33 PM
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ok so i dont know how your house is set up with walls but have you thought about an accent wall in the kitchen just to draw your eye there or something like that. i love the beach and have always wanted to have a vacation home with that style but not yet and of course i have so many styles i dont know where to go...... very happy that you've figured out the direction you want and that you love it
lavendar girl |
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KYgurlsrbest
True Blue Farmgirl
4853 Posts
Jonni
Elsmere
Kentucky
USA
4853 Posts |
Posted - Jul 03 2007 : 06:43:28 AM
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There are sooo many possibilities! What will you do with your red accent pieces you've been saving?
We have an old cottage (but it's in Kentucky), and I go towards very light breezy colors with high gloss white trim and wainscotting. Sounds like some of the same color schemes as you've chosen, but I subscribe to simple colors so that I don't get sick of them, and I can swap out accent pieces and colors more frequently. The wainscotting was a great idea in our house, painted high gloss white, because it makes it casual but "finished" at the same time. Here's a thought about your kitchen--something I've tossed around in my place, too. What if you keep your walls in the kitchen white, except for one. An accent color is great (if you can decide on one) or you COULD bisect the wall with a chair rail or wainscotting up to about 4-5 foot high and do the top part of the wall with green or black blackboard paint. Dinner menu's, grocery lists, hand drawn sailboats....A friend of ours did it in her little cottage and I'm so envious I could spit. Her children have a little stool and they practice their names, or draw faces or whatever. Such a great gathering tool in the "gathering place". The other colors sound wonderful, and I haven't seen the picture of course, but I may break up the white walls and white cabinets with a softer tile backsplash, or maybe white subway tiles with accent pieces.
The colors sound lovely, and restful. Which, honestly, is something I think a cottage should feel like.
Ok, now I'm going to go home and fix up MY kitchen!
"In the spring, at the end of the day, you should smell like dirt." Margaret Atwood
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happymama58
True Blue Farmgirl
1210 Posts
Patti
Missouri
USA
1210 Posts |
Posted - Jul 03 2007 : 07:05:15 AM
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Wonderful ideas! I really appreciate you-all taking the time to share with me.
I've got 2 ideas about the red accent pieces -- swap here and list on ebay what's left. I need to make a list of things I've decided to get rid of and the few things I've unpacked that I don't have a place for and list it here. That may be my "to do" item for the next day dh is at work (Friday). The only problem is that with the dial-up I have it takes forever to do the pictures. I have some aluminum bowls with lids, a white chamber pot with red trim (no lid) and the wood part of the hande is read, a couple of vintage tins, a potato masher, etc. That's just what I can think of off the top of my head. I'll definitely work on that Thursday or Friday.
Some people search for happiness; others create it.
Please visit me at www.marykay.com/pmiinch |
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queenofdreamsz4u
True Blue Farmgirl
3845 Posts
Stephanie Suzanne
Smoky Mountains Tennessee
USA
3845 Posts |
Posted - Jul 03 2007 : 07:10:17 AM
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Hey there, Yes you can pull this off....it will be beautiful  The white cabinets are cottage and also coastal. The blend is perfect! These colors will be right on...I've lived on the Gulf Coast off and on I guess half my life so I know first hand what you are trying to acheive...Follow that plan with those kitchen colors and I know you will love it.
If you are hesitant to start with the colors straight on the walls then buy some 20 x 30 inch pieces of poster board and paint them in your different colors and hang them in different parts of the room to see how the different stages of sunlight reflect....This is a large enough paintboard sample to really give you a good idea of what's it's gonna look like.. Have fun...would love to see pictures as you go along.
Peace, Stephanie
www.dreamkingdomdesigns.com
A Creative Journey
www.dreamkingdomdesigns.blogspot.com
quote:
Originally posted by happymama58
The kitchen has white cabinets, oak floors (which I now have), butcher block countertops, and the pottery and main colors are a soft teal, soft blue, and muted green.
Some people search for happiness; others create it.
"hold close your inner child and always listen to the gentle whispers" ~queenofdreamsz
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Across the Fence: Color combination opinions wanted |
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Color combination opinions wanted
