3 Ways to Freshen Up an Older or Historic Home

April 27, 2012 By Kristie Barnett 18 Comments

This week I got to stage a beautiful historic property to sell. It was a Bed & Breakfast for years, and formerly served as a girls’ academy in the early 20th century. Staging a home like this is a challenge. While you want to make it appeal to the widest audience possible, you have to realize that most of the people interested in buying that type of home are attracted to historically-decorated interiors.

DSC 6144 3 Ways to Freshen Up an Older or Historic Home

Staged Historic Property

So, a balance must be struck. I’m going to share 3 things that were important to freshening up this older home. These tips are applicable whether you are selling your home, or you just want to update without losing the character of your older home.

If the wallpaper [Read more...]

Filed Under: Design Intervention Tagged With: adams gold, bed and breakfast, benjamin moore, georgian green, historic, historic colors, home, paint colors, palladian blue, real estate, stager, staging, victorian, vintage, wallpaper

Nashville Color Expert Announces 2012 Color of the Year: Wythe Blue

October 24, 2011 By Kristie Barnett 16 Comments

For those who questioned the staying power of blues, paint giant Benjamin Moore recently announced their Color of the Year 2012 – and it’s one of my favorites, Wythe Blue HC- 143.

Wythe Blue is in Benjamin Moore’s Historic Color Collection, but don’t let that fool you. This watery greeny-blue is fresh enough for a contemporary space. Last summer, a new client asked for my opinion on the color in her entry and living room. Her grown son told her it was dated, but she still loved it after 10 years. Although I had lots of ideas for updating her home, this was one of the few times I advised a client to keep the same paint color. Guess what color it was? Yep, Wythe Blue. [Read more...]

Filed Under: Color Consultation, Popular Posts Tagged With: 2012, 2012 Color of the Year, benjamin moore, benjamin moore color expert, benjamin moore expert, choosing a paint color, color, color consultant, color consultation, color expert, color of the year, color trend, don draper foyer, kitchen cabinets, mad men, nantucket kitchen, nashville, paint color help, paint colors, picking paint colors, the decorologist, Woodlawn Blue, wythe blue

Please Do It Right, or Don’t Do It At All – The Accent Wall

March 14, 2011 By Kristie Barnett 65 Comments

Seems to me that many people just can’t get enough of the “accent wall.” Let’s discuss.

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I’m certainly not against having an accent wall, but you need to think about why you want one. Sometimes I think people are too scared to paint the entire room the color they really love. So they paint some wimpy neutral, then paint one wall the color they really wanted. [Read more...]

Filed Under: Design Intervention, Popular Posts Tagged With: accent wall, accent with paint, decorologist, decorologist blog, design star antonio, how to choose an accent wall, paint colors, pink geese room, the decorologist, wrong accent wall

So, Will You Do Inky Blue?

March 9, 2011 By Kristie Barnett 9 Comments

Jackie Jordon, Director of Color Marketing for Sherwin Williams, is forecasting the latest “it” color of the year: SW’s Indigo Batik (SW 7602).

SherwinWilliams indigo batik walls via tiptoebutterfly blogspot So, Will You Do Inky Blue?

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Jordon believes our country is “a blue jean nation” and this color represents that sense of relaxed traditionalism in America. In addition, prints and fabrics in ethnic batik and ikat prints are increasingly popular in this hue all over fashion and decor.

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I have specified quite a bit of inky blues in Color Consultations lately – sometimes in combination with lighter blues or blue-grays. Some of my favorites include Benjamin Moore’s Van Deusen Blue HC-156 and Newburyport Blue HC-155.

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Inky blue can definitely be dramatic, especially in a high gloss lacquer. This is a big trend in libraries, dining rooms, and even living rooms. And I love it as an accent color in the backs of bookcases.

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Traditional navy or inky blues pair beautifully with more fun, edgy colors – like Honeysuckle Pink:

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Looks fabulous with gray and lavender. I wrote about pairing blues and lavenders here. Inky blue works great with kelly or avocado green, but not sure I would have put the lavender and green together with the blue like they did here:

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I love it with limey greens and yellows, like this living room by Jamie Drake:

So the question is, will you do inky blue?

Filed Under: Color Consultation Tagged With: benjamin moore, blue ikat, blue room, color trends, indigo batik, Indigo Batik 7602, inky blue and green, inky blue room, jackie jordon, jamie drake, navy and honeysuckle pink, newburyport blue, paint colors, sherwin williams, van deusen blue

Guest Post and Interview on Annette Tatum’s Well-Dressed Home

January 28, 2011 By Kristie Barnett 1 Comment

I’ve had a super-busy week, how about you? I’ve helped clients shop for dining room tables, art, lighting, draperies, and rugs. I’ve arranged furniture, specified paint colors for walls, and hung art and family photos. And I’ve got 3 more clients to go before my weekend begins!

I am really honored that Annette Tatum, author of The -Well Dressed Home and textile designer, asked me to write a Guest Post on her beautiful blog, The Well-Dressed Home!

She specifically requested that I share with her readers how to develop a color palette for their interiors. Click here to read my interview and article, How to Create a Color Palette for Your Home. Make sure you look around Annette’s fabulous blog and stay tuned for a guest post by Annette herself Monday on The Decorologist!

Filed Under: Color Consultation Tagged With: annette tatum, choosing paint colors, creating a color palette, guest post, paint colors, well-dressed home

Pink + Turquoise = It’s a Festivus Miracle!

December 27, 2010 By Kristie Barnett 11 Comments

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Usually when Pantone’s “Color of the Year” comes out, it’s a big surprise (or shock) to most people. That’s because it usually marks a departure from what we’ve had the year before, and it’s typically in an unexpected direction (if you don’t carefully follow these kinds of trends).

How To Choose the Right Color for Your Walls

November 22, 2010 By Kristie Barnett 7 Comments

It’s not as easy as it sounds to pick the right paint color for your walls. There’s lots of things to consider including how lighting conditions affect color, like I blogged about here.

How Light Affects Paint Colors

November 15, 2010 By Kristie Barnett 12 Comments

Have you ever been in someone’s home and decided you absolutely had to have their wall color in your own home? But when you painted your own room, the color looked quite different? What’s up with that? Metamerism.

Gender Neutral Nurseries

September 15, 2010 By Kristie Barnett 20 Comments

cream nursery via customnurseryart blogspot Gender Neutral Nurseries

Last week, a client asked me to come up with a gender-neutral color scheme for her baby-to-be.

green nursery via decorpad Gender Neutral Nurseries

Sherwin Williams 2011 Color Forecast

August 23, 2010 By Kristie Barnett 14 Comments

Have you heard? Sherwin-Williams has introduced their color forecast in what they are dubbing ColorMix 2011. The 39 colors selected by Sherwin-Williams color experts for Colormix 2011 are grouped into four palettes: Purely Refined, Bold Invention, Restless Nomad and Gentle Medley. Jackie Jordan, director of color marketing for Sherwin-Williams, says “Status is no longer about consumption, it is about personal identity and ColorMix 2011 evokes that sense of uniqueness.” With this new color collection, Sherwin-Williams wants to “celebrate individualism – a trend toward not being trendy at all.” Let’s see what you think of their new palettes: