Sherwin-Williams Color of the Year 2012 & A Color Consultant’s Tangent

Sometimes I like to get the reactions of The Decorologist’s Facebook followers to new trends and design news.  This week, I posted a link about Sherwin-Williams 2012 Color of the Year and asked my followers what they thought about it. 
 
 

 
 
Here are some of the responses I got after posting:
 

Turn Your Builder-Grade Bathroom Into a Spa In One Simple Step

Who wouldn’t want to spend every morning in a bathroom that feels like an oasis of calm?

spa via missionbay hyatt Turn Your Builder Grade Bathroom Into a Spa In One Simple Step

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So you have a drab, neutral bathroom.   It’s your typical builder-grade bathroom – the cabinets and hardware are fine, just nothing special.  You’re tired of it, but you don’t have the budget for a major rehab.

DSC 0425 Turn Your Builder Grade Bathroom Into a Spa In One Simple Step

Bathroom Before

 

 

Want to make your bathroom feel like a hotel spa without the expense of a weekend get-away?  Is that even possible?

DSC 0424 Turn Your Builder Grade Bathroom Into a Spa In One Simple Step

Builder-Grade Bathroom Before

 

 

What this bathroom needed was the right paint color, which was then repeated in the accessories to create a calming, spa-like feel.

DSC 4905 Turn Your Builder Grade Bathroom Into a Spa In One Simple Step

Bathroom After The Decorologist

 

The best color for a spa-like feel is a blue with a hint of green, like the one I chose for this Nashville bathroom.  There’s no one perfect color that will do the trick for everyone’s lighting conditions and existing elements – you have to try several in that color family until you find just the right one.   Some good ones to try are Benjamin Moore Beach Glass or Gray Cashmere, or Sherwin-Williams Sea Salt.

If you need helping choosing paint colors, contact The Decorologist for a Color Consultation that will change the way you feel about your home.

Something To Talk About in the Loo

This modern little powder room was previously a vicious red – my client thinks it was called “Satan Red.”  I haven’t been able to find a paint named that, but  she swears that’s what it was named when it was painted a decade ago!  Well, now it’s painted a much friendlier Sherwin Williams’ Tupelo Tree.

DSC 4462 Something To Talk About in the LooSherwin Williams’ Tupelo Tree 

 

A powder room can be a great place to showcase an interesting grouping of art.  This client has lots of really cool modern pieces like the ones we hung on this wall.

DSC 4460 Something To Talk About in the Loo

Modern Art in the Loo

 

What do you think about art groupings in a bathroom?

Proof That Colors Read Lighter on the Ceiling

As a paint color consultant, one of the things I always explain to my clients is that paint colors appear lighter on the ceiling than they do on the wall.  I’m not sure they always believe me. 

blue painted ceiling via conspicuousstyle Proof That Colors Read Lighter on the Ceilingsource

 

The reason this is true has to do with the way in which lighting hits the ceiling vs. the wall, and we all know that lighting greatly affects the way we perceive paint colors, right? [Read more...]

In the Pink at the Southern Living Showcase House Tour

The Southern Living Showcase Home was open to tour here in Nashville through this last weekend, and it did not disappoint.  I love the exterior - the REAL shutters with actual shutterdogs, the gas lamp above the entry, the gray gutters.

DSC 1986 In the Pink at the Southern Living Showcase House Tour

Southern Living Show House in Nashville

 

Let me get the bragging out of the way so that you can tour the rest of the home.  As a Nashville paint color specialist, I had the honor of being called in to assist AB Home Interior’s Amanda Burdge in choosing paint colors for the guest room. 

DSC 2023 In the Pink at the Southern Living Showcase House Tour

Southern Living Showcase House Guest Room by AB Home Interiors

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So, Will You Do Inky Blue?

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.

HSTMOD1 So, Will You Do Inky Blue?

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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.

blue ikat drapes blue room via leftcoastluxe blogspot So, Will You Do Inky Blue?

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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.

laquered blue room via decorpad So, Will You Do Inky Blue?

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

lilil diallo book details via aliciabdesigns blogspot So, Will You Do Inky Blue?

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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:

blue rug living room via elledecor So, Will You Do Inky Blue?

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

blue and green living room jamie drake So, Will You Do Inky Blue?

So the question is, will you do inky blue?

Heather’s Color Forecast

Heather Spriggs Thompson has a lovely blog that I follow called Gathering Spriggs.  Last week, she added her two cents to the Sherwin-Williams ColorMix 2011 post I wrote. 

color forecast1 1024x899 Heathers Color Forecast

Heather has a way of choosing and combining the most beautiful photography and colors.   Check out her take on Sherwin-Williams’ new collection here.

 

 

Photo Credit:  Heather Spriggs Thompson.

Sherwin Williams 2011 Color Forecast

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: SherwinWilliams 170185253 std 225x300 Sherwin Williams 2011 Color Forecast


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Why Men Fear Painting Wood


It’s an age-old question:  why do men fear painting wood?  I can’t tell you how many times the following has occurred:  I have a color consultation with the lady of the house.  There are some horrible 1970s-1980s pieces of wood furniture, dreaded fake paneling in the den, or  dated wood cabinets in the kitchen.   paint can via co ho md us Why Men Fear Painting Wood

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Matte Black is the New Black


I must admit that when I think of high-gloss black, I think cheesy bachelor pad.  In the 1980′s.  Today, the hottest way to play with black is to use remove the gloss – matte black is in.   You might just want to go with an accent wall, like here.

chalkboard wall by Nicole Sassaman via decor8 Matte Black is the New Black

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pixel Matte Black is the New Black