Dear Debbie: We live in a country house and I am planning to paint our bedroom. I'd like to create a well-worn, comfortable style that suits an old iron headboard and handmade quilt. Bedside tables are mismatched wood. Are paint finishes out of style right now? What would you suggest? Carolann
Dear Carolann: I am asked this question all the time. Many people still think a paint finish refers to mottled, sponged walls or horrendous rag rolling, but that was "so nineties."Paint is rather like food; the ingredient has been around forever but the way it's handled keeps changing.Spaghetti, for instance, has been with us for centuries but the sauces change with the times.
Paint is the same, and its our very best decorating tool. Not only is it incredibly inexpensive for the enormous effect or change it can create, but paint can be used in endless ways. A particular colour can make our space look bigger or smaller or change our mood in an instant. Paint can help us completely reinvent a piece of outdated furniture or trick us into thinking our walls are higherthan they really are. Are paint finishes out of style? Absolutely not!
A coat of paint can add style and new life to the simplest item, and simple is hot right now. I have been collecting old ladders -- apple and olive-picking ladders, even old, wooden painter's ladders from markets and yard sales. They will be used as towel racks in the boutique hotel I am building in Tuscany. In the picture shown here I applied a matte white paint for the top two thirds of the ladder and an elegant, stony beige for the bottom third. This took me a couple of hours, and it looks fabulous. I also painted an old zinc pail in a delicious shade of apple green, and it will be used to store rolled up towels.
For your country bedroom walls, choose a luscious pastel shade such as a pale cornflower blue. Antique the bedside tables with a green base coat and top with aged white, applied and then rubbed back to show some of the green. Your quilts will complete the charming yet simple look.
Dear Debbie: We are planning to sell our house in a couple of years and are sprucing it up.I have watched many television shows about selling property and they all seem to advise a neutral white throughout. We would still like to enjoy the house before we sell and I find all white or beige a little bland. Thanks for your helpful advice. Linda
Dear Linda: I completely understand your thinking. What I have come to label "realtor ready" homes are whitewashed to please anyone looking to buy. However, I think the view of realtors is changing.They have found that buyers find it difficult to imagine a plain white space unique and stylish. Now the thought is to add a little personality to make your home stand out from the competition. This has always worked beautifully for me when I have sold my homes.I suggest nothing too wild, but maybe a few accent walls of a favourite colour and an entrance with a fabulous wallpaper pattern. This way it is your home that you can enjoy for the next few years and a sellable house when the time comes.
Debbie Travis' House to Home column is produced by Debbie Travis and Barbara Dingle. Please email your questions to house2home@debbietravis.com. You can follow Debbie on Twitter at www.twitter.com/debbie_travis and visit Debbie's new website, www.debbietravis.com.
