Choosing a Metal Roof Color
January 7, 2013 § 4 Comments
Just a pet peeve of mine, but I really do not care for a bright red metal roof on an old historic stone house. I know that some of my bias is regional–I’m sorry if I’ve offended anybody’s taste. But what I much prefer is a color that comes from the stone itself. What that does is blend the roof with the house and not call it out like a big old stop sign on a dirt road.
This photo shows a neutral option for a metal roof color. Perfect actually for the little stone house above.
If you are choosing a metal roof color for your home and you do NOT want to feature the roof as the focal point of the neighborhood, choose a color that blends or approximates a traditional roof color (grays, bronze, brown, charcoal, black). On the other hand, if you need people to find your house in a snowstorm, then choose a bright Crayola color and love it. Fair warning.
Return of the Gilded Age, Well Not Exactly
January 3, 2013 § 1 Comment
We have Downton Abbey, Princess Kate, and the popularity of all things English to thank for the resurgence of gold in interior design right now. At least that’s my opinion… And what a welcome sight it is.
After too many years degilding homes of anything that even hinted of gold, brass or yellow, the hue of royalty has returned.
The new interpretation, however, is decidedly fresh as we see in this living room from Traditional Home magazine. The wall color is so subtle that it accentuates even the creamy tan stripe on the window panel and the moldings on the ceiling. The gold demilune table and classic gold-framed art above it pop. As does the Chinese porcelain, as if pulled directly from the painting. Even the floor color is perfect, establishing a solid grounding upon which to layer all those beautiful blues and wheat tones.
The look is not your grandmother’s living room, with all due respect to your grandmother. Gold is nolonger shunned from updated decor.
Welcome back, gold.
Interior designer: Joseph Minton, with Paula Lowes and Michelle M. Wade
Black: Sophisticated, Modern, House Color?
January 2, 2013 § Leave a comment
Just like the LBD (little black dress), black houses are popping up all over and with predictably dramatic effect. The trend seems to be particularly hot in Southern California although I’ve seen it in Massachusetts too. Why black? Well, why not.
-Black as a house color fits into any neighborhood and certainly stands out from the myriad white, yellow, and beige houses already out there.
-Black looks terrific in the winter if you have snow in your area. We all know how dirty white houses can look even after a fresh snowfall.
-Black can make a small, insignificant ranch look modern and even spacious. Add a pop of bright color to the door and you have a stand-out in the neighborhood instead of a ho-hum been-done-before.
-Black, like white, makes any color look good. Imagine the opportunities for vibrant landscape color along the foundation of a black house.
-Black is a color to consider if you plan to paint your red brick rambler. If you’re tired of the tract house vibe, why not make a major statement.
When does black on the house NOT work? When it starts to fade unevenly and make the house look like charred remains of a terrible event.
If you decide to paint your house black, you must prepare to keep the paint fresh, the lawn mowed, the weeds pulled, the clutter corralled, and the driveway plowed because your house will create quite a sensation on the block. Nobody will drive by without noticing. And that’s kind of fun.
Bored with beige yet? Consider black.
Hop the Trend: Consignment Stores
December 29, 2012 § Leave a comment
Okay, I admit it. I am a consignment store junkie. And with good reason. Not only is it “green” to furnish your home with items that have been around awhile, it’s amazing what you can find for a fraction of the retail price for a new item. And the consignment bug has started to spread to my clients. During one project, we were looking for a settee of a specific length to fit in a tight spot. Tricky to find new anyway unless we went custom. My client decided to check out the local consignment store, and he found the perfect piece. Even the legs and wood color were perfect. Call it luck or call it karma.
The Cannery Exchange in Newport Beach, CA. (photo credit: Jody Tiongco)
I am convinced that these vintage pieces have a soul — they certainly have a history visible by the lovely worn patina on the arms or the scratches on the tabletop. But every scratch has a story attached to it, and that story comes with the piece to its new home.
You can always paint and recover a chair, for example, if you want a painted furniture look. Again, you’re probably starting with a chair that’s far better constructed than what you can find now so you’re already ahead. It’s like finding a piece of gently worn designer clothing or better yet a piece with the tags still hanging on it. Bonus!
Give your home some character by adding a piece or two of consignment furniture. But beware. You might catch the consignment bug too.
What’s All the Buzz about Undertones?
December 28, 2012 § 5 Comments
Determining a beige color undertone (defined by color expert Maria Killam as “a colour applied under or seen through another colour”) can be tricky. Beige can have one of several undertones: pink, yellow, or green are the basics. If you have dining room furniture with a decidedly yellow/orange hue and walls with a pink undertone like Benjamin Moore’s Georgetown Pink Beige HC-56, then yikes, you have a problem. Off to the paint store.
Bottom Line: Mixing pink-beige with yellow-beige (or yellow/orange) is a big no-no. Fix: Choose a paint with a different (non-pink) undertone like Benjamin Moore’s Monroe Bisque HC-26 that has a yellow undertone and looks great with the golden oak.
If you avoid the mistake of mixing pink and yellow undertones, you’re on your way to understanding them. The other nuances of what undertones to mix and not to mix will come much easier. Note: Mixing pink and yellow vibrant hues is perfectly okay. It’s just the dreaded undertones that can trip you up. Beware.
Light Up Your Front Door
December 12, 2012 § Leave a comment
Why wait for the holidays to light up your front door? You spent enough time choosing the color — show it off all year with a boost in your exterior lighting.
Choose properly spaced recessed fixtures that will wash light down on the door color and other parts of the porch as in this photo (lighting by Illumination
s, Inc.). Or add a large pendant over the door and sconces on either side. Make sure the lighting fixtures are big enough that they don’t look skimpy from the street. Bigger is usually better when it comes to lighting.
While you’re choosing your new light fixtures, take advantage of all the different metal color options you have now. Don’t settle for wrought iron if another color would update your house and make it look fabulous.
So when the holidays are over and you take down the hanging twinkle lights and box up the spot light from the front door, take a close look at what lighting is left. Maybe it’s time for an upgrade.
Let there be light!
Getting Down to Brass Tacks about Brass
December 11, 2012 § Leave a comment
What a difference a decade makes. What used to be the lighting 
fixture of choice in upscale homes is now (still, even after several years out of favor) being tossed in a dumpster by young home owners who view the shiny yellow metal as the equivalent of how we viewed our grandmother’s dark brown paneling. Of no value.
Instead there are dozens of metal choices and finishes for lighting and other home accessories like light switch covers and doorknobs. So anti-shiny-brass are today’s home buyers that some are just shy of insisting that even all shiny brass door hinges be switched out to something else.
Note: these design trends may be regional and they don’t apply to historic homes so don’t panic if you love your brass chandelier and it fits your home’s decor perfectly. But If you are not happy with your shiny traditional yellow brass chandelier in your dining room or kitchen, you have three options:
1) Thumb your nose at metal color trends and simply wait for shiny yellow brass to come back in style. Kind of like you kept your go-go boots and bell bottoms from junior high. Yes, both trends came back around but not quite the way they looked in the late 60s. But still, doing nothing is always a design option.
2) Paint the shiny brass chandelier a different color. I once stood on a ladder, leaned over the dining table and painted my client’s brass chandelier first with a base coat of matte black to cover all the sheen and then a faux finish of browns and oranges to simulate a rustic bronze finish. It worked. The house sold.
3) Replace the old chandelier with a more current brass option like this one. The metal is toned down (antiqued) and the candelabra bulbs are covered with contemporary silk drum shades — a traditional yet updated look. Honestly, the antique brass has been around forever, and it went through a period of disfavor right around the time the shiny metal took over. But the muted finish, with updated shades, is back and looking good.
Neutral but Never Boring
December 10, 2012 § 2 Comments
Does your home scream 1972 when you enter the front door? Are you stuck with metallic wallpaper on the ceiling in the guest bath, orange shag carpet in the basement, or an avocado bathtub? Then maybe it’s time to update. But this time, instead of hopping on the latest hot new trend (I could name a few here, but I’ll resist), how about giving your home a classic re-do. Something that will stand the test of time, or at least a decade or two, without branding your home with a particular year. For that kind of longevity, we turn to a neutral palette, but neutral does not have to mean beige and it’s hardly ever boring.
-The key to a neutral palette is texture. You could have an all-white living room but if that white includes fuzzy white pillows, a shiny white marble table top, and some warm white chenille upholstery, then the room will have plenty of interest.
-Neutral does not have to mean just one color either. In this room, the walls are a latte color, the sofa is dark brown leather, and there is plenty of color in the books and objects on the white bookshelves. What makes this room work so well is that the stonework on the fireplace is a feature and because the other furnishings do not stomp all over the subtle colors in the stones, the room’s palette includes peaches and golds and grays and tans and taupes — more than enough colors.
-Neutral allows you to bring in color in the art, pillows, and other more temporary furnishings and accessories without clashing with a strong wall color and a brightly colored sofa.
-Neutral allows you to change your accessories with the seasons and the holidays without overpowering the existing color palette or the holiday decorations.
-And when you’re selling your house, neutral allows potential buyers to see themselves in your home and that is critical for a successful sale.
So as you choose tile and furnishings and paint for your newly updated space, consider neutral because neutral does not have to be boring.
houzz, Pinterest, and the Barrage of Creative Ideas
November 20, 2012 § Leave a comment
At last count, there were 867,525 spaces on houzz.com to feed your quest for inspiration. Hours — days –of poring over photos of beautiful designs. And then there’s Pinterest where, by their account, “millions of new pins are added every week.” Is anybody out there feeling overwhelmed by the sheer volume of ideas??
If you are planning a renovation, big or small, to any part of your house, here are a few tips to avoid creative overload:
-Realize that not every good idea will work in your home. Although that wall color online looks spectacular with the view of the ocean out the window, the same color may look completely different in your room with limited natural light. When you’re choosing wall color, start with your own home, the lighting you have, and the colors, furniture, and artwork in other rooms. A beautiful wall color inspiration is most likely already there.
-Stick with what you love, not something you think you should love because it’s fashionable. As we all know, trends come and go, and unless you want to re-do your home with every new trend, your home will be defined by the period in which the trend was popular. Look at metallic wallpaper from the 70s, for example. If you love it, then go for it. But try to avoid catching a wave only to find yourself tossed up on the beach in a year or two.
-And finally, unless you’re well organized at assigning ideas to a particular project or room as they come cascading into your head via web sites and social media, then focus on one project at a time. Try to avoid mission creep unless you have the budget and time to devote to starting and, most importantly, finishing all your projects. You will be bombarded with ideas and inspiration that may have you ripping up carpet in your family room when you really wanted to work on the bathroom first. Stay focused.
Enjoy the opportunity to see how millions of other creative people have transformed their homes. We are truly living in an age of enlightenment bordering on informational hysteria. Try and stay calm.
Quick Updates for the Holidays
November 20, 2012 § Leave a comment
Do you have friends and family coming to the house for the holidays? Here’s one way to make sure they don’t drive right past the house. Change the numbers on the front so they are visible from the road. There are so many new options out there for something other than the standard big-box-store metal numerals. Be creative.
Your Home & Color Coach 