Proposed Color Schema

Yesterday I spent a fair amount of time picking out colors for the Big House. I visited two Home Depots, my neighborhood Sherwin Williams, and the Benjamin Moore/California Paints.

I find picking out colors extremely challenging. Any little help I can get makes me excited. I ended up going with Martha Stewart Living paints because they are a) mix and match and b) cheaper than my usual choice at Sherwin Williams. Martha's paints look so elegant, understated and have really cute names! Each paint chip has a helpful list of coordinating colors. Mr. Radar took Martha's advice to heart, I think. When I suggested a color that wasn't on Martha's list, he became mutinous. He said "Martha knows, Hilary." Indeed she does, Mr. R.

First Floor
Downstairs was a bit of a challenge. The house has a moody feel thanks to the Oak staircase and twin Mahogany mantles. The original fired Victorian tile are in place in both mantles.
The living room has beautiful cream tile. I chose a butter colored paint. It's very subtle, nearly neutral with a bit of cheerfulness.

Chopstick

The entry has a very large, grand mantle with peridot green tile. I wanted a green that would coordinate, but not match or compete.

Calabash

The dining room is currently painted Scorsese red. I really, really hate all over red paint. I wanted a bolder color, but something that looked cheerful and nature inspired.

Pear Cider

Second Floor

Master Bedroom has two colors. A beautiful pinky beige and a peony pink. The peony pink is actually an accent for the inside of the closet and the inside of the bookshelf.

Gypsy Moth

Peony

Mr. Radar's Office will be blue. Because that's what he has requested over and over and over.

Morning Fog

The Guest Bedroom is a nice neutral greige.

Gull

Bye Bye Blue Bungalow

Several posts ago I told you about our difficult situation regarding our bungalow. We rented the bungalow in anticipation of moving to London. Our change of station was cancelled at the last moment and we had no idea what to do. Should we leave our renter homeless? Should we try to find another property to rent for ourselves? What to do?!!

It's been a stressful situation all around. At first, Mr. Radar and I tried to find a new property for our renter. There wasn't anything comparable and we felt guilty all around. When an opportunity to rent-to-own another property came along, we decided to take it. It wasn't an easy decision. In fact, I've cried nearly every day for the last three weeks. (I'm doing better now, for the most part). I love my bungalow, and it has been a lovely home. We hope our renter loves it as much as we do. We may even keep the bungalow in the long term as a rental property. We haven't decided that yet.

There are a lot of pluses to the new property. It's only two blocks away from the bungalow. It's a two story brick Federal style house. It's very large- nearly 2,500 square feet not including the full (but unfinished) basement. It has a garage as well. The house has tons of potential but needs a lot of work. It needs bathroom & kitchen upgrades, as well as new paint and flooring.
For right now, all we can do is paint.

Cue Martha:


Today, I'm heading over to the Big Orange to get some of Martha's swatches and look at some ceiling fans.

Image from here