Things are a little farther along than they were in this photo, taken in April. The electric, plumbing, heating and air, and window trim is all done, the cabinets are being built, and the old plaster walls (not visible in this photo) are repaired and ready for a new top coat. The floors will be refinished and stained in about three weeks (can’t wait for that day!) and after that, things will move really, really quickly in the new upstairs space in The Building.
The pressing issue right now is what color to apply to the walls, the columns—basically everything that isn’t brick or rock. The ceilings will be smooth-coated and painted a soft white just to stay on the neutral side, but for the walls, we’re using an environmentally friendly, troweled-on product that comes in a bunch of different colors. I’ll tell you more about it in a separate post, but I love it because it’s lightly textured and has more character than regular paint, and once it’s on, it’s on and you never have to paint it.
So the issue, obviously, is which color to choose. After flirting with the color palate the product offers and taking temporary plunges into orange, green, and blue insanity, we have settled into two neutrals.
They’re two completely different neutrals, though.
One color is called “beach” and whether it was intentional or not, when we got the sample in the mail, we discovered it was almost a dead match for the color of the previous plaster—which you can see above the mirrored part of the column here. It’s warm without being too yellow, and subtle without being too boring.
And best of all, it will look really nice with the colors of the mural. And once the floor is stained, I think it will be a nice contrast to all the wood.
Here’s my best attempt to reproduce the color—called “Beach“—using Photoshop. This lacks the light sandy texture the product has, but gives you some idea about the shade.
Now, the second color we’ve narrowed it down to is also a neutral—but it’s very, very different! It’s called Slate Grey, and the best way I can describe the textured, slightly mottled sample is that it looks like a gorgeous chalkboard. I absolutely love it because I’m always drawn to that rich charcoal color…
But also because it looks really pretty against all the red brick.
Two very different directions to head, each with its own merits.
Beach would be more subtle, more neutral, and might lighten up the place once the floors are stained. Also, it’s the color the plaster used to be upstairs.
Slate Grey would be deeper, richer, more dramatic, and would look gorgeous with the red brick and wood cabinets.
Would love to hear your thoughts in the Comments!
And, to make it easy, here’s a simple poll if you’d like to weigh in.
Thank you for your help, as always. I can’t seem to make up my mind on this one.