The White is Wrong

Striking some items off of our master to-do list because of our ice dam issue has been a little disappointing. I really hoped that the kitchen might become a reality sooner vs. later, but  that is just how life goes sometimes. I have been considering some new, less expensive DIY jobs that I can tackle on the inside since there will be virtually no DIY involved in the roof/insulation/drainage project. During that work, I will be relegated to protecting our ears from the noise and writing checks. My hand hurts already.

One of the items that remains on the master list is to paint the hallways, and I am throwing all of my DIY energy there at the moment. Last week, I posted a small photo on Instagram, so you may already know what I have been up to. One of my friends posted, “You are such a tease,” when I did not elaborate on our paint color choice. I felt a little ashamed because, I am painting the hall white. White! What kind of a big reveal is white paint?

White is easy right? It turns out that it is not so easy to choose the correct white paint. Due to the orientation of the house and the lack of windows, the downstairs hallway only receives a small amount of natural light during the day. We were hoping to improve the cave-like quality of the space, which is why we chose white in the first place.

After a long trip to Home Depot in which I came to finally understand just how many shades of white the Behr paint company has created, I was able to narrow down the choices a bit. I was looking for a shade of white that was warmer, so it would blend in with the shade of white that is already in the foyer. The paint in the foyer matches the wallpaper which is staying in the house. For that reason, my hands were tied regarding choosing a shade of white that had a yellow tint or not. Ours would have a bit of yellow for sure.

I really liked the idea of a gray/white, but it looked too harsh when placed against our current shade of paint. After a lot of cross-eyed staring, I brought home four samples:

Unfortunately, once I got the samples home, I could not remember which combination of paint was my first choice. The two on the left looked exactly the same, and neither seemed to go with the two on the right. I examined my choices in natural light, reflected off various wall colors, and under several different light bulbs. The mystery of my gut instinct did not reveal itself.

Next, I did something very un-Stacy-like. I asked Andy to go buy the paint, and I just threw two of the samples his way and hoped for the best. Warning, unless you have a strong sense of design and color, do not follow my example. I ended up with two shades of white that do not go together, and they do not coordinate with our existing white.

The new paint looks beautiful. It is crisp, clean and it definitely brightens up the hall. (Note: The trim has not been painted. I will finish it when I determine the wall color.) It also looks just fine in this picture.

I will be repainting. Lesson learned. I can do this. There are only a few thousand more shades of white to consider. Easy peasy.