apartment therapy changing the world, one room at a time

OOh, what about Georgian Brick?

Someone in another thread said they liked Hawthorne yellow in theory, but in practice there was something off about the colour.

If you go with the brick colour, it will be the contrast of the green, so might make them both pop a bit!

I could see a brick colour too -- I'm thinking more coral or orange than bright red. A greyish blue might also work well with the other color. I like your black and white tile :)

I love going VERY dark in an entryway, to create drama and "compress" the space so the adjoining spaces really expand out from them.

Of that B-M Historic Collection, I like Audobon Russet, if remotely similar to what appears on my monitor. Has a similar gray level to the green,and is complimentary (in all senses of the word).

For all-out drama, I'd paint the entryway a charcoal gray JUST this side of black. Moldings, too.

I think a bright, warm yellow with a little red in it would look great. I'm biased, but I fully believe I've found the perfect warm yellow: American Tradition "Grand Hotel Awning Yellow." Seen here:

http://www.flickr.com/photos/ambernussbaum/81503939

I like Maxwell's yellow suggestion. I've had tremendous luck with yellow and green rooms adjacent to one another. Another option would be to look at greens one or two places lighter or darker on Benjamin Moore's color charts - in color parlance, same hue, slightly different tint (a little more white) or shade (a little black added). I think I've got that terminology right.

I think it would be nice to paint the room a rich, deep green, like the above commenter said. Not too removed from the color in the next room, but just a slightly more saturated version of that.

I must have an odd kick to my gallop because my immediate thought was "blue with a bit of gray". Maybe it's because that combination is around everywhere, but I think it's soothing and beautiful. From the BM Historical Colors, I like Whipple Blue or Jamestown Blue

Now I played with their Personal Color Viewer and those colors look much brighter on their sample wall than on the paint chip. (Hey!) Now I'm thinking more of the Van Courtland Blue or even the Stratton Blue

Thanks so much Maxwell et al for the suggestions so far! I'm trotting over to Janovic at lunch to buy some samples. (ok, so patience is not a virtue of mine!)

Erica

aubergine?

By the way, you know, these days Benjamin Moore has these new 18" x 18" square samples of selected ones of their colors for $3.99 each.

Hurry, move that plastic laundry hamper before someone comments on it!

re: the hamper - LOL isn't it the worst? A new one is on my shopping list - don't even get me started on my thin rectangle of a bathroom - don't know where I'm going to put a hamper in it yet!

Any excuse to play with my paint chips! I have a Georgian Green entry hall, leading into a smaller hall, and then into a saturated-yellow kitchen. I had a darker green in that middle hall (forget which color, but it might have been Sherwood Green) until I saw a photo taken in my home that showed both colors -- the dark geen and the yellow. They looked dreadful! Now I have Georgian Green in both halls, and Dorset Gold and Chesterton Buff in adjacent rooms. It all flows and makes that bright yellow in my kitchen settle down (there are rust-red accents in there, which keep it from going too cheery). The point of which is...green can be difficult to pair with yellows. They both need to be earthy, or you get an almost electric effect.

I've had good success with going up or down on the color chip in neighboring rooms, as suggested by Sharon. It's always a safe choice.

I'm the one who said the Hawthorne Yellow presented problems. I love it, but in my light, in my home, it goes too bright and too pastel at the same time. It looks earthier on the paint chip than it does on the wall. Against the Webster Green, I think it reads "country house." Too sweet and Connecticut-ish. The occupants of this place sound too young and hip for that.

I have seen a forest-green room up aginst a brick-red room (re: the Georgian Brick suggestion...a good one) in a Victorian home (with glossy white on the wood trim). Looked very pretty, but it ate up all the light and made people look a little pallid, so I'd warn you about that. I think that the Lancaster Whitewash is a nice idea. A little newer looking. The Amsoina Peach...well, I lived through the green/peach thing in the late 1980's. Please don't go there. It's also a combo I've seen in Victorians. It's very staid.

A note about picking colors. Use the undertone and the "temperature". The undertone of Webster Green is blue, and it's a cool color. If you go with yellows, you will be bringing up the green in it, and giving it a warmer feel. If you go with the reds, you will be going for contrast -- in tone and temp. Quite sophisticated and conservative in feel. If you go with the warm gray-tan (Lancaster Whitewash), you are balancing the coolness with that hint of yellow, but you're letting some of that blue come through. I think the blue tone is what makes Webster Green so pretty.

Then you have to consider what furniture you'll be using...

Ok, just picked up the following sample pots from Janovic:

Ansonia Peach

Lancaster Whitewash

Hawthorne Yellow

Greenmount Silk
http://www.colorcharts.org/ccorg/resources/colors.aspx?ProductID=620&CBN=TE29-RX8L-H2V1

Weston Flax http://www.colorcharts.org/ccorg/resources/colors.aspx?ProductID=620&CBN=48EF-3G8R-GW2W

Now I can't wait to get home and paint some squares!!!

ralph lauren 'faded seafoam' it looks great next to mossy greens and would work well with the black and white as well as with the orangey looking oak? floor.

I like the idea of going from a somewhat lighter color to the darker Webster Green to give the place depth. So I looked at my paint fan and would suggest

- a grey blue like Stratton Blue HC-142 or James River Gray AC-23 or Sea Star 2123-30

it looks like there's a bit of taupe in the floor tile so maybe something sophisticated like

- Copley Gray HC-104

a burst of color would be the previously mentioned aubergine palate or rust colors like Boston Brick 2092-20.

I just painted a wall Sea Pine AC-17 and have found, to my utter surprise, that the palest lavender and glassy blues look great with it. So if you're into the pastel mode you might consider looking at those palates.

Erica, I've used Greenmount Silk! It looks wonderful on the wall. It goes a little too beige under my light fixtures, I found. I had better luck (in my light, and with my prefernece for more pigment) with Castleton Mist (HC-1), so if you find GS too light, you might like that one...just two chips up.

This is a bit off-subject and might go nowhere, but I see I have a lot of green lovers here. Has anyone used the range of Classic Colors 526-32? I've tried 528-531, with no success. If any worked for you, what colors did you use with them/it?

Anne, green and lavender is a combination often seen in stone jewelry. They look very fresh together.

I am also looking into a green-yellow situation so rock on, Pat. But I'm after a deco green.

Since no one has mentioned it yet, if you don't like the entry tile, check out FLOR tiles! http://www.interfaceflor.com Very decent prices, and tons of style choices. I don't have a need in my house for them, but I do love them and recommend them to my friends.

I know! Benjamin Moore's Webster Green! I really mean it. It would play up the receeding sequence of white door frames and make the whole vista look bigger by unifying it.

Then how about a nice Kilim rug that picks upand plays with the wood floor color in the music room to cover the B&W floor tiles?

Just thought I'd mention that I painted samples on my walls last night and you can see the pics on my flickr site:

http://www.flickr.com/photos/10922888@N00/sets/72057594119248928/

We are leaning towards the Weston Flax right now but are definitely open to suggestions!

The Weston Flax is a nice compromise between Hawthorne Yellow and Greenmount Silk. Doesn't have the excessive (to me) brightness of HY or the gray/beige undertone of GS. Goes with the botanical thing you have in the bath, too (pretty shower curtain!). You have more conservative taste than I guessed! If you are looking for a slightly softer white for trim or ceiling, I've found that White Dove goes well with the HC collection (as does Atrium White if you ever want a white with a pink undertone).

Pat, I agree - green and lavender are beautiful colors together. I've done the scheme several times for clients. But the wall is more of a grey with a blue undertone and since I'm not a pastel person I was surprised that I liked the lavender with the grey/blue wall. I may have to make some lavender pillows to put on the bed next to it.

One quick question in regards to type of paint to use here - we used eggshell in the music room - but hubby says he wants the entryway glossy to reflect light better which honestly just sounds kooky to me - what about you guys?

Thanks, Erica

I love glossy paint, but it amplifies every single flaw in your plaster or sheetrock. Unless you have perfectly smooth walls, or walls with an attractive texture, I'd stick with eggshell (if you age going light). Also, I have found that deeper colors look much better in glossy paint than those with white in them...the whitish colors go milky and melted-ice-cream-looking. In the right color, BM's aquapearl finish looks great, btw. I did a Tiffany-blue room in that finish once, and it was lovely.

Pat has a great point. Gloss is a nightmare on flawed walls.

I was channel surfing one night recently and came across the last minute of Trading Spaces (hate that show and it's "designers"). One of the "designers" painted a bedroom in high gloss and you could see all the flaws as the camera went around the room. Yikes!

Is anything else going in the entry that you have to be concerned about the color of the walls? If not, I like the Weston Flax too. The two darker shades will be a little intense and require several coats for good coverage (such is the case with yellows, oranges, reds).

You can start off with the eggshell or satin finish at Ben Mo, and live with it for awhile. If you STILL think you need to go with a glossier finish, you can use a top coat. Like the one shown in this picture on Ben Mo's site for shadow stripes:
http://tinyurl.com/omu6w

And, yes, that's an option too, doing vertical stripes in the gloss top coat. Or dividing the room horizontally, giving yourself a chair rail and below or above of gloss top coat. Or, check out Shauna's apartment (in the Small cool contest page), and instead of using three colors, just do a middle stripe of gloss top coat.

You can see in the picture at Ben Mo that the stripes appear to change the color on the walls. And it will change according to the light and the direction at which it is viewed.

And please promise to update this thread as you paint and finish the walls. I love love love before and after pictures!!!

I just painted my bathroom Ben Moore Ladybug Red and it looks great! Worth looking into.

I just painted a bedroom with HC-126, avon green and it looks great. I am looking to use this as the accent wall. The other three walls were painted with HC 139, salisbury green and came out way too light. I am looking for another color that will go better with the accent color I picked out. Any suggestions?

Thank you,

Mike