What's in a can of paint?

I LOVE PAINTING! I always have, and I know many of you are grumbling at me. Just the idea of painting makes me  want to run to the hardware store to pick up swatches. I change the colors of my rooms every two or three years. Not because they need to be changed, I just like to paint, and like to see the transformation that occurs.

When we built our house almost 8 years ago, every room was white. Crisp and clean, but not a functional color with a child. Here and there I would do some painting. Light blue for the baby's room, tan for the bathrooms, light green for my bedroom. *YAWN*. Then I got wild and decided to do one bathroom in a darker shade of brown. Almost camel color. Then another bathroom was dark tanish/greyish/purplish. And that was the extent of my colors. Yup, I was almost asleep as I painted. So, I painted my living room yellow. Looking back it was an obnoxious, awful yellow. But it was color. It made me feel alive. Lightened my day. Needless to say, it didn't last long on the walls, but the feeling it left made me want more out of my paint.

I still use subtle colors in some rooms, but they all have a purpose. Make a statement. Play off of the light coming through the windows, and set a mood. I put a lot of care into the planning of my rooms, their accessories, and layout. Of course I have help from a great friend who is an aspiring(and amazing) decorator, but now I'm not afraid to try new things. Just last week my dining room and kitchen went from a yawn/tan/peach to a vibrant greyish purple with some short walls of deep eggplant, with white and silver accents. Ahhh.

Next time you're thinking of a tan/off white/blah paint swatch, reach for something a bit more bold. You just might surprise yourself.

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