Somewhere around 2002 I was living in Amsterdam with my then boyfriend (now husband) in a cute apartment close to the canals. It was a rental apartment and at the time a very convenient little place to live. At first we decided to just decorate the house with all my collectables (fortunately mainly mine) I say “fortunately” as I know that lots of my friends had to put up with “his” special- but often hideous- pieces of furniture…..as you do…My boyfriend didn’t have any furniture, having moved around for work and having lived mainly in furnished apartments….such a relief! So we were happy with the basic decoration and as it was a rental couldn’t really do too much about the structural and bigger things e.g. kitchen, bathroom – all decorated to the highest standard of the 70’s!!! However I had decided to make one change and now I come to my point; I wanted to paint the long living room wall. Best decision ever. I must admit I did linger a bit and had bought the paint but was a little afraid of the effect it would have…..however one weekend I went away on a girls trip only to come back and find my boyfriend had decided to surprise me and do it for me. After a few touch ups it looked fab – boyfriend had decided to paint the wall after a couple of whiskey’s so there were some minor smudges here an there! However the end result was very effective!
If you want to make an impact that won’t cost the world then paint out your walls in a beautiful hue. Immediately it changes the feel of the room, makes your art work pop out and gives new life to some of your old pieces of furniture you were considering throwing out. Then another thing…..if you really want to make an impact and create that cozy feel that really provides the ‘double take’ effect go for DARK. Don’t be afraid and certainly don’t listen to those who will tell you not to do it…..better still don’t tell anybody, just do it…..
More than 12 years ago I decided to paint the wall dark. When we moved house I decided to leave everything fresh and crisp with one exception we painted out the living room in a pretty duck egg blue….It didn’t take too long before I realised I needed my dark walls back….now I have kitchen, dining room, and 2 of the bedrooms upstairs painted out in a lovely dark grey
If you don’t want to go dark then don’t (trust me dark is more spectacular) but any good hue will make such a difference to the room…promise!
There are various paint brands out there such as Farrow and Ball, Little Green, and the more mainstream and less expensive DIY paints…..Personally I love Farrow and Ball and there is something powdery about the paint structure that some of the other well known brands can’t recreate….
Trust me on this one – have a go