The New Blue Room: In Progress (Help Wanted!)

I thought it was high time for me to reveal my new blue guest bedroom!

Earlier this month, David and I painted this once-green room a very pretty shade of Farrow & Ball-inspired blue.

  

I originally chose F&B's "Skylight" for the room, but wanted a lighter shade of that colour. Knowing that F&B doesn't do custom blends (and not trusting my paint mixing skills), I got Benjamin Moore to make me up a custom batch of "light" Skylight.  It is a truly gorgeous porcelain blue with a hint of grey.  The photos don't do justice to this graceful blue: 

As you can imagine, painting this built-in bookcase was an almighty nightmare.  First, we painted the entire frame with two coats of Benjamin Moore's "Cloud White".  Then I taped around all 26 back rectangles (groan) and we painted the blue rectangles (two coats!).  In all, painting the bookcase and the rest of the room took us three weekends, with prep and taping and moving things.  I have a terrible back and was laid up for two weeks afterwards, I swear! 

Here's the bookcase pre-painting (filled with cookbooks and clutter!).  The room was a pretty but dated green:  

I think the blue and white is a vast improvement:

Here's a closeup of a quickly-styled shelf (Suzanne Kasler would be proud - she loves a soft blue room):  

I have not filled the shelves yet as we still intend to sand and paint all the ugly brown trimwork in the room.  I'm also planning to move the utilitarian books and clutter and make this a more beautiful display area.

David and I sleep in this room all summer, as it is partly sub-terranean and delightfully cool!  So I want it to be lovely for us as well as guests.

This room still needs a lot of work. I have big plans but a small budget.

Besides painting the brown mouldings, I intend to buy:

1. a beautiful antique night table (this could take a while!)

2. an inexpensive window treatment

3.  new closet door hardware

4.  a new light fixture and table lamp

5.  all new bedding!

6.  a headboard, maybe home made

Here's where I need you.  I am totally helpless when it comes to this window:

As you can see, I left the existing valance structure in place (previous owner), thinking that I might replace the valance with a simple white linen one (the previous one was Velcro'd on, for easy switching), and just leave the blinds.  We like having blinds as they block the light well and David opens the left window sometimes at night, so having separate blinds can be helpful, especially for opening and closing in the middle of the night!  

I would love a single white linen Roman blind.  But the double blind setup is practical and these old ivory metal Hunter Douglas blinds work like a charm.  New blinds never have mechanisms as good as the old ones!  Economically, it doesn't make sense to replace them, although white would be nicer if I wanted to simply replace in-kind. 

I would actually love some softness here but how do you arrange curtains at a window like this?  The ledge is quite deep (6") so curtains will not hang to the floor. I've been thinking of draping muslin neatly across the valance and then down the sides, but don't want a Shabby Chic hippie look!

Any suggestions for this crazy window?

In the lighting department, I think something simple and classic would be best, like this affordable fixture from Hudson Valley:

Oddly, the light fixture in this room is in the corner, to the left of the window, so a slightly narrow tall fixture would fill the space nicely.

I also love this French-inspired chandelier from online retailer Goldenage Chandeliers.  It would lend a welcome French feel to the room, but I think it's a little too glamourous with my humble "oatmeal" berber carpet (that isn't being replaced!).   

Something simpler might be better-suited.

P.S.  And yes, the bed is snug against the wall on one side.  The room is tiny and this works best...I find it very cozy.  If the bed is moved out, there is almost nowhere to walk and it makes the room really cramped.

I'd love your suggestions, especially on my window (light blocking is a must!).  

I can't wait for your comments!

A Farrow & Ball Experiment: Good Colour Gone Bad

This weekend, I finally got down to business and painted the gilded golden mirror from my front hall.  Sorry, I forgot to take a before picture, so I snapped this right after I tried the first stroke of paint:  I have owned this mirror for 18 years - it was part of a trio of affordable antiques I bought at a shop in Montreal as a student.  This photo was taken in my comfy, cozy family room (which you never get to see... it needs a decor intervention) where I could paint whilst watching HGTV! I was getting a little bored with the golden look, so I decided to paint it Farrow & Ball's Charleston Gray, which appears to be a milky medium brown with a gray undertone on the card... However, the mirror basically turned out a taupey-gray, reading much more gray than brown after two coats.  

You can really see the difference in lower light:

I will note that the finish doesn't look great because I painted it with an eggshell finish (since I used a $7 sample pot and this was the only finish available) and planned to urethane it with a semi-gloss when I was done.

But I was very unhappy with the colour and didn't bother to finish it.  I wanted it browner, like the card, to match a brown rug I have in the foyer and pick up the brown lamp in my living room (which is an almost identical shade to the card).  I do like this colour - complex and unique, but it looked like total crap on my mirror.  

Since it was now Sunday and Maria Tomas (the Farrow & Ball supplier) was closed, I went to my local Benjamin Moore store and bought a chocolate brown, called Van Buren Brown (HC-70), which I have read decorators rave about in House Beautiful (I read their "Color" pages in each issue religiously).

Here is Van Buren Brown, in progress:

And on the wall (below).  The colour is much too dark, but at least it coordinates with the darker tones in the furniture.  This is after a single coat!

I'm happy to see that the colour matches the chip, perfectly:  

The colour looks just like melted chocolate and is quite lovely, but too dark.  I will note that I went darker than I wanted because, in the past, Benjamin Moore colours have looked significantly lighter on the wall than on the card...(with three shade I've tried to date).  So now I will have to paint a second coat and mix in some white paint to lighten it.

Eventually I want a new, much larger mirror in this location, and I really need to add some art.  But for now, I hope it will suffice when it's toned down a little.  The brown will coordinate with my cushy brown rug and my rose-pink light fixture.

'Til next time...

Bedroom Inspiration: A Nest of a Room

I've been thinking about re-decorating our spare bedroom on the ground floor. Our house is a four-level split (4 floors), so the ground floor is partially-underground (but with large windows so it doesn't seem submerged). It has a guest bedroom, the family room (which has a fireplace and our television), a laundry room, a guest bathroom, and the back door leading to the garden.

We've done minimal decorating on this floor, but spend plenty of time here. In fact, we've started sleeping in the spare room and rarely sleep upstairs in the master bedroom. You see, the magical thing about the downstairs bedroom is that since the floor is just below ground, the room is perpetually cool in summer. The lower part of the house is surrounded by garden also, so the foliage helps keep in the "cool".

The spare room also has an old-fashioned awning-style window that opens into our neighbor's side yard, where there's a garden and trees. We love having the window open at night, so we can enjoy the sounds of birds and the wind in the trees. It's a charming little room with ever-so-soft light.

Eventually I'll post photos of the room (which is now green) because I've decided it's time to redecorate! I quickly chose a colour - Farrow & Ball's Skylight, a glorious grayish-blue colour that I wanted to use in my living room but wasn't brave enough. It will be perfect for this quiet little room.

I want the new room to be pretty and peaceful, a restful space that is simple and approachable, a quiet spot to read and sleep-in and snuggle, a wonderful nest of a room.

To start, I've collected a variety of photos that convey either the mood I want to capture or a design element I admire:
I love this dreamy floral room. I'm not usually so romantic, but this bed frame is perfect- I covet it, but where do I buy it in Canada? (Photo: Ideal Home UK)This room is perfect too - I love everything about it! But it's the bed frame (upholstered, ivory linen) that I adore most. The bedding is also perfect - simple and classic and full of character. (Photo: OKA direct UK, which I discovered through Joni, the wonderful and wise interior designer/blogger at Cote de Texas)Another perfect bed frame - upholstered ivory linen, with a monogram. I'll take it! And the bedding is simple and soft. I'm not a fan of the rest of the room. (Photo: OKA direct, UK)
Another delightful bed frame - tufted upholstery, and great bedding. Check out the witty little chinoiserie side table! (Photo: OKA direct UK)
Another delicious room - the wall colour is almost identical to what I've chosen, and I plan to do white window coverings too. The bedding is exquisite and I love the "textile as headboard" concept! (Photo: House to Home UK)

I'm not crazy about this room, but I do like the Gustavian headboard. This style is my second choice after upholstered. (Photo: OKA direct UK)
A close-up of a pretty Gustavian headboard. I would not use a checked fabric, but I love the classical simplicity of this style. I also like the natural linen-coloured quilt! (Photo: Country Swedish)
A soft linen valance. I like ivory or natural linen best. (Photo: House of Linnea)

This is the most suitable headboard, although I do not care for a sleigh-bed style frame. I prefer the headboard as it isn't too high, which would work better in my space since the bed will sit in front of a window! (Photo House to Home UK).

Once we return from Europe in October, I'll start painting and bed frame hunting. Any suggestions on where to find an affordable upholstered frame (and please don't tell me to DIY...I want it to look good after all)?

Sadly, I won't be able to buy any of these beautiful bed linens in the UK since the UK King bed is supposedly smaller than a Canadian Queen. Who knew? I still need to check French sizing. Any experts on these bed-size issues?

Farrow & Ball: 18 New Hues

In case you haven't heard, the illustrious Farrow & Ball introduced 18 new paint colours last week! In their stead, 18 existing colours have been "retired" from the colour chart (but are still available for purchase).

Today, I visited Maria Tomas, the only Farrow & Ball retailer here in Calgary (luckily a few blocks from my office) to view the new colours.

I was positively smitten with several of the colours and especially loved the first eight, which I've included below:

There's a new white (No.239 Wimborne White), an elegant tan (No.240 Cat's Paw), and my three favorites: a creamy stone off-white (No.241 Skimming Stone), a noble light gray-blue (No.242 Pavillion Gray), and a refined dark gray-brown (No.243 Charleston Gray).

I've also shown a handsome dark brown (No.244 London Clay) which looks beautiful next to a pretty pale pink (No.245 Middleton Pink) and a gorgeous dark rose (No.246 Cinder Rose). I've been dying for rose to come 'round again!

You could steal this palette alone and design a whole house (minus the tan, perhaps!).

Check out the remaining 10 colours at Farrow & Ball.

All paints are made at the Farrow & Ball factory in Dorset, England. The company is renowned for using "more high quality pigment in every tin than any other manufacturer." Since all paints are factory-blended and quality-controlled, colour accuracy is assured. In other words, no blending is done at your neighborhood shop!

Sophisticated designers rave about paint, but it's a rather expensive at over $80/gallon here in Canada (which is about $20 per gallon more expensive than Benjamin Moore's top-of-the-line paint). The paint is supposedly a little finicky to apply as well, so a confident painter and good instructions are a plus!

I can't wait to try a gallon for myself, perhaps Pavillion Gray, my new favorite hue!