When it comes to home purchases, my Dad is my go-to resource for advice. He's an engineer who researches the heck out of every purchase he makes, which means I get to the reap the benefits of his expertise and scrutiny.
I've finally taken the plunge and am giving our maroon hallway a lighter, fresher face lift. The minute Dad said, "Go with Sherwin Williams; the cheaper brands require so many more coats of paint," I knew I wouldn't go with any other paint company. There are tons of other high-end paint companies out there, like Behr, but, when my father says Sherwin Williams, I am not about to test the waters anywhere else.
For awhile I've been eyeing up gray paints. I have a
Pinterest board full of them. My mom recommended gray after seeing the accent chair I reupholstered. The chair is a perfect pint-sized representation of our home. It was built in the 50s, has some great lines and boasts deep wood tones, but also carries calm blues, whites, grays, and tidbits of black throughout. Gray, I agreed, would maintain a calm, timeless, and bright feel, creating a welcoming contrast to my currently dark, uninviting hallway.
Choosing a paint color made me nervous. I've not yet painted a single wall in our house. The last time I helped paint a room was in middle school when my mom decided to paint her hallway a bright aqua-ish color. I read up on what
other people did and tried to see as many
realistic representations of grays as possible. I felt the need to research the heck out of paint, lest I spend tons of time and money on a project I end up hating. And that's why, even though I knew the red had to go, I haven't touched it for months.
On Saturday we went to Sherwin Williams. I originally had five colors in mind, but ultimately bought samples of Passive, Mindful Gray, and Repose Gray. I went with light colors because our hallway is dark, even in the middle of the day. I knew whatever I chose would ultimately not be seeing sunlight.
Keep in mind that
if you plan on buying Sherwin Williams paint, always look for a coupon. They have 30-40% off
coupons frequently. I just showed one on my phone, which they accepted, and paid $5.90 per sample with a 30% off deal.
Anyway, I knew that, in the windowless hallway, a light color would still look pretty dim. Once I put them up on the wall, Mindful Gray was the darkest color with a hint of earthy tones.
Passive had a blue undertone, and Repose Gray was Passive's slightly more yellow cousin.
Almost immediately, I decided Mindful Gray was not the one. I liked Passive the best (and ended up using it to paint my bathroom!). But, throughout the evening, I ended up liking Mindful more than the other two.
Lesson learned: paint swatches all over the room and see them in different lighting before deciding on your color. If I had rushed into it, I would have made a huge mistake.
Sunday morning, I got up and started painting. The quality of Sherwin Williams showed in how thick and evenly the paint coated. I didn't need a primer over the red, which is awesome. I quickly learned to
use the brush to make a 3-4 inch edge around all the moulding. Once you do that, it's so much easier to use the roller without messing anything up.
I ended up doing two coats and using one and 3/4 sample containers for our hallway, which came out to about
$12 to paint my entire hallway. I love the color and how it pairs with the blues in our home. It's days like this that I absolutely cannot imagine having a larger home.
S
ee the next hallway upgrade, new lighting, here.
