A Whole New Room

When we bought our home seven years ago, the rooms were all painted beautiful colors and the trim was white. I loved this look, especially with the hardwood floors. We bought the home brand-new, but didn't have it built. I thought it had more character than most new houses, but after being here seven years I've realized how dark the house is. With a covered front porch, the living room doesn't get all that much light. This is what the room looked like in January before we started building a new fireplace.

We'd been discussing painting anyway, but the fireplace construction made me realize that we need to get the painting done sooner than we might have otherwise. And so, we've been busy, first building the fireplace, and then painting, and installing a chair rail, and more board and batten. I love this look! It's the best of both worlds for me. Color on the top in a rich, flat finish, white on the bottom, in an easy to clean semi-gloss.

And here's the room this afternoon. So much lighter. So much more character! I feel like I live in a cottage now! The colors? Sherwin Williams Roman Column on the bottom, and Sherwin Williams Hardware on the top.

I've added a few houseplants this evening, and I need to pick curtains. I'm trying to decide between these and these. I have samples of both on the way. I think Chester likes the new look. I know I do!