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Friday, December 18, 2009

Testing Paint Colors from your Computer

I have always been a fan of red kitchens. I love the energy it brings and I am just a fan of COLOR. A month after we moved in I went ahead and painted my kitchen a deep RED. It brought out color in the dull oak cabinets and was perfect at the time.... but I think it just doesn't work for me anymore.

My red kitchen combined with the chaos of my 3 little ones, me rushing to make dinner before I go teach ballet, and all the colorful food stuck on the floor is just about too much energy for me, I nearly go mental. I love red, it just doesn't work for my lifestyle right now. Too bad it took me a year to figure this out.

I am planning a complete OVERHAUL with the kitchen in the year 2010. But, of course, on a budget (a very tight one).
  1. I want to paint the surrounding cabinets WHITE
  2. Granite countertops (tile most likely, cheaper.)
  3. Beadboard the island and paint that Espresso.
  4. Repaint the walls a calming, relaxing neutral
I gotta pick the right color this time... it may take me a while but I DO NOT want to be repainting again (even though I LOVE painting).

Enter: Sherwin Williams Color Visualizer (SUPER user friendly)

  1. Go to Sherwin-Williams.com
  2. Take a picture of your space and load it on their site
  3. Outline your different color choices (trim, walls etc)
  4. Pick your colors and start virtually painting!!!
Please be aware that the colors on the screen look MUCH different in real life. This is to give you a jump start so you can visualize your choices, but I wouldn't pick the exact color you chose on the internet (I always go a little lighter).

Beware: It is addicting!!!
Which one is your favorite?


1.
2.
3
4
5

22 comments:

  1. Oh thats looks cool. I like no. 1 and 4, just yesterday I posted some kitchens I liked on my blog and they were all cream and white units, I particularly like them as they are so clean and any colour will match them. I perfer the brighter wall colours too, but thats because the weather here in Ireland is very dull so I like bright colours to keep the spirits up :) Thanks for sharing this with us.

    All things nice...

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  2. We just painted our kitchen green last weekend, (I haven't gotten around to taking pictures yet) But it looks pretty close to your color in option #1

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  3. I think I like #3 the best. I love the contrast of the dark walls and the white cabinets. I really like them all though, but if you forced me to pick just one, I think it would be 3, and thank you so much for referring me to the Sherwin Williams site. That will certainly make it easier for me to choose in the future. Merry Christmas to you and yours.

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  4. I'm not sure if the price is this way anymore, but when I purchased my countertops, we went with the Quartz instead of Granite and it was the same price except that it was completely sealed with a lifetime warranty and the Granite was an extra $900 to get sealed and would need it every 5 years. Having it sealed is important in the kitchen - especially for me because I had just finished cancer treatment. We did go with travertine tiles with marble edging in the master bathroom though and I wish I had gone with granite the way we did in the kid's bathroom. We did the laundry room and kid's bathroom counters and sinks for trade luckily. Also, watch out - the extra boards to support the tiles, the outside edges, and cutting on the tiles may make the tile more expensive in the long run. Good luck with the paint color. The best thing we did was drag the cabinet door to the countertop store along with a 2x2 ft painted board in our wall color and a piece of the wood flooring.

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  5. What a cool tool! Thanks for sharing!

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  6. What a neat program! I like #1 or #3!

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  7. I like 4. #1 is nice, but I prefer a lighter shade maybe. My fave kitchens always seem to have painted white cabinets. I'm sure whatever you choose, it will come out wonderfully!

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  8. Thanks for the message! I love our "new" kitchen! The white paint on the cabinets has been easy so far! I hear white is hard to keep clean, but I haven't found that yet.

    I'm not sure what the color is on the walls, it was there when we moved in, it's a Behr paint, and I have to code if you would like it.

    I'm leaning towards number 4 or 5....I LOVE the grey on the walls!

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  9. COOL--how fun is that.

    I have had so many Google problems-and it isn't over-Google has no idea how to solve the problem.
    Sorry I haven't been by much-I decided after weeks and weeks of non-stop Google issues, I am throwing my hands up and making much needed visits.
    I hope you have a Very Merry Christmas and hope you can come by for a visit. I will continue posting, even if it doesn't show up in the Reader.
    Cheri

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  10. I like #5 but looks like I'm in the minority. Good luck.

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  11. Oh I like #1 or #3. It will look great!

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  12. Definitely 2 or 5. I LOVE the dark cabinets!

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  13. very neat site, thx for sharing it! i will just share that even though i like the look of the white cabinets...i have 2 older boys (in addition to my baby boy twins=yikes!)and in our previous house we had white cabinets and they were ALWAYS getting smudgy little handprints and other assorted prints on them...and of course since it was white it all showed up obvious. So, something to consider with your house full!

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  14. Dyan- I TOTALLY considered that. BUT, I am so over decorating around my kids (accessories above their reach, my "fingerprint proof" fake stainless steal fridge, leather furtniture because they ruin fabric, no window treatments that touch the floor, hammering bookcases against the wall.. etc etc etc). So I am just going ahead with it! HAHA!!! Maybe I will eat my words......
    Thanks for your input!

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  15. You didn't show us your red walls with white cabinets! I think the white cabinets might just set off the red enough to make it better. If you're dead set on painting the walls though, I like #5, even though the darker cabinets make it look like a stodgy old kitchen that needs an update (",) I'd suggest a bit lighter color, perhaps something closer to coffee with a bit of cream in it.

    Really dig your efforts, and tell your husband his crafstmanship is really quite excellent!

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  16. anonymous- Thanks for you comment! I do think white with red would look cool, but not for the whole entire new look I am going for. And your suggestion about a "coffee" color on the walls is right on! I think I am going to go with a color called "latte"!!! I am excited to show everyone what is in my head

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  17. Oh this is TROUBLE! I've been wondering how people get these snazzy photos of their before and after ideas. Today will be a wash at work! I'm pretty sure I have my photos on my Shutterfly account too! Whoo Hoo Thanks I love your blog I'm a new follower!

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  18. O My Word! Ive always wondered how to do this. And now I know. I linked you up on my blog so that I can do this in some of my free time...without losing where I got the inspiration from! Thank you so much for sharing:)
    Sarah

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