Thursday, November 3, 2016

Because I can never leave well enough alone

Not an hour after yesterday's blog post went up, I stumbled upon
this article about paint colors in the Washington Post, which said,
"Paint a dark or bright color on a wall featuring framed pictures, objects or books.
They'll pop from the contrast." It was accompanied by this picture:
 "What a great way to hide a tv," I thought,
immediately followed by, "What a nightmare to cover that up if I don't like it."


 But the more I stared at my pale-gray wall, the more I thought how interesting
the living room might look with an almost-black wall.


I painted it in Photoshop to get an idea, and I think I love it.
The tv all but disappears. Do I dare? 

Should I paint the wall almost black?

Yes - you can always paint over it when you get tired of living in a dungeon.
No - you'll regret it for the rest of your life.
Anybody who paints a wall that dark is clearly a danger to herself and those around her.
Other
Please Specify:
Famous Quotes

28 comments:

  1. I for one, LOVE it, and also how the dark color makes the stonework of the woodstove surround pop. I wonder how it would look if you did the other wall behind the stonework also?

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  2. I love it and think that you should go for it.

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  3. As with any color, there are MANY shades of black. I ended up with 14 to start with, that I eventually narrowed down to one, when I was painting my front door. Some are green, some are blue, some are brown, etc. With a bold, dark color like this, you want it to show off the art, not overpower it, and the secret to that will be getting the undertones right. Yes, I am OCD about paint. There's just nothing like it when it's perfect! :) Trust me, and start with samples first. I would paint on some cardboard, or poster-board, etc. first, and look at the color behind the art throughout the day, before wetting my brush. Light changes color dramatically. Good luck!

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  4. I like the "frame" wall effect, plus you have plenty of light in the room. I don't think that one wall will darken it too much....is there anyway to tape off the inset white (or cream) line without messing up the space around your cow skulls? I really like this idea. Bet it will look GREAT. AND it's Thursday!!!

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  5. I LOVE IT!!! really do love it.... it changes the whole wall and the room. go for it!!! I saw a show that framed the wall in a size about 6 x 7 and painted it dark, but not the whole wall.

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  6. What the heck! It's only one wall. DO IT!!!

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  7. I think the dark wall also makes your wood stove area pop as well!! I have heard it said that it is easier to cover up a dark wall than it is to cover a white wall....for what it's worth.

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  8. PS....the colorful prints that you just did look best on that dark wall. I might be tempted to make a couple more....and put the white framed prints back on the other wall. I just think that it is such a rich look to have all that color on the black wall!!

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  9. Maybe go ahead and add the white border as well....change is good. Hugs to all

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  10. What about hanging a rug behind the TV instead? I have a black woven rug with snakes on it behind my TV and it really works.

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  11. I voted yes, but think that white chair should be replaced with something less contrasting... but you probably already knew that.

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  12. Before deciding, I would take a photo like the fourth photo down in yesterday's post, i.e., a full frontal view of the stove, photoshop it in the same way as above, and then see if I like the stonework to be framed in black on one side and white/cream on the other. Or if it would perhaps diminish the effect of the stonework?

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    Replies
    1. What I mean is, what if you copied the idea from the WP more closely: Painting not the entire wall but only to within a couple of inches from the wall and stonework, and also leaving a few inches light-grey at the top and bottom? This would then look like a black passe-partout around your art and tv, and would allow the stonework to keep its stand-alone effect? Maybe even also adding that narrow white (light-grey) trim as in the article? Frames within a frame... Then again, I should not even voice my opinion, as only yesterday I was tempted (still am, actually) to ask you to please come and decorate my house!!

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  13. Paint it!! No matter what I said in the poll. I think it would be cool and maybe you can find a special on Killz when you get tired of it. :)

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  14. I love a dark wall. I don't know that I'd go full black, but a nice dark slate gray or blue would look spectacular.

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  15. I love the contrast of the dark wall with the pictures, but think it would be a good idea to Photoshop the wall using different dark colors before you commit to paint. Maybe a dark brown to compliment your stone behind the stove or something along the lines of the floor color would look good. I definitely am not good a decorating, but my nephew just rehabbed a house and painted many of his walls dark chocolate or dark brown and used wide white crown molding and baseboards. His walls are absolutely gorgeous. As the work was being done, we all thought he was crazy, but he proved us wrong. With your computer skills you can try almost anything before you commit. Go for it!

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  16. Northern AB gal11/3/16, 11:34 AM

    I like the "framed" idea (less painting for you - bonus) but if I was painting the whole wall I would include the two side walls as well. Just my 2 cents worth.
    PS: Am I the only one that wants one of those pillows??? lol.

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  17. I think Peg is right about the dark brown or color to compliment the stone.

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  18. Black sucks up so much light... would you get the desired effect with navy or a nice dark brown? Maybe pick up a tone out of the fireplace stone?

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  19. An American in Tokyo11/3/16, 5:48 PM

    I love it!!! Go for it!!!
    You can always paint it again if you get tired of it. =)

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  20. omg, the numerous types of poll breakdown cracked me up for some reason. we had a line graph, a pie chart, a geographical breakdown.... getting ready for election day I suppose :)

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  21. Go for it. If you don't like it you can change it to a different dark color of your choice. Experimenting in Photoshop with a bunch of different dark colors should find the exact one that suits the room. The black is dramatic though and does hide the tv. If you didn't like it after a while a very dark grey might blend in with the stone and stove.

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  22. Be sure to add the border - it brings it all together and adds polish IMO

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  23. I love it. And I am not a dark on the wall kind of gal. Although I take that back, I would go navy blue on a wall. Happy painting.

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  24. Carson, now I want to paint our wall behind the TV dark! See what you started?

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  25. Hi from Canada! When I turned 12, I was allowed to paint my room the colour I wanted. I chose to paint the wall with the big window black and the other 3 walls Tiffany green. After I moved out, it took my parents two coats of primer to hide it all. My parents still live in the house, that same wall is now a light shade of brown. You can't tell. DO IT!!! Roxane

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  26. Hi, I dont think photoshop gives a good representation of how dark the room wil look after you paint the wall.

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  27. I love the single black wall. Your photos look great against it and the TV is certainly hidden. I don't think I would paint the entire room black though. It would be depressing.

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