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How We Cut In When Painting A Room

We finished painting the guest room. And boy is it bold. Seriously, it’s like no room we’ve ever painted before. And we luuurve it. With a capital urv. This is probably the most accurate pic (well I guess it’s as accurate as your monitor) of the dark teal that we went with:

bold-teal-walls-how-we-cut-in-video

The color was of course inspired by none other than Sue the Napkin. It’s kind of similar to Dragonfly (the color that we painted the backs of the built-ins in the future dining room) but when we held up a ton of swatches in the guest room we preferred this color (Dragonfly was darker and greener).

It’s called Plumage by Martha Stewart, but of course we got it color matched to Olympic Premium paint since it’s No-VOC (even the colorants they add are now VOC free). We went with an eggshell finish (so it’s a bit more wipeable and durable than flat but not too shiny since it’s such a deep tone, which can show lots of flaws and imperfections when it’s glossy). Lowe’s actually had a bit of trouble getting a good match, so if your paint pro can’t get it close enough – our lady finally got it within .03%  accuracy – Olympic’s Azalea Leaf is an extremely similar alternative. Of course you can also just go with Martha’s Plumage and not color match it to any other base to avoid matching worries completely.

But back to the whole room painting process. Let’s just say that as soon as we started rolling it on there were some oh em gee moments. And a fair amount of melodramatic nail biting.

Painting Nail Biter

But after we got to the second coat, the coverage was great and it was looking deep and rich and bold and fun. See how much more coverage coat two gave us below (the wall on the right has two coats while the wall on the left just has one). Pardon the semi-odd coloring in this shot and the one above, they were taken at night so the rest are more accurate thanks to daylight.

Painting In Progress

After we completed that second coat we were sold. Seriously. We got all hyper and slap happy. There’s just something about pairing in your face color with crisp white trim that makes you giddy. And amazingly enough, we got ‘er done with just one gallon of paint (with some to spare actually) since it only called for two coats – probably thanks to the tinted primer we used beforehand.

The first thing we did this morning was run into the guest room to admire it in the daylight. How can a $22 paint job make such a difference? It’s amazing. We were about to snap some after pics for you guys when the doorbell rang. It was our new guest bed arriving 30 minutes early. So it ended up in the pics since we didn’t have a moment to take any without it (more details on our mattress buying adventures later). Anyway, here’s the view of the room from the adjoined guest bathroom:

Painting Room From Bathroom

And here’s a shot of it from the hall:

Painting Room From Door

The off centered windows are definitely going to make the floor plan interesting, but we’ll share how we land on our final layout when we, uh, land on a final layout. We’re just going to play around with things until we figure out what we like best.

Oh and you’ll notice that we painted over some of the wall warts (as they so lovingly call them) like the vents and an old Bell Atlantic phone jack to the left of the white outlet plate above. They were already painted over by the previous owners so we repainted them to match the new wall color. We did keep all of the unpainted outlets unpainted though.

Speaking of painting over things, after a surprising number of requests I finally remembered to make a cutting in video, so you can enjoy the riveting play by play below and see how I use my favorite brush to get a nice clean line next to baseboards and trim:

As for down the road projects, we’d love to add crown molding and possibly paint the ceiling a lighter tone than the wall (or at least freshen it up with crisper white paint along with the trim). But that’s definitely not something we have time for with my mom & stepdad rolling into town this Thursday.

Painting Wall Meets Ceiling

So there you have our dark teal guest room. Now we just have to hang the headboard, dress the bed, get a shower curtain and bath mat, change out the toilet seat (it’s old and rusty), hang curtains (if we have time), and figure out the side table & lamp sitch (might not get to that either). Should be an interesting few days…

Comments

  3. annabelvita says

    Oh my goodness I love it!
    I didn’t realise how big the room was before seeing it with that bed in it. Between the bold colour, the large size and the sweet en suite (heh) your guests will feel like they’re staying in the cutest hotel ever.

    Reply

  9. Jen in Maryland says

    I LOVE LOVE LOVE the wall color!! It looks so warm with the hardwood floors and white trim. Wish I had the courage to paint a room in my house this color. Until I do, I’ll live vicariously through you guys. :-)

    Reply

  13. Rachie says

    Totally love it ! Am all for the bold colours, we’re painting our study navy which everyone likes to say will make it dark!??! But I love it! The teal looks so stylish and expensive looking and i love it with the white.
    Fab job!
    Rachie xo

    Reply

  14. Jessica says

    Looks great! Loving teal with the white trim. Reminds me alot of that inspiration bathroom photo you guys showed…

    “Dress the bed..?” Are you using the BB&B bedding you already had or did you find something else?

    Reply

    • YoungHouseLove says

      We’re planning to use the bedding we already own for sure. I tossed it onto the bed as soon as we finished snapping the pics for this post and clicking publish. Looks pretty cute actually! Stay tuned…

      xo,
      s

    • Jessica says

      I figured it would! I was trying to mentally picture it (even with the lime green headboard)and thought it would totally work! Happy decorating – the real fun part! :)

  15. Anna says

    I think y’all are sponsored by Lowe’s, but if you ever want to try Benjamin Moore instead of just matching their colors, their Aura paint is scrubbable in matte. And it looks so gorgeous!

    Reply

    • YoungHouseLove says

      Thanks for the Benjamin Moore info! We’re definitely not sponsored by Lowe’s (or Home Depot or any other home improvement store). We just want to be clear about that since we prefer certain products so we talk about them often- but we haven’t been compensated for anything we post about (all of our sponsors are clearly marked on our sidebar under the word “sponsors”). When it comes to Olympic paint, we love that it’s much cheaper than Ben Moore and 100% VOC free (it was recently reformulated so that even the colorants are VOC free, which is extremely hard to find at that price point). Hope it helps!

      xo,
      s

  16. Beth says

    I LOVE it! This is close to washed denim by Martha that I’m thinking about doing in my entryway. Do you think it’s too bold for an entry that is next to a bright green playroom??
    Can’t wait to see how the room develops!

    Reply

  18. Lindsay says

    That is such a fantastic color. So beautiful and, of course, it matches the napkin’s palette beautifully. I cannot wait to see the room as a finished product; it’s going to be breathtaking with that teal as the background. So bold!

    Reply

  19. rebecca a. says

    L.O.V.E. IT!!!!!

    OMG it’s so amazing! It’s so much better than I could have imagined. I can’t wait to see it all come together!

    Reply

  20. Megan says

    I also LOVE it.
    This will definitely appease the “you guys never take risks” crowd- not that they matter at all ;)

    Gorgeous!

    Reply

  21. Robin says

    So dramatic! Maybe too dark for my taste but I love it in your room! Looks great, can’t wait to see what bed linens you pick? White? Pink? Yellow? Green? Oh my!

    Reply

  22. Shannon says

    the color is stunning!!! I’m really looking forward to seeing your layout. This room is EXACTLY my master bedroom. windows and door in the same place, the size even looks the same. i’m hoping to be inspired. i’m freshening up our room as we speak. our walls are benjamin moore valley forge tan, a medium taupe, and the bedding from West Elm that I’m dying for actually has a color similar to what you’ve painted your room.

    Reply

    • Stephanie says

      Me too Shannon. I didn’t notice it until it was empty but my MB is exactly the same. I can’t seem to get an arrangement that is perfect. Very excited to see what happens in here!

  23. Linda says

    Lovely. I’m a bold color girl. We have an indigo blue room and it never fails to please me when I see it. Can’t wait to see the finished room.

    Reply

  24. Becky says

    Wow!! That is absolutely gorgeous!!! I wish the rooms in my house were bigger so I could paint darker colors, but they are wwwaaayyy too tiny to not do light, bright colors. I LOVE the way the white stands out so much against the teal. Wow.

    Reply

  27. Robin says

    also just wondering: do you guys put any sort of plastic or protective sheeting on the ground while you paint? I of course would drip and make messes on those beautiful hardwoods but perhaps you’re that much of professionals?!

    Reply

    • YoungHouseLove says

      Nope, we’re crazy. We just wipe those rare errant drips as soon as they happen (thanks to the floor being poly’d, the paint blob comes right up). But the pros definitely cover everything with drop cloths- we’re just lazy/overconfident. Haha.

      xo,
      s

  28. Katherine O says

    I love it. I am using this color as an accent in my daughter’s room (she is one, and I am changing her room now that we’ve moved into our first house). How bold and wonderful.

    Reply

    • YoungHouseLove says

      That’s a 50/50 thing. In both houses we have owned the quarter round (also often called shoe molding) has been unpainted in every room, so we’re happy to leave it the same finish as the floor instead of painting it to match the trim. It should save me about 500 hours of time, and since it’s already consistently unpainted here, I’m happy to stick with that formula!

      xo,
      s

    • Heather says

      Since this seems to be so hotly debated, I thought I’d note that we live in a 12 year old house and the shoe molding/quarter round is wood like our floors. The baseboard is white. It touches both the floor and the baseboard – I like that it matches the wood…and less likely to chip or be obviously nicked. To each their own. :)

    • Hollie says

      My house is only 3 years old and the shoe molding is also wood colored. I think it’s just personal preference. I happen to like it painted white in my home so that’s on the to do list.

  31. Stephanie says

    Very nice!! Sherry, you have an amazingly steady hand and an amazing amount of patience! Do you ever make a boo-boo though? I’ve tried and tried cutting in without taping off, but I always end up messing up somewhere and then I end up taping off anyway. So, after accepting that I don’t have a steady enough hand, or enough patience, I tape first. The walls look great!!

    Reply

    • YoungHouseLove says

      Oh yeah I make paint mistakes all the time. Thankfully the precious owners left the trim paint clearly labeled in the basement so knowing I could quickly touch things up was definitely a comfort!

      xo,
      s

  32. Elisa says

    Golf clap! This turned out great! We’ve got a teal accent wall in our bedroom.. you can never have enough teal, and it’s got a great soothing feeling for bedrooms. Can’t wait to see how this room comes together :D

    Reply

  35. Karen says

    Gorgeous! I just love that color. I wish I had enough courage to paint my bedroom that shade.

    Is this the bedroom that adjoins the yellow bathroom? Are you going to tie the two colors together, or go in a completely different direction?

    Reply

  37. Sarah says

    amazing! love the contrast and now i’m inspired to paint my office a deep rich hue. didn’t you have a double/queen bed in your old guest room (@ the old house) before it turned into the office? why didn’t you keep that one for the future guest room at your new house (granted you might not have known you were moving at that point…)?

    Reply

    • YoungHouseLove says

      We had a full sized bed in that room but nearly a year before we moved (or even knew we’d be moving) we realized we no longer had room for it (Clara was born, John came on full time at YHL – which means we needed a full time home office for two, etc) and it was an extremely old mattress (we’re talking about a 20+ year old hand-me-down) so we were happy to craigslist it for $60 – instead of storing it up in the attic or basement for an undetermined amount of time before we gained a guest room back (it would have been all musty and gross by the time we needed it, plus we decided that it was high time we grew up and purchased a new bed for our guests instead of making them sleep on the old “secondhand” one- haha).

      xo,
      s

  40. Michelle says

    That looks great! I love it with the white trim! So dramatic and moody.

    Oh, by the way my husband and I are going to Richmond this weekend for a wedding (we’ve never been there) any must-go-to spots??

    Reply

    • YoungHouseLove says

      We actually have a post planned for this Friday all about our favorite Richmond spots! Spoiler alert: a few faves are Bottom’s Up pizza, Kuba Kuba for lunch, hanging out at the river in Pony Pasture, walking around Carytown, strolling through Maymont, etc. Hope it helps!

      xo,
      s

    • Stephanie S says

      The VMFA (fine arts) museum is great, but might be crowded since we have a big Picasso exhibit. The Tredegar Civil War museum is great, and the grounds are wonderful for walking. Richmond is also a great restaurant city, so you can look at Urban Spoon or Yelp to get some ideas. You’ll probably be busy with wedding stuff, but Richmond is a great town and offers oodles of things! Enjoy my adopted city.

    • Tamisha says

      Edgar Allen Poe Museum, Hollywood Cemetary, Maymont Park (Greatest house tour and gardens), Lewis Ginter Botanical Gardens, Carytown (shopping), Tredagar Iron Works and Belle Isle, John Marshall House, Museum of the Confederacy (if you’re into that kind of thing), VMFA (but will be very crowded), Richmond Valentine Museum (great city museum), Walk through the Jefferson Hotel, walk up and down Monument Avenue, Segway Tours of Richmond, for sight seeing.

      Richmond has good eats. There are lots of food blogs for the RVA. Check them out.

  42. Andrea says

    This is the color I wanted to paint our bathroom!!! I LOVE it. The hubby has convinced me to go with red in the bathroom instead (BM raspberry truffle), but we haven’t tested it yet so there’s always time to change my mind…

    We painted Martha’s Darkening Sky in our kitchen/family room and I totally love it. In fact, we have 4 MS blues in our house now.

    Reply

  43. Christin says

    LOVE the color! It looks fantastic. Can’t wait to see how the rest of the room comes together. Congrats on a taking a risk – I’d say it’s a huge success!

    Reply

  45. Laura says

    Love it! We have a small bedroom that we use as a closet, but as we transition into a time where we are thinking about having kids, we want to make it into a nursery. This is a VERY similar color to what we are thinking. We are going to accent it with black, white, silver and grey, and are trying to choose the pop of contrasting color that we might like, maybe eggplant, maybe yellow.

    I love this color and can’t WAIT to see it with the bed.

    Reply

  46. Sherri says

    Very cool! The color looks close to the bathroom post from The Lonny mag…are you still planning on doing your bathroom that similar color?

    Reply

    • YoungHouseLove says

      Nope, we decided to go for this color in the guest room so we don’t want the hall bathroom to look too similar. We’re still pondering another hue for that bathroom (since we also want that to be bold and fun, but not too blue-heavy).

      xo,
      s

    • Cameron says

      Oh no!!! Now I’m horribly depressed. I love the paint in the bedroom, but I was sooooooo excited about that bathroom. I thought the inspiration was dreamy, so I couldn’t wait to see y’alls take on it. Off to cry now…..

  48. Lauren Q. says

    We just did our living room accent wall this kind of dark teal and I love it!! We used Valspar, color matched with Sherwin Williams Cote d’Azur – love it!

    Reply

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