We’re doing Children’s Hospital stuff today, but a bunch of you noticed a foyer ceiling update in the background of yesterday’s post, so we owe you those details. We actually knocked it out before the big kitchen paint-fest, but that post cut the line because it was too exciting to save for later and we have the patience of toddlers (not to be confused with having the body of a baby). We usually hate painting ceilings (big rooms = sore backs) but the foyer’s a relatively small swatch of space, so I ended up just rolling the whole thing while Sherry knocked out some simple cutting in around the edges.
If you wanna see some ceiling painting in action, check out this video of us painting our nearby office:
Two coats later, we were high-fiving under the stars the star chandelier. It was well overdue. For the last few months it was sort of like our foyer was wearing a fancy outfit (nice painted walls) with dirty matted hair (bad yellowed ceiling). Not a good look.
Sherry got me on board with going one shade darker on the ceiling in there thanks to an image from Traditional Home. We already had leftover Revere Pewter paint from the walls and ceilings in our sink nook . It’s the slightly darker square on the same paint swatch as Edgecomb Gray, which is what’s on the foyer walls. And both are ranked among the best greige paint colors, so why not?
We really like how it turned out, although getting accurate photos of it has proven a little rough.
Sometimes it photographs darker or grayer than it looks in real life (like the detail below, or the hallway shot from yesterday’s post). In person it’s definitely noticeably darker than the walls, but thankfully not in an oppressive or gloomy way.
Typically we use a flat finish when we paint ceilings, but the leftover paint that we were using from the bathroom was eggshell. Turns out we really like the extra hint of sheen because it glows a bit more in the window light, helping it still feel kind of airy in a way. You can see what I mean below:
But I’m not sure this experience makes us ready to officially jump off The Flat Finish Ceiling Train permanently, since any added sheen ups the risk that dings, dents, or seams in the ceiling will show up more clearly. We just lucked out that the foyer ceiling was in great shape. But when we’re buying paint specifically for ceiling use (like in Clara’s room) we’ll probably stick with flat just to be safe. Update: just realized we used eggshell on Clara’s ceiling too! The light (or maybe it’s the color?) just reads really differently in there, so it looks more matte compared to our foyer ceiling.
I do think it’s safe to say that we’re fans of a non-white ceiling though (hello blue in the sunroom!). Although I feel like we’ll probably end up going with a white kitchen ceiling since there will be so much going on already with the two-tone cabinets, painted walls, and the paneling.
Our Favorite Paint Colors
If you’re having trouble picking the right color to paint your room, check out these detailed deep-dive posts about our favorite paints:
- The 12 Best White Paint Colors
- Benjamin Moore Edgecomb Gray
- Benjamin Moore Simply White
- Sherwin-Williams Pure White
- Sherwin-Williams Extra White
Psst- Wanna know where we got something in our house? Just click on this button:
Bernadette says
I made a mistake while painting one night and don’t regret it, but learned from it. Have a long skinny hallway with a built in bench and coat hooks between the foyer and the door to the garage. I have crown moulding and have the ceiling color in both “flat” and in the low gloss sheen for the moulding/trim. Well, I didn’t pay attention to the sheen on the can because the color was the right name . It was going on so nicely, I was loving it. Then the next morning, realized I used the low gloss trim sheen on the ceiling! Doesn’t bother me at all in that small hallway. I certainly wasn’t going to paint flat over it as it was my 3rd coat on that ceiling (ceilings last painted in 1974 when house was new.) But this sparked a conversation with my paint store, Daly’s in Seattle. The paint I am using is C2 brand. My original salesperson sold me ceiling flat. Well, they have one more sheen between that and wall eggshell and I only learned that from the salesperson who I was telling my mistake to and telling him how the bit of sheen really wasn’t bothering me. So I’ve decided to not use the flat flat ceiling sheen for the rest of the house but the next sheen (sheen between ceiling flat and the wall eggshell called matte)for all my other ceilings as their ceiling flat was giving me fits on how blah it looked on my short ceilings in my 1974 house and I’m painting all ceilings in the 3000 sq ft house.
So I don’t mind the sheen at all in the hallway that has no natural light and only 1 recessed can light. It needs all the light help it can have.
YoungHouseLove says
So interesting! I love that you discovered that!
xo
s
Erin R says
I followed your blog in your last house and really loved all of the progress you made and it was overall a very beautiful home (good energy too)! I just wanted to say that I’ve been following very occasionally on this new house however… by the photos, it seems to have some bad energy. I don’t know if you know the history of the house but I can get a sense from images and I would recommend you bring someone in to “clear” the house (especially before the new baby). Good luck!
Becky says
I love how light and airy your entry looks. I have a dark entry and hall that I painted sand white. Do you have any paint suggestions to make it feel more open without cutting a whole in the wall?
YoungHouseLove says
Hmm, maybe go even lighter and hold up swatches to make sure they don’t read just as dark as the Sand White does? Like glossy white on the trim and eggshell white on the walls with a big mirror to throw more light around? Maybe a new light fixture that’s nice and bright too?
xo
s
Lucy says
Just wondering where you found the “star” foyer light fixture?
I’ve been looking for something new for our house…this one is perfect!
Thanks!
YoungHouseLove says
A local shop called The Decorating Outlet, but we’ve also seen them on ebay and joss & main. Hope it helps!
xo
s
Amanda @ Planning On it says
We actually painted our new adoptive daughter’s bedroom ceiling blue and we love it! We were trying to decide whether to do it or not when you guys painted Clara’s ceiling pink and that just sealed the deal for me. I’m actually considering adding some more pizzazz to the ceiling with some gold or silver polka dots…but I haven’t gotten my 11 year old on board with it yet :)
I have some pictures up on my blog, they’re terrible because it’s just hard to get a good shot in that room, but it does give you a bit of an idea. I promise it looks way better IRL :) http://www.planningonit.blogspot.com/2013/09/foster-adopt-bedroom-is-finished.html
YoungHouseLove says
Oh my gosh, congrats! Such a sweet space already!
xo
s
Allie G says
So, I totally thought this was your staircase on the Country Living website: http://www.countryliving.com/homes/house-tours/pom-shillingford-connecticut-farmhouse#slide-5
But then I realized that you guys still have that slate floor! Anyway, I’m sure your banister would look amazing with some nice greenery draped down it. Will you guys be doing a Christmas decorations post? :)
YoungHouseLove says
That would be so pretty! We’re planning a Christmas decorating post for this week, and now I want garland to swag like that!!
xo
s