Oh the difference paint can make!

On this icy and snowy Thursday, as I take a break from my real job (and by real I mean paying), I realized I haven't posted pictures of our house now that it's painted. 

First, let me give a big 'ol shout out to our painter affectionately called Mr. Tom. What started as a little help with some of the main living areas (because I was way intimidated by the sheer volume of painting needed) turned in to him painting our entire house. Literally. He painted all the trim, walls and cabinets. He even did a little work on an outside window and our outside doors. I highly recommend him! If you need his information, please send me a message. 

OK moving on from that shameless plug. Fair warning...lots and lots of pictures in this post! 

First, welcome to our humble abode affectionately called Schrallville! 

We'll start this little tour in the living room, dining room, hall and foyer since they all got painted Macadamia by Sherwin Williams. 

Before...

And now...  

(at Christmas)

(at present day...decorated for Valentine's Day)

I love sitting on my spot on the couch and seeing this...for some reason it makes me happy. 

The hallway...

And now that some paint and pictures have been added (pictures referenced here)...

Perhaps one of our biggest changes was the kitchen. It got a bright coat of Hazel by Sherwin Williams and the cabinets were painted white. Before any color was on the wall it looked like this: 

Then a coat of Hazel was added...

But boy the cabinets stood out then. I kept thinking I'd paint them myself since it can be expensive (and I was being cheap) but around New Year's I texted Tom and said "OK you win" and he came and painted them two days later. I also got a TV for the kitchen counter for Christmas. This is now my favorite room in the house! This is where I go every day when I get off work to start dinner and unwind. I love how all my bright pictures and accents pop against the blue.  

can you tell I had started dinner in this picture? #keepingitreal

 

Our bedroom got a coat of Techno Gray by Sherwin Williams. I went with a neutral that matched some of the color in the bright comforter on our bed. It's still not "finished" in my eyes but that will be a slower process. We still want to get a larger bed and that may change things again. 

Sadly I don't have a good before picture so you'll have to just look at the current pictures. Just imagine it a bland white. 

The guest room got a good dose of Sassy Green by Sherwin Williams. I wanted to go bold in at least one room because I felt like the entire house was turning brown! I originally thought Melange Green was the color...ummm check it out...not so much. Here it is with just one coat on the wall. Bad. Very Bad. 

Literally it looked like Mike Wazowski from Monsters Inc. was all over my walls. It "glowed". So then I panicked, ran to Sherwin Williams and picked up the Sassy Green. It looks super bright in the picture below since the flash changed the color a little but it's actually a very rich deep green. The same green is in the curtains so it really makes it pop with the black furniture. 

The "man room" as all my boy's call it (also known to me as my office) got a coat of Macadamia as well since we had so much left over. In hindsight I wouldn't have bought a 5 gallon bucket of paint but at the time I thought I'd need that much and it would save me money. It started off like this on moving day...everything wood color. 

And after 8 tubes of caulk and some paint it now looks like this: 

It's amazing how much brighter the room is now that it's not all wood paneling. This is another room that isn't really complete to me yet. Still trying to figure out what it's missing. Maybe a bigger rug? I definitely need a new desk that's bigger and more functional. I initially thought a small desk was just in order but I've realized that all my stuff is out in the open and not quite so picturesque. But that in and of itself won't fix the issue. I'm still pondering how to increase the cozy factor with all these windows. Suggestions welcome. 

I'll save the boys' room for another update so you can see their new beds too. I did choose to use the leftover paint from their room in the bathrooms. Here's a quick before and after of the guest/boy's bathroom. 

I must say it is so nice to finally have all the walls and trim painted. Totally worth the $$. What's next you ask? Let's just say it involves a gallon of glossy black paint. Stay tuned!