White washing our walls has been on my mind for WEEKS now. I subscribe to a few design blogs and I frequent them daily for "inspiration". I am not an interior designer in the least, but after a class in college 8 years ago (wow, that makes me feel old), my interest has heightened with each passing year. Living in the "hole" that we do, I try to think of things that will LIGHTEN and BRIGHTEN and OPEN up our room--yes, just our one room. We do need to move out the bulky dark furniture and shelving and replace it with "wall furniture" in the form of white wire shelves, but that is a project for spring break (whether Lyle likes it or not). This will definitely help my predicament.
We also need to seriously think about getting rid of our sectional ikea couch we love so much and replace it with a sofa sleeper. Finally we need to get rid of the old green chair which is Lyle's fav, but a waste of space. All these things combined may do A LOT for our "hole", but I just don't think it can save it. That brings me to my point of this post--how I want to white wash our walls to brighten the room.
I knew if I would tell Lyle, he would freak out since it was such a pain to initially paint said room blue BEFORE we had furniture in it, but instead of freak out Lyle, I got laughing Lyle. To be exact he said, "Our building was built in 1900 (this is a fact). You can't paint it white. We painted it blue to hide all the bruises." Ha...this was actually true. I told him I wouldn't do it unless I couldn't stop thinking about it for 6 months. That gives me until summer (a year from when we had painted it before). SO, we will first see how spring break goes and if we can get all this bulky furniture out of here. Lyle's project (he firmly stated) over spring break was to put a ceiling fan in our 5x5 foot space where we sleep. I told him I was planning on the shelves and that he could do the fan, but I was doing the shelves (even if I had to do it alone). We'll see what happens. There could be drama. Oh, did I mention that definitely one couple and quite possibly another will be joining us for spring break? Ha! I can't wait to see how all of this is going to happen! The countdown begins to Spring Break and free time with Lyle (with no working for myself I might add)...2 weeks and counting!
oldie but goodie
3 comments:
If you can stand the pure white (it's a little much for me), go with an eggshell or flat finish instead of semi-gloss; you won't see the surface imperfections as much.
Also - have you seen "invisible bookshelves"?
http://www.vat19.com/dvds/conceal-invisible-book-shelf.cfm?adid=gbase
There are other brands, too.
Another thing would be some see-through stuff like a clear acrylic chair or glass/acrylic accessories or chairs with cut-outs, glass-top coffee table, etc. It helps if the upholstered furniture has exposed legs (instead of a skirt).
Also, I'd recommend a sofa bed (more like a futon) over a sleeper sofa (which are really too heavy and huge - especially going up stairs!). A sofa-bed would do the job, but still be streamlined and light. Here's an IKEA one: http://www.ikea.com/us/en/catalog/categories/series/11701/
You can get cushions (like arm rests) for it, and an under-box for storage.
The main thing to keep it feeling lighter, is mostly low contrast with a few pops of color,maybe. I think streamlined furniture might help too.. but I'm not a decorator. Utilizing the wall space is a fabulous idea.
Good luck! Take pics!
I'm so happy you blogged!! I miss you so much!!
I love hearing and seeing your projects come to life!
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