The BIG NEWS at my end is that in early August of this year, I launched full-on into freelance color consulting. After 3 good years in a part-time position at a Ben Moore Paint & Design store, where I learned so much about housepaint, I left to spare my lovely lungs any more exposure to … More Change is Good.
Nothing much happens around here on early Monday mornings. But by about 11, the energy picks up: 11:05 a.m.: A mother and her 6-year-old arrive. They’ve bought a new house and they close in two weeks and she has to pick out the colors now because they will only have a weekend to paint before … More Paint Shop Log — pre-Equinox
It has been quite a slog back to the blog, but here we are on a fiercely hot summer day in Philadelphia and I am typing away with only a slight ache in my right wrist, my slightly stiff fingers doing their darnedest to move around the keyboard. I was off radar until April. In-home … More Ceiling and Woodwork Color is Crucial.
Many of you are getting ready to do the great Paint-the-Exterior-of -the-House-Before-Winter thing, aren’t you? And maybe you are tempted to repaint in the same colors that are already on there. But, hey…… Life is short or long depending on your point of view, and time doesn’t matter anyway because it’s an illusion, right? I’m pretty sure I … More Painting your house before winter? Inspiration from Italy.
Valentine’s Day. Love, romance, red roses. You know the drill. Lupercalia. SO much history worth knowing. The Chinese New Year. 2016 is the year of the Red Fire Monkey for which the key words are Powerful, Exuberant, Karmic Yang. I looked it up. “It is just about time to….commence another epoch.” So, hey, the stars are aligned … More The Red Holidays of Early Spring
I get a lot of questions about all the colors on the wall here at the store. I think there are 5000. I know a lot of their names now, but not all. Benjamin Moore has nine collections (aka palettes) of colors: Classic, Preview, Historical Colors, America’s Colors, Trusted Favorites, the Affinity colors, Color Stories, … More How to deal with the 5000 color choices on the wall – the Affinity Deck
Long story short, use an alkyd paint for shelves, cupboards and bookcases. Benjamin Moore’s ADVANCE formula is the one I have here at the store and it’s a great one. The paint science people have made a combo oil and water paint that has a lot of the hardness of oil and all the easy clean-up of water. … More Painting Shelves to Avoid the Tackiness Factor
October in the northern hemisphere and the weather is shifting dramatically here on the east coast USA. The sun is lower in the sky and often behind clouds and rain. Gray gray gray!!! Many of my color clients have elegant gray shades on their walls. It can be a calming and meditative vibe. During long … More Please, no wintertime despair: gray with magenta, orange, teal, chartreuse….
Jennifer and her son Spencer came in to the paint shop on a mission. Jennifer had given Spencer the OK to paint one wall in his bedroom any way he wanted to. Personally, I love it when parents do this and then actually keep their word! Jennifer said she was expecting him to choose an … More “You can paint it any way you’d like.”
Paint and Color 