Hotel Chic At Home

Its the new bedroom trend- "Hotel Bedding". The first thing I thought about when I heard of this new trend was of course that ugly, scratchy polyester Red Roof Inn bedding. Itchy comforters, rough white sheets, unattractive floral prints, etc... No, what I have learned is that Hotel Bedding is really recreating what hotel chains like The Westin and Resorts have done. Which is introducing its "heavenly bed" to guests who go home thinking it was such a luxurious look and sleep with fabulous materials that they want it at home now as well. It has literally sparked "bed wars" between hotel chains (good for US!).

I did some research on how to outline the steps needed to recreate a luxury bed. As an avid runner (hence i need SLEEP) and also designer, I can tell you from experience that the "heavenly bed" is indeed heavenly. Unfortunately, it means ponying up- at the very least- $2570 for this bed ensemble. That would include the $1300 bed and boxspring and then about $1200 or so for the luxury percale bedding. Makes that $120 per night hotel room suddenly feel like a bargain!!

You can try to obtain this bed at a bargain-and here is what i think:

1) Pay attention the percale. Shop for at least 300-400 percale sheets. Try overstock.com for great deals.

2) Get a fluffy mattress pad to boost your comfort level (unless you are allergic to feather down). The key to a successful hotel style bed is more the first layer than the last. With a fitted mattress pad, your bed will start to take shape.

3) Choose comfort wisely. Although hotel-chic is usually a crisp white, I say go get what you love! Color or not, choose fluffier comforters with sleek lines. And paint colors like White Dove by Benjamin Moore to complement almost any monochromatic scheme.

4) Prevent pillow overload. Although hotels overload to make the bed seem more inviting, its a pain to have to go through the ritual of throwing pillows on the floor before bedtime. You can invest that extra money into two or three (for a king size bed) super luxurious ones.

) Realize your bed will probably never be as perfect as a hotel's. This is because we don't have housekeepers, we have kids or we have pets. Just make it everyday. A made bed always awaits you at a hotel and isnt that the best part??

Live Large In Small Spaces

Did you ever try to obtain design ideas from decorating magazines or paint company websites? Ever notice how the showcase rooms are always unrealistally large, unique, architecturally detailed and nothing like what most people live in? Yeah- me, too.

As a designer, I can tell you that most people have the same simple, rectangular, odd-placed-window, standard type rooms. We dont have niches, built-ins, ready-made window seats and trey ceilings. So, what I want to talk about is how my in-the-field-design tricks can help to make smaller, standard rooms appear larger and more designer-esque.

First, think BIG. Instead of filling a small room with lots of little pieces, opt for overscale furnishings and accessories to cut down on clutter and make the room feel more spacious.

Second, go monochromatic. When color is spread throughout a room, the eye doesn't suddenly stop and get stuck on something. You want the eye to flow around a room so it seems larger.

Third, use color on the ceiling. Paint it a shade or two lighter than your walls so the eye won't immediately recognize where the walls stop and the ceilings begins.

Last, think of the room as a stage show. There are stars and supporting actors. To avoid fussiness that can crowd a small space, choose just one star for each wall. A large picture that is proportionate to its wall is all that may be needed to accomplish drama and make a small space look larger than it may actually be.

Spread The Love...

So you've decided to make the fabulous decision to use Benjamin Moore's Aura paint- good deal. BUT because of the water borne colorant systems and the faster dry time, Aura has specific application techniques. So lets talk about the proper way to do that.

Cutting In:
*Use the same brushing techniques as you would for any low-VOC compliant interior coating. *Try using a firm polyester/nylon brush for best results.
*Since Aura dries faster than other acrylic paint, move around the room as fast as you feel comfortable, keeping a wet edge.
*Visible lap marks can occur when the wet edge has set or dried prior to coating the immediately adjacent area.

Rolling:
*Try using the Benjamin Moore Aura shed-resistant, 3/8" nap roller cover for best results.
*Work quickly. Roll out vertical sections in 3 or 4 foot widths.
*If you see that you missed a spotand the paint is already setting up, allow it to dry completely before touching up that area.
* Allow the first coat to dry completely (about one hour)before applying a second coat-if necessary.

Follow these simple steps and you will have a beautifully painted Aura surface. Have fun!

Knockout Neutrals

Who ever said neutral color schemes can be boring just never saw it done RIGHT. Neutrals and whites can truly make a room feel clean and airy and calm. The trick to keeping things interesting is to decorate using sharp contrasting accents. For example, if you have a beautiful off-white wall, like Benjamin Moore's Aura in White Dove with Super White trim, a white ultra-suede sofa and rattan club-style chairs, try using accent fabrics with clean lines in bold colors (like reds , blues or browns) and things like glass vases with coordinating color filled flowers like red roses. These accents will pop and be small focal points through out, yet seem simple, classic and calm.

Sometimes just using a monochromatic white or neutral color scheme can be elegant in of itself. All white walls and semi-gloss trim paired with different textures like a white cotton sofa with white-on-off-white toile fabric pillows, white woven wood blinds, a soft, shag white area rug and tufted white ottoman/coffee table can be a beautiful look and feel. Most important, if simple elegance or

I've Got The Summertime Blues...

Well, not really. I'm actually pretty psyched its time for those lazy, hazy days of summer. As the design enthusiast that I am, I feel the impact seasons have on color and mood. For now, I wanted to talk about the biggest color trend going on (well, in MY showroom) which is those delicious chocolate browns paired up with serene blues and soft, french pinks. In the dead of winter I was seeing the browns going deeper and the blues and pinks a little darker. For example- Benjamin Moore's Clinton Brown HC-67 with Charlotte Slate AC-24 or Middlebury Brown HC-68 with Rosewood 2082-40 were colors people were surrounding themselves in. Like a blanket for your walls, they felt warm and cozy and you wanted to just surround yourself in that color.



But as time would have it, the season changed and so have the moods of my clients. It seems the approaching summer has prompted their blanket to be replaced with walls that make them feel like they are on the sand or splashing in the ocean. They are looking for Benjamin Moore's Bershire Beige AC-2 with Smoke 2122-40... Or if a casual stroll past the Eiffel tower is what they want to daydream about this summer they may ask for that romantic pink, Pink Innocence 2082-60 with Pismo Dunes AC-32.



If you are like me, and a jaunt to Europe or a holiday in Fiji isn't in your future, then lets all just create summertime vacations with our walls. After all, there's no place like home.

Rooms That Run Amok

Its time we talked about the house that has rooms with no beginning and end point for a color change. For example- the combo living room and dining room that are separate rooms but share a wall. Or that hallway that seems to run everywhere- through the foyer, through the halls, to the bedrooms, etc... Its a burning question. So lets talk design and plan and make those rooms look flawless and designer! The first thing is this- we can have two rooms like a living room and dining room with the same color and separate them with accent walls that will give them their own personality yet unite them. For example- who here loves that RED dining room? Its ok- raise your hand....I am! And add to that that we want a more relaxed, sophisticated living room space that blends well with the dining area. Imagine this- a fabulous palette throughout both rooms that are in a rich, soft sophisticated earthen neutral like Benjamin Moore's Woodacres 1020 and in that rear dining wall we add an accent wall of Benjamin Moore's Ruby Dusk 1267. That adds personality and separation, right? Problem solved...

No we have that little issue of the hallway and foyer. They travel EVERYWHERE!! Two things-first, dont be afraid of a little color. We can find neutral tones that work. If your palette elsewhere is warm then lets try a good lighter neutral (hallways can get cavernous if too dark without enough light) like Benjamin Moore's Shabby Chic 1018 that will blend with that blue kitchen or grey bathroom. Keep your cool colors together (blues, pastels, pinks, greys, etc) and your warm colors warm (reds, yellows, greens, browns...). So if you have a warm palette in the living room, bedrooms, etc, maybe a good warm neutral like Benjamin Moore's Manchester Tan HC-80 would work to be a blending co-ordinate.

So, just think outside the box- accents and color changes are cool and trendy! Go to myperfectcolor.com and order a designer consult if you are having trouble. Their designers are fully trained and certified and can help you with ANY paint issue you have! (That's ME, wink-wink...pardon me for the shameless plug!) Really- we can FIX those issues and LOVE doing it!

Co-habitating Kids

Giving kids a place in their room where they can express themsleves and their personality is vital, particularly in shared rooms. Bunks beds are great for space savers when you cant have two separate beds, but they are not as condusive to individual spaces. However, if you cant have two twin beds, you can still create spaces for each child to be expressive with a corkboard or corkboard paint (Benjamin Moore's black Corkboard paint works perfectly...)hung over each bed. Another creative idea idea is to hang a wire clothes line with clips to hang awards or art work. This can create a "brag" space for each child, thus giving them a sense of individuality within a shared space.

Sometimes parents try to physically "divide" a room with things like dividers. I would not suggest cutting a room in half-perhaps its better to keep the room a unified space and just create small areas within the room for each child. Instead, use color as your divinder. Use a color from each child and blend them into the room. For example, if one child is into soccer and the other into princesses, try using black and pink in the room to unify the separate personalities.

Either way, sharing a room will be a positive experience and lend to years of chatter and companionship and no doubt a little feuding. But in the mean time, have fun trying to unite the kids into a shared sibling space...

Planning a Color Palette

When determining a color palette, take a minute to sit down and think about yourself. Think about what makes you tick and consider the following:

* Are you drawn to warm colors such as reds (Benjamin Moore Maple Leaf Red -2084-20) and yellows (Benjamin Moore Lightning Bug 340)or do you prefer cooler blue and green palettes?
* Do you like a lot of colors, or various shades and tints of a single color?
* Are you looking to create a sense of calm in your room or a feeling of energy?
* What colors in nature appeal to you?
* Where do your selected colors fall on the color wheel?
* Do you have a range of intensities that you prefer?
* Do you need to add accent colors for interest?
* How does your selection work with your floor color? After walls and ceilings, floor color is the largest area of color and can be a determining factor in creating your palette?

Now you can start grouping colors to see what appeals to you.

How to paint and save your marriage in three easy steps...

Have any one of you ever had to survive the long, tedious process of paint color selection? Add to that having to pick a color both you and the spouse have to agree upon? Ahhh so you know what i'm talking about then, right? (long sigh)



Well then lets talk. I have taken the time to consult with many, many women and men who have graced our showroom and have come up with some solid universal truths and suggestions.



The first thing, and i believe the most important, is to SAMPLE, SAMPLE, SAMPLE! Take advantage of places like www.myperfectcolor.com, where you can sample one to 10,000 sample colors in convenient, well priced sample pints. This will allow you and the other half to really live with and hash out what works for you both. No surprises. Which brings me to my next point.



Hire a painter for big jobs. The worst case scenario is for hubby to take an entire weekend during football season to paint and then we walk in and say "Uh oh I hate it". They see red (or blue or green or yellow) when thinking that they have to do that all over again. Although perhaps pricier to paint those four walls, there is no price high enough for avioding frustration and anxiety WITHIN those four walls!



Last, lets be reasonable. Universally, its hard to convince either sex to live with either a Pittsburgh Steeler yellow room (see Benjamin Moore Golden Nugget) with black trim or a Victoria's Secret pink pool hall room (see Benjamin Moore Deep Carnation). So lets all be fair and fall somewhere in between. Like perhaps a masculine shade of muted, dusty mauve walls with some wethered pigskin leather club chairs with throw pillows. Well, maybe? Just a thought.

A Room With A Mood…

Why is it that it is so hard to create a room in your own home that is reminiscent of a dream-room you have seen in either a showroom, friends house, magazine, movie, etc…? We often know what we like, what makes us feel at ease and in love with a certain room that we encounter, however, it always seems difficult to re-create that in our own environment.

I always tend to start with a few points and build from there. First, I always ask my clients “How do you want this room to FEEL?”. By that I mean, do you want cozy? Library like? Sleek? Sophisticated? Understated elegance? Comfortable? Vibrant? Serene? Etc…. That alone starts the process of what colors, lighting and materials we should use. For example. If you are creating a home office, do you want it to be relaxing and serene-almost Shakespearean library-ish? For that we would use deep, rich woods with carvings and maybe muted, vast greens like Benjamin Moore’s Boreal Forest AF-480 and trim it out with a warm, comforting tan like Benjamin Moore’s Coriander Seed AF-110. Use uplights with rubbed bronzed finishes for the majority of lighting and reading lamps placed by oversized club chairs with soft pillows and fabrics and warm blankets and this will set the mood for that home library meets Shakespeare feel. Second, I ask "Do you prefer deep or lighter colors?". This will help to determine the intensity of the color in your room and the role that color will play in your design plan. Third I ask "What in the room do you want to accentuate (for example a beautiful rug or painting? Or perhaps the fabrics on the windows or the material on the furniture?)". That is how we determine the color palatte-good design always has a central source, or one thing or pattern that the paint and everything surrounding it will make look even better!
Stick with this plan and be creative and soon you'll have your dream room come to life. For more design advice or for a personal, professional design consult visit us at myperfectcolor.com!

Accent walls

Using an accent wall can be unique and functional.

So many times I have clients who have a hard time deciding between two colors, both that will work and both that they love! So how about an accent wall? Use the bold color on a centered focal point wall and the lighter to hug the room around it.

Color can change the shape of a room as well. Painting an end wall a deep, strong shade can widen a narrow room or shorten a long one. It can make a big difference in the feel of the room. Try using chocolate brown or a dark navy or deep green to make a small space feel more important and even more initimate.

Its my bedroom and I'll do what I want to.....

So. You have a teenager. Two words to describe that - expressive and creative. Think about what they might want to do to a bedroom if left to their own devices! Perhaps that's not a totally bad idea?

Paint itself can be described also in two words - inexpensive and dramatic, so the cost and impact of the teen room makeover is small. Best of all, you can always paint again next year when other inspirations (or maturity) strike.

A few ideas to help add a little hook of color:

1) Teens love stripes and lots of color. For a big zinger effect with minimal effort paint a band of color using painter's tape around the entire room.

2) Give their baby furniture a little attitude adjustment with an awesome paint job. Using paints like Aura by Benjamin Moore makes a job like that simple since it needs NO primer and is super durable and washable! Paint it bold (or whatever they want) to co-ordinate with a cool accent wall. That also is handy for squeamish parents who dont want to have to look at an entire room in Electric blue (Benjamin Moore 2061-40) or the purple Mighty Aphrodite (Benjamin Moore 1397)!

3) Don't forget ceilings. Its a tame way of introducing color and expression while limiting the interruption of the "adult" color flow of the home since you won't see the ceiling from the linen white hallways...

4) If pizazz is in the air, then how about recommending some of the new "fun" paints for them to explore? A total black wall? No problem, hand them a quart of chalkboard paint. Black and dark, yet functional! A glitter girl in the house? How about the sparkling glitter paints? Have a night owl? Well, recommend some glow in the dark paint and let them create their own late night universe.

With a good imagination, creativity and innovativeness you and your teen can bond among the drop clothes and paint quarts....

Popular Kids Room Colors

One of my favorite things to design is a child's bedroom. Its a magical place, safe haven and a place for older kid's to show expression. As the popularity of certain design companies such as Pottery Barn Kids and The Company Kids continue to emerge and set trends, my exposure to people wanting similar feels and looks also comes to the forefront. As the resident designer for myperfectcolor.com, I see a lot of what gets kids (and parents) excited in regard to color. Kids, pre-teen and teen want brighter and deeper, young pre-schoolers and early elementary tend to like softer, less offensive tones and babies (well, Moms and Dads, really) seem to gravitate toward lighter, more neutral, more serene color palattes. Whichever direction your child gravitates to in room decor, here are some of our favorite kids picks:

For babies:
Neutral- green frappe 484 (walls)/ navajo white trim INT. RM.
Girls-easrer ribbon 1381 (wall)/ primrose petals 1367 (wall)/ super white trim
Boys-silver mist 1619 (wall)/ china white INT. RM

Kids:
Girls- snugglepuss 1405 (wall)/liberty park 487 (accent wall)
Boys- kensington blue 840 (trim)/sheer romance 837 (wall/ceiling)

Teens:
Girls- mighty aprodite 1397 (wall)/ begonia (another wall option) supr white trim
Boys- athens blue 797 (wall)/hot srping stones AC-31 (ceiling)/ china white trim

These options can be adorable, fun and trendy. Don't be afraid to have fun and be unique with application-paint the ceiling a color, trim can be a color- not just white, use accent walls, etc...
Chime in with your interesting ideas and suggestions!

Classic Paint Combinations

As a myperfectcolor.com designer, I encounter various repeat questions regarding paint. One of the more common is "What are good colors for my living room, dining room and kitchen...". Obviously, if i were there physically or had fabric or material samples, I could do a perfect custom color combination dependant on the light and hues in the room. Since I do a lot of on-line consults however, I needed to come up with some standard, neutral, flowing trios of color. I wanted to take a few lines to give samples of combinations that work well (using Benjamin Moore paints) in neutral, averagely lit spaces. For example:

Living room/Dining room/Kitchen:

1) bar harbor beige 1032/chadwick brown 1160/barely beige1066
2) stone house 1039/ scarecrow 1041/ barely beige 1066
3) wheeling neutral HC-92/ nantucket gray HC-111/ everlasting 1038
4) ashen tan 996/ fieldstone 1558/ winds breath 981 (slightly cooler, bluer-tone in DR)
5) everlasting 1038/ camoufalge 2143-40/ muslin 1037 (slightly warmer, greener-tone in DR)

I feel its always best to take the deeper hues into the dining space. People tend to eat better and relax in darker spaces. The Living room should hold a tone that is lighter and more fresh by day, but calms down with darkness at night for relaxation and serenity. The kitchen tends to be a place of high energy and sociability, so lighter colors can help keep that mood going. Most importantly, keep it flowing from one room to the next with colors that are not too dramatically different in tone(color and feel) and yet flow from lighter to darker. Keep the trim colors the same if possible and the ceilings as well.

My Yellow Kitchen & Great Room

I love yellow colors. They are so bright and warm and inviting. But choosing the right yellow is really difficult. The colors always come out brighter than you expect.

We found and used a color for our Kitchen and Great Room that we really love:

Benjamin Moore 299 Firefly

We've found this color to be very warm and inviting, yet not too bright. It is a yellow but has an orange cast to it which warms it even more.

In the kitchen, which is mainly lit via incandescent bulbs, the color is fantastic.

My only gripe with the color is that it looks too dull in the great room. There are a lot of windows and the room is full of sunlight. However, it isn't the paint color's fault. Sunlight tends to wash out colors making them more dull and less vibrant. In hindsight, we could have selected an even brighter/deeper color for the great room to compensate.

One deeper color we could have used is Benjamin Moore 301 Glen Ridge Gold

And two other colors that would go well with the Benjamin Moore 299 Firefly for accents such as cabinets, furniture and artwork are Benjamin Moore 489 Oak Grove and Benjamin Moore 2080-10 Raspberry Truffle.

My Color is Too Dark, Why Can't the Paint Store Lighten it?

We get this question all the time. And unfortunately there is not much a paint store can do when a color is too dark or too deep. Here's why:

Once colorants are added to a paint base, they cannot be removed. The colorants are quite strong and most colors don't require more than a few ounces. Most of the color in a paint can is white, so if you wanted to make your color a little lighter, you'd have to add 1/2-gallon to a full gallon of additional base. So you can imagine, a paint store would have to add a huge amount of white colorant to lighten the color. These colorants are really expensive ($40 to $160 per gallon) and adding more than a few ounces would ruin the paint anyway, so when the paint store clerk says they can't lighten the paint, they are telling the truth. And even if they could, just adding white colorant would "gray out" or "mute" the color and probably wouldn't give you the desired results anyway.

You can always add more colorant (to a point), so if you think your color may be too dark or deep, start with a lighter shade or with 50% formula. Then you can try the color and if you want it darker the paint store can always add more color. Of course, you can test any color with Myperfectcolor's Anycolor Paint Sample Minicans - and you can even test any colors in lighter or darker variations (e.g. 50% lighter or 50% darker).

How are Benjamin Moore Paint Colors Created?

Benjamin Moore paint offers about 3,500 colors. All of these colors are created from formulas which are combinations of paint bases and colorants.

Each paint type and finish (e.g. Interior Acrylic Eggshell, or Exterior Acrylic Trim) comes in four bases: Pastel Base (1B), Medium Base (2B), Deep Base (3B) and Ultra-Base (4B). Each base successively has less white and more room in the can for adding colorants. For example, the Pastel Base is nearly white while the Ultra-Deep Base is more clear. Because of this, each base has a maximum color depth. You could add an entire quart of red colorant to a pastel base and the resulting color will still be pink because of all the white already in the can.

Each base also has a maximum amount of colorant that can be added. Too much colorant relative to the paint can ruin the gallon.

Benjamin Moore uses 12 colorants in its formulas to make its colors. Unlike many paint brands which use a shared colorant system like Color Your World or Huls, Benjamin Moore creates and patents its own colorants. These colorants are:
Black (BK), Blue (BB), Brown (BR), Gray (GY), Green (TG), Magenta (MA), Orange (OG), Oxide Yellow (OY), Red (Rd), Red Oxide (Rx), White (WH) and Yellow (YW)

Benjamin Moore created a brand new proprietary colorant system for its new Aura Paint. They named it their colorlock system because the colorants employ new technology that embeds the pigments much more strongly into the paint film. This explains the far superior hiding and durability of the Aura Paint.

The colorants used for Benjamin Moore Aura are:
Blue (B1), Thalo Green (G1), Magenta (M1), Orange (O1), Red Toner (R1), Organic Red (R2), Oxide Red (R3), Black (S1), Gray (S2), White (W1), Organic Yellow (Y1) (Exterior use), Organic Yellow (Y2) and Oxide Yellow (Y3)

If you ever want to experiment with creating your own paint colors, Myperfectcolor.com allows you to do this with these products:

Create Your Own Color Using Regular Paint
Create Your Own Color Using Aura Paint

This service could be extremely useful if you've already tried some colors and need them to be slightly different. You could take the formula listed on the can and recreate a new color by altering some of the components (e.g. a little more Thalo Green (TG))

Paint Finishes

Paint Finishes:

Benjamin moore paint quality and finish types. Selecting a paint finish can truly determine the quality "look" of a paint job. Let me tell you what I know about finishes...

1) Flat/Matte paints
They tend to offer ideal, non-reflective surface quality. these hard to clean surfaces are better suited for lower-use areas in the home or in new construction. Unless you choose to use Aura, by Benjamin Moore, which their matte, eggshell and satin paints are all equally washable.
2) Eggshell or Satin
These have a bit more sheen than flat paints and are ideal for places that need a cleanable surface but not a shiny finish.
3) Semigloss paints
They are shiner and easier to clean but will show imperfections more readily because of their reflective quality.
4) High-gloss finishes
These are ideal for kitchens, baths, woodwork, or children's rooms that need to be wiped frequently. High-gloss paints also produce the toughest and most stain-resistant finishes.
5) Oil based paint
These contain resins and thinners and are best suited for chalky surfaces high traffic areas such as floors, and areas that are already painted with oil-pase paint. They are a harder finish when they dry and are more durable but become more brittle over time. Because of the resins, they tend to yellow over time.

Please feel free to give your personal input on your experience with these finishes!

Where to Start When Choosing Paint Colors

You are about to start a new project and you need to pick paint colors. This blog will give you some ideas for how to find colors you will love.

Selecting the right paint color can be difficult and frustrating. Paint colors look different under different lighting conditions and in different design environments. And the selection of possible paint colors is immense. So how do you go about finding the right color for you?

First, start with what you have. What is the color of your floor, furniture, art work, or anything else you have in the room? What is the color of the adjacent areas that aren't going to be re-painted? What are your favorite colors? Start by answering these questions first.

One invaluable tool is the paint color fandeck. One of these inexpensive little books of color is invaluable. You have thousands of colors are your finger tips that you can use to help find your perfect paint color from the comfort of your home. We sell several options of Benjamin Moore fandecks (visit www.myperfectcolor.com/fandecks).

Walk around your room and select several colors from the fandeck that you think would work well. Next, test them by purchasing sample minicans (Myperfectcolor.com can make any color in a sample-sized minican). Test your colors by creating a large sample board or painting directly onto your wall. This will give you an accurate sense of what the color will look like in your home. Make sure you view your color tests in the various lighting conditions of morning, day and night. Once you have your sample, your decision should be easy. Look at it and if you like it, you are done!

If you don't like the color, figure out what you don't like about it in concrete color terms: "too dark", "too light", "too red", etc... and then find the colors that meet your new requirements and try again. Myperfectcolor.com also provides lighter or darker versions of any color in sample mini-cans. So, for example, if you think the color you've tried is just too light or too dark, you can order a pint of the color as 50% darker or 50% lighter. Then if you like the resulting color, you can order your gallons the same way.

This step-by-step method will help you find your perfect color. It takes a little longer, and you need to be willing to spend a little money for sample minicans, but in the end you will end up with colors you and your family will love. You will also avoid the costly mistake of painting with a color you don't like.

Tips for Choosing Yellow Paint Colors

Yellows are probably the most difficult paint colors to get right. This is because they become much more intense on the wall than they appear on the little 1-inch square paint chip. So if you are trying to select the right yellow for a room in your home, you are basically shooting at a moving target. You have to anticipate what the what the color may look like on a larger surface.

The trick to yellows is choosing muted colors. Now this doesn't apply if you want a very bright and intense yellow - that's easy. But if you want a soft yellow that isn't too yellow, or too intense, then this task becomes difficult.

Muted (also called toned) yellows have a grayish or netural tone to them. But once you paint a large area they are typically plenty yellow. Remember to sample the colors before buying gallons. This testing step is important for any color, but vital for yellows.

The most popular yellows we've found are these:

Benjamin Moore HC-4 Hawthorne Yellow

Benjamin Moore 290 Fresh Butter

Benjamin Moore HC-5 Weston Flax

See more popular colors at Myperfectcolor.com

Time-Saving Painting Trick: Brush in a Bag

If you are like me, you spend as little time painting as possible. Over the years we've learned many painting tricks, and this extremely simple trick is one of my favorites.

Don't wash any of your tools between coats of paint.

Simply seal your paint brush, paint roller and roller tray in a plastic bag and put it in your refrigerator. That's it! When you are ready to paint the next coat, just take the tools out of the bag and go.

You'll save 20 - 30 minutes cleaning between every coat.

Painting Tips for Touching Up

Touching up paint is something we all need to do from time to time. You may have moved a picture frame, some furniture or your three-year old drove his tractor into the wall. Regardless of the cause, you likely want to spackle any holes or dents, and then repaint the section. This post gives some simple tips to achieving good results.

The first thing you should do is set your expectations properly. No matter what you do you will proably always be able to see where you touched up. The eye can detect the slightest difference on a large wall surface. However, following these steps will make it much harder to see.

The challenge with touching up is making it blend right in. If you have your original wall paint then you are in luck. Otherwise you'll be heading to the paint store to get your color matched.

There are three things you need to consider: the wall texture, the paint color and the paint finish.

Wall Texture:
When repairing any damage to the wall surface, you need to be careful to match the surrounding texture. Many people make the mistake of repairing a spot so well that it is much smoother than the rest of the wall. This creates a shiny spot that will stand out, something you probably don't want. For example, you may want to use a medium grade sandpaper (such as 80-grit) rather than a very fine grit.

Paint Color:
If you have the original paint, then use it unless the paint is too old or the color on the wall has faded. If the wall gets a lot of direct sunlight, then the color on the wall may be very different than the paint in the original can. If this is the case, or if you no longer have the original paint, then you will need to buy more paint.

The best thing to do is to bring a piece of the wall into the paint store and have it computer color matched. If you just did a repair, then you may have a piece. Benjamin Moore paint stores typically have high-end spectrophotometers and expert staff that knows how to use it. Moreover, they'll have the skill to make any minor adjustments to the color in order to get it just right.

If you don't have a piece of wall you can bring in, then go into a closet (or other hidden area) and with a razor knife, cut a 1" square about 1/8" into the wall board. Peel the square piece of wallboard paper off and bring this to the paint store. Then you can easily repair this spot later.

Paint Finish:
You need to know the correct finish of the paint: flat, matte, eggshell, etc... You should also stick with same brand and finish of the paint you originally used. The flat finish from one paint company will not necessarily match the paint finish from another paint company.

Painting:
The trick here is to paint an area larger than the actual area that needs touching up. You want to diffuse the paint so that the painted area gradually changes to the non-painted area. For example, if you were to paint a crisp circle right on the damaged spot, then you would likely see it quite clearly. On the other hand, if you painted the damaged spot and then spread the paint away from that spot, then it would be much harder to see.

If you either cannot accurately match your paint color, or you no longer know the original finish of the paint, then you may need to paint the entire wall corner to corner. Even if your color is slightly different, chances are you would not know it as long as you paint the whole wall surface. The same color looks different on each of your walls anyway, so if one wall is a slightly different color you wouldn't know it. But if that different color were painted only on a section of a wall, then you would.

Happy painting!

Painting Over Water-Stains

A water-stain is the discoloration that exists on your wall after it gets wet. These stains are usually caused by a leaking roof or pipes and typically have a yellowish-brown coloration which is most prominent along the edge of the stain.

The first thing to do is fix the root cause of the water leak. You don't want to spend time and money fixing a water-stain only to have it reoccur from another leak.

Once you've fixed the cause of the leak, you can repair the water-stain. If the sheetrock or wall is severely damaged, then you may need to replace the sheetrock. Otherwise, simply painting over the water-stain should suffice. However, you must use a special primer in order to block the stain from bleeding through to the surface again. The best stain-blocking primers are alcohol-based. My favorite is called "BIN", a product made by Zinsser. It smells pretty bad, but dries in 45 minutes and will block any stain from bleeding through. (It will also block lipstick, smoke-stains and marker). The next best primers are oil-based. Zinsser makes a product called "Cover Stain". It doesn't work quite as well as BIN, but is still effective. Many companies make water-based primers they claim to be "stain-blocking", but in our experience, water-based primers are not nearly as effective as alcohol or oil-based products.

Tip: use a disposable brush or roller to paint the alcohol or oil-based primer. It is far better for the environment to throw away a cheap brush then to use solvents to clean the brush.

If you don't use a special stain-blocking primer, the stains will continue to bleed through your paint to the surface. Each time it will take couple days, but it will keep coming through. So just throw a coat of BIN over the stain and re-coat with the wall paint.

How to Dispose of Old Paint

If you are like most people, you have a bunch of old paint cans in your garage or basement. And you are probably wondering how to get rid of them. How do you dispose of this paint safely and legally?

If you have nearly full cans of paint, you can purchase packets of "Waste Paint Hardener" from your local paint store (or myperfectcolor.com). One packet of this product will harden 3/4-full gallon of paint. Once the paint has hardened you should be able to dispose of it in your local trash pick-up. If the paint cans are nearly empty, just put them in your garage and leave the lids off for a few days and then throw them away.

Most municipalities will accept dried water-based paint in the regular trash pick-up. Wet water-based paint will not be accepted, and neither are oil-based paints (wet or dry). Most municipalities offer some sort of hazardous waste disposal. Normally there are one or more days per year where residents can drop off old paint. Check with your specific municipality for your local rules.

The Emotion of Color

Our home is a metaphor for our lives. The color we choose to fill it with defines the very essence of the people living there. Discovering the perfect color is an important process but it doesnt have to be an intimidating one. Once you have identified the feeling you wish to create in each room, the color should reflect that emotional hue. Hence, the term "color psychology". Warm colors can be lively (reds, yellows) or add cozy intimacy (deep greens, chocolate browns). On the other hand, the cool tones can give a calm, relaxing feeling (soft blues, grays or quiet pinks) and can add spaciousness to tinier spaces. Uncomplicated schemes create a sense of serenity. More complex palattes are more dramatic and intoxicating. Colors can accentuate, add interest or even make what we dont want to see fade away behind the mask of color. When utilized well, color can be whatever we need it or want it to be!

Difference between Benjamin Moore Aura and Affinity

Benjamin Moore introduced its new Aura paint line in the spring of 2007. At the same time, Benjamin Moore also introduced the new Affinity color collection. Customers are often confusion between Aura and Affinity and how they relate to one another. Hopefully this post will clear up that confusion.

Aura is the name that Benjamin Moore gave to it's next generation paint technology platform. Aura refers to the paint itself, independent of the the color of that paint. As of the writing of this blog, Aura is available in interior matte, eggshell and satin finishes. In the spring of 2008, Benjamin Moore will introduce an exterior line of Aura paints and add a semi-gloss to the interior line. Aura paint can be tinted to any color.

"Affinity" refers to a new color collection that Benjamin Moore introduced to support the launch of the new Aura paint line. Unlike the previous color collections, the Affinity collection colors can only be made in the Aura paint. Aura paint however, can be made in any color.

Top Selling Benjamin Moore Aura Affinity Colors

See the top five selling Benjamin Moore Aura Affinity colors on http://www.myperfectcolor.com/. These new colors from Benjamin Moore are only available in the new Aura paint.

Benjamin Moore Aura AF-415 Grasshopper (New Aura Paint Color)

Benjamin Moore Aura AF-110 Coriander Seed (New Aura Paint Color)

Benjamin Moore Aura AF-440 Urban Nature (New Aura Paint Color)

Benjamin Moore Aura AF-445 Aventurine (New Aura Paint Color)

Benjamin Moore Aura AF-425 Anjou Pear (New Aura Paint Color)

See more top selling affinity colors.

The Various Benjamin Moore Paint Grades Explained

Benjamin Moore is a fantastic paint company, but not all their paint is created equally. It is important to understand the differences between Benjamin Moore's various paint lines when buying paint, especially if your painting contractor is getting the paint for you. This article focuses only on interior paint lines.

Benjamin Moore prides itself on the quality of the paint it creates. However, in order to meet the various needs of the marketplace, Benjamin Moore has multiple quality levels. After all, the needs and interests of an apartment owner or builder are very different than those of a mother with children.

Benjamin Moore produces four main quality levels of its interior paints. In order of ascending quality levels, they are: Super Hide, Super Spec, Regal and Aura. The labels of all four say "Benjamin Moore" but they are also clearly labeled with the product name so with this information you'll be able to ensure you get the right product.

Super Hide is the bottom of the line. It is considered builder's grade paint and is intended only to cover well and quickly. Builder's use it because it is cheap and it touches up really well. The problem is that it needs to touch up really well. Benjamin Moore Super Hide has almost no durability and while not entirely true, I consider it "clay water". It is intended to paint new homes that are expected to be repainted with a higher quality product in a fairly short period of time. Super Hide comes in flat, eggshell and semi-gloss and can be tinted to any color. Many low-end painters will substitute Super Hide Eggshell thinking that it is just as good as the Regal products and the customer will never know. Don't let this be you.

Super Spec is the next step up. Benjamin Moore Super Spec is definitely better than Super Hide. It was developed for commercial uses where cost is a factor and durability or quality isn't as important. Low-end painters will also substitute Super Spec for Regal products, too, and is also something to be wary of. Super Spec comes in flat, eggshell and semi-gloss and can be tinted to any color.

The Regal line is Benjamin Moore's premium paint line, and before Aura it was their best. The Regal products built Benjamin Moore into the reputable paint company it is today. And these products do keep changing. Benjamin Moore has reformulated these products numberous times over the years to keep improving them. Overall, the Regal products are fantastic and compare well to any other premium paint brand on the market. Benjamin Moore Regal comes in flat, matte, eggshell, pearl, semi-gloss and high-gloss and can be tinted to any color. Benjamin Moore Matte and Benjamin Moore Eggshell are the most popular interior finishes for walls because they are washable and Benjamin Moore Semi-Gloss is the most popular finish for trim, baseboards and doors. These finishes are also referred to as Regal Flat, Aquavelvet (eggshell), Aquapearl (pearl) and Aquaglo (semi-gloss).

Finally, the finest paint Benjamin Moore makes is Aura. Aura is unlike any other paint on the market. Benjamin Moore Aura paint is super-durable, does not require primer, will cover any color in no more than two coats, is low-odor and environmentally friendly and just looks richer for any color. Popular Science dubbed it one of the best new products of 2007. Aura comes in interior matte, eggshell and satin finishes. In the spring of 2008 Benjamin Moore will add an interior semi-gloss and exterior Aura products. Learn more about Aura.

With this information you will be better informed about the various paint quality options. Unless you are a builder trying to cut costs, you should use the best paint available. Relative to the overall cost of painting -- selecting your colors, tearing your home apart and living with the inconvenience, and expending the effort or expense of actually painting -- the paint itself is the least expensive part, and the difference between the best can of paint and the cheapest often only amounts to the cost of lunch or dinner one day. So given that on average you will live with the paint in your home for seven years, cutting corners on the paint quality doesn't make much sense.

How to Apply the New Benjamin Moore Aura Paint

The new Benjamin Moore Aura dries fast. It can be recoated in only one hour and therefore needs to be applied a little differently.

The biggest difference when painting with the new Benjamin Moore Aura is that you paint around the trim (cut-in) for the whole room with a paint brush first, and then go back to paint the rest of the wall with a paint roller. Paints other than Aura require that you cut-in and roll simultaneously to get the roller texture onto wherever you cut-in quickly before it dries. If you don't do this you'll often see the border around your room due to the textural differences between and paint brush and paint roller. This is not so with Benjamin Moore Aura Paint, the cut-in and rolled paint blend nicely, but because the paint dries quickly you need to let the cut-in area dry before rolling over it.

The next difference with Aura is to work in a smaller area at a time. You roll outward concentrically from a spot on the wall. Just don't go as far as you expand the area. The popint is that you just don't want to roll over the paint once it starts to dry. You are better off leaving it alone to dry and just fix anything you miss on the second coat.

And finally, don't roll the paint too thin. The Benjamin Moore Aura paint covers with any color in no more than two coats, but because of its fantastic coverage, it is easy to spread the paint too far. Once spread too far, the paint loses its covering capabilities. Just spread the paint to what feels natural and stop there.

For more detailed information about Benjamin Moore Aura Paint Application Techniques, click here.

Painting Stars in Your Child's Bedroom

I've never had so much fun. I brought home a quart of the Benjamin Moore Glow in the Dark Paint to make a starry sky for my daughters' bedroom. The paint glows in the dark just like any glow-in-the-dark toy, except it is paint.

I couldn't wait to get started and jumped right in. What I didn't realize was how thick you have to make the paint in order to get a decent glow. I first started by trying to "flick" the paint from my paint brush to create stars. This didn't work so well overall, but made a fantastic "milky way" across the center. It took me several hours of flicking in order to build it up enough for it to show a decent glow. (as an aside, the t-shirt I was wearing is still glown in the dark to this day)

But being the imaginative guy I tell my wife I am, I knew there had to be a better way. How can I get this paint thick enough, and still be able to create the designs I want?

The answer came in the form of an empty squeeze ketchup bottle (the old style red ones). You fill the bottle with paint, and squeeze it out the top. It comes out in a fairly fine stream, and you can apply it thick. The trick is to put just enough so it doesn't drip.

This tool worked amazingly well. I created asteroids, quasars, comets, planets, moons and stars. My favorites were the comets because getting the stream to tail off took some practice but looked awesome. My next favorite was the little star. You just squeeze a dot onto the ceiling, enough so there is a drip, but it doesn't fall.

I then filled in the background with a bunch of flicking and now we have a fantastic galaxy. The coolest part is that you can barely see it when the lights are on, because the paint is fairly translucent. My girls love it.

Tips for Choosing a Painter

If you are thinking of hiring a painter, there at least a few things to keep in mind when doing so. Many people don't understand the difference between a good paint job and a not-so-good paint job, and you don't want to learn the hard way. Here are a few tips to keep in mind when choosing a painter.

1) All painters are not equal.

There is a huge difference in painters' skill levels, knowledge and professionalism. Often times people remark that ABC Painter is so expensive while XYZ Painter is cheap. Most of the time there is a reasonable explanation for the prices painters charge; and sorry to say,