Color, color, everywhere

We got the entire 2,800 square feet painted last weekend.  And it only took 25 gallons of primer (tinted lighter than the ceiling color), 20 gallons of Cincinnatian Hotel Hannaford (all ceilings and some walls), 15 gallons of Lyndhurst Stone (walls in great room and master area), and 1 gallon of Aqua Smoke (spare bath - I couldn't stand to have the entire house neutral).  

We went to Lowe's to get all of our paint (had a 10% off coupon) but, they can't tint the 5 gallon buckets of primer, so we called Sherwin William – and they could.  So, at 6:03 p.m. we waltzed in and bought a LOT of paint.  So all my color selects are from Lowe's and they matched them for us as SW.  They were super nice, considering they closed at 6!  I would highly recommend you get your paint from there.  They keep your color purchases on file for six years, in case you ever need it.  And, they sell these super cool quarts of paint for about $5, so you can test the color without ending up with a whole gallon of it (or you can just use the quart for a small project and get an awesome color!)

This is a bad photo of Brad painting the spare bath, we bought slate tile to go with it.

Brad rocked an 18 inch wide lambs wool roller on an extendable pole.  He was able to get maximum coverage with that.  It will cost a little bit extra (pole= $20, bucket =$35, lambs wool roller = $20, 18 inch roller head $20) to set it all up, but it's totally worth it.  I got a smaller roller but had a nice handle so no blisters!

The inside of the arches are the ceiling color to give it a little pop.

Brad took the ceilings and the walls.  My job was to trim the ceiling and walls where they meet.  For the primer (which was a slightly lighter color than the wall) I climbed up and down the ladder, and moved it.  I ended up with major bruises on my elbows!  After that, I tried out this Sureline paint edger.  Usually, I am not a fan, but this one rocked! (maybe I just really didn't want to go up and down the ladder again!)  The difference on this one was that you can pull back the guard while you dip it in the paint, thus minimizing the potential to get it on the wheels and on the ceiling.  I was surprised at how well it worked on our ten-foot ceilings. 

Even though it is a darker color, the open floor plan and all the windows make it feel light!

We did have a little help from a friend who stopped by Saturday afternoon (thanks Scotty!) which made it possible for me to have a girls night out!