Hello sweet friends! How is your week going? When updating a house the course of true remodeling never did run smooth. Let’s talk about the Kitchen Renovation Week 4 Paint Disaster.
There Is No Perfect White Paint
Many people feel tremendous pressure when selecting paint colors. Although I have been decorating homes and selecting paint for almost 20 years it’s still challenging.
In preparing for this remodeling process I have probably read every magazine article and blog post about picking the perfect white. I had researched the topic until my eyes crossed and my head had started to spin. There was also a strong possibility that I was probably too close to the situation.
My friend Donna of DR Hale Interiors has been absolutely invaluable in guiding me. She is a wonderful second set of eyes with FABULOUS ideas. If you are in the D/FW area and need a designer I cannot say enough nice things about her. Please email me if you would like her contact info.
So why is white so hard?
- There is blue based white, which is cool toned.
- Red based white, which is warm.
- Greige
- Beige
- And 50 million other mind boggling shades of alabaster, ivory, ecru…
There is no perfect white.
There is however, the perfect white for you and your home.
You will want to consider the other finishes that will be in the room such as cabinets, flooring, cabinet pulls, and appliances.
It’s a good idea to create some large size paint samples that you can move about the room. It’s also important to look at the samples at different times of the day. All paint colors can change drastically during the course of a day as the natural light shifts.
To create the paint samples select a large piece of white foam core or poster board. Cut it up into 8″ x 12″ pieces and then paint each piece a color that you are considering.
After trying out several samples I settled on Alabaster by Sherwin Williams for the cabinets. 
With Pale Oak by Benjamin Moore for the walls.
Kitchen Renovation Week 4 Paint Disaster
I always like to start out with a positive thought.
I LOVE the Alabaster cabinets!
But Pale Oak was just not for me.
On the walls of Storybook Cottage the color came across like a lump of pottery clay.
But not in a good way.
Mean Sheen
But even more than the color the sheen was horrible.
Because of supply issues certain types of paint finishes (eggshell/satin) are currently hard to come by.
The paint shop recommended a sheen called Low Luster.
Mr. Decor referred to it as “Glitter Paint”. LOL
When compared to the lovely Alabaster ceiling you can really see the shine on the putty color.
Given that the kitchen will be photographed and videotaped on a regular basis the high gloss would not work.
My amazing painters, Maria and Saul of Abayz Painting, agreed that the sheen formula had not been mixed right. Thankfully, Sherwin Williams covered the cost of the mishap.
So, we were back to square one in trying to find the right white.
Happily, we are back on track!
The German Schmear treatment has also begun and it is fabulous!
I’ll see you on Friday,
Laura
Your kitchen will be gorgeous when completed! You have some good folks in your corner, your designer friend and your painters.
Laura, Hi, I have been going through the exact same thing at my new-to-me house. I have bought Sherwin Williams, Benjamin Moore and then found Ace Royal which is one coat, thick, I don’t end up wearing most of the paint on my head like Benjamin Moore and they have five GREAT sheens.. I didn’t like Sherwin Williams. But, I used the Alabaster white color from Sherwin Williams and Ace Hardware had the formula for that. I chose the same color you did. It looked yellow on the bedroom walls, but perfectly white in the living room. I used Chantilly Lace (Benjamin Moore color but Ace Hardware paint) in the bedroom and that is perfect, now. It isn’t just the time of day, it is the direction that the light comes in from, too. My head has been spinning, too. If you have an Ace Hardware near you and you haven’t already bought all your paint, try Ace’s Royal paint. I love it. It is 33.00 a gallon versus 70.00+. I just painted two coats of Ace’s Royal Floor and Porch paint on the bedroom crummy old pine floor and it took only 1/2 gallon for two coats.. Why do we buy Sherwin Williams and Benjamin Moore paint? It’s terrible paint. But, they have great colors. Plus, Sherwin Williams tacked on a “shortage fee” without mentioning it to me. I saw it was on the bill when I got home. They didn’t have the sheen I wanted so I took what they had and they charged me 10.00. What the heck?
Wow — that’s massive. I can’t begin to imagine how hard that would be. I’m glad you are back on track — and that the schmear is working as well as you hoped.
Looking good! Can hardly wait to see that Schmear on the bricks!
Not to mention white with a green undertone – which I have and I love altho I agree about BM paint – it’s not holding up well but the colors are wonderful.
Can;t wait to see the finished reno!
Whites are so hard–there are so many variations. Glad you finally found the right shade and sheen.
We ran into similar trouble when looking for a very light grey. I did not want a yellowish grey. The first attempt was too blue, though it didn’t look blue on the sample. The second was too dark and dull. The third looked grey on the sample but white on the wall, but we ended up going with that one. It’s amazing how the color looks different on a whole wall rather than a sample. And as you said, lighting through the day changes the way paint looks as well.
The struggle is real with so many whites available. What a shame that once you decided on your colors, you had such a problem with the mix. So glad SW made the material part of it right for you, but certainly there was sunk cost in labor. I studied whites at great length when we remodeled our bathroom in 2017, and I think I bought 9 qts of test colors for poster board samples. In this house, it’s [extra] white throughout, but amazingly different looking from room to room, given the light. We couldn’t get ceiling paint for more than a month when we moved in last fall. Despite your pains, it’s coming along really nicely, Laura.
What an adventure home renos can be where even a can of paint can make everything just right or throw all your plans and hard work sideways. Glad to know it was all straightened out and fixed to suit. Stay Calm and Carry on Decorating!
We are so lucky to have hubby’s who understand our dismay when something doesn’t suit our vision and help in getting it redone so we are happy. Thank you for sharing your home reno stories! 🙂
Our house exterior in East Texas is Alabaster. I loved catching up with all of this. Trying to remodel and redecorate has been challenging lately. Sheen is as important as color in my opinion. I can’t wait to see more. I know how long you have waited for this.
Katie