In the house that lives in my mind …
that dream house where everything is perfect and dust bunnies don’t exist and things are never, ever out of place …
… the colors are subtle. Neutral. Tone-on-tone.
Much like the Union Jack pillows I sell at my Etsy shop. I mean, look how perfectly they work at Thistlewood Farm.
And my Pinterest boards? Yeah, they’re filled with lots of things like this …
*swoon*
Hey, a girl can dream, can’t she?
And often times my plans for a room’s design start subtle. Neutral. As in Nate-Berkus-would-be-so-very-proud-of-me neutral.
The entry redesign? Yeah, that was going to be lots of white board and batten, soft grays, and mellow yellows.
![entry remodel with board and batten (550x413)[4]](http://lh5.ggpht.com/-cHQJ3qmYX1I/UA7XlHgG7II/AAAAAAAAPnE/Vx_UKAp8xFA/entry-from-living-room-550x41345.jpg?imgmax=800 "entry from living room (550x413)[4]")
And it ended up with a bold gray and crazy Michael Miller multi-colored fabric.
And then of course there’s my son’s room. Nothing like bright orange walls to kill my subtle-neutral-tone-on-tone-in-my-mind-home dreams.
And now my in-my-head-dreams-of-a-soft-and-soothing bedroom are being invaded by color …
as in the blue and brown and white color palette is not enough. As in I’ll be heading out to Lowes today to check out their spray paint selection …
And you’ll need to come back on Monday to see what color I’ve picked. And then you’ll need to come back on Tuesday (July 31) and share your very own color crazed moments at our Mission Possible: Crazy for Color multi-blog linky party.
This time around we want to see how you add pops of color to your home. It could be with fabric. Or paint. Or flowers. Or accessories.
And when you link up here, you’ll automatically be linked at my lovely co-host’s blogs …
I can’t wait to see it–I’ll be in NY until Wednesday, so (as usual) I’ll be late to the party, but I’m interested to see what everyone’s done, as I am currently in denial of the fact that no matter how many colorless rooms I pin? I am just a colorful gal at heart. And I love tchotchkes. I can’t help it. It’s genetic.
PS-glad you got the package! The cutest little gal makes the soap–she’s a stay-at-home mom with 2 under 2 and her husband teaches, so they really need the money. (No union in NC and we’re the lowest paid in the country.) I love her stuff!
i go through phases… i am all over the place! i just added a bunch of color pops so now of course i am wanting to take it away!
Oh my. I’m doing almost the same thing in my front hall. I had plans for light and fresh and neutral, but I ended up with white wainscoting and darker grey walls like you. Oh well, I love it! That’s what matters!
Linda, you always give me this wonderful “Oh good. It’s not just me” feeling everytime I read your blog. I saw Thistlewood Farm fof the first time the other day in all it’s neutral and finished perfection and just had a panic attack that my house would NEVER be that together. But then I read your post about compulsive color additions, and I feel so much better. I have a problem with electric blue. And orange. Oh and teal, and fuscia. And lime green. So much for neutral. But it’s all so dark fun!
I love all your color! Neutral is nice, but I’m a color girl too. It’s like wearing nude lipstick instead of a lovely shade of pink, though. give me pink any day!!
Love that kitchen!!! Great photos, I’m loving the neutrals with bright colours.
And, here I thought your color pops were all well thought out intentions! 🙂
It seems lately i dream in black and white, and Thistlewood colors myself!! Not sure what i’m gonna come up with for this party!
I have that same problem! I love love love neutrals but cannot resist a pop or two of amazing color! Lime green, hot pink, and yellow are some of my favorites!
Ok, you just gave me inspiration to finish our bedding once and for all by Monday. It is a work in progress but there is some color. I like looking at totally neutral rooms and totally colorful rooms, but i have found that I like just small pops of color in my own house. Perfect for this party! 🙂
I am so behind on the color bandwagon it’s not even funny! Ahhhhh!!!
I LOVE your entry and son’s room. I’m a circus color kinda gal, and while the tone on tone looks nice elsewhere, I could never imagine it in my own house. With a small boy. Can you imagine what that neutral palette would look like after a lego explosion and the toad that just ‘happened’ to make its way in through the front door?
Nope, me either.
LOL
🙂
Kristy
SAStudio.etsy.com
Hahaha.
Cute post.
I have almost a completely neutral home, but in beiges not whites…..I understand your love of neutral tone on tone love but you went bold, huh? And it looks fabulous – you must need colour more than you realize. haha.
Either way you have exquisite tastes and anything you do will be amazing.
Well the Union Jacks look fabulous over at Thistlewood…but you know that i simply adore them to begin with! : ) Your pinterest picks are divine!!! But I sure do love the pop of color that the entrance has! CHEERY and FUN!!!! : ) sending hugs and looking forward to hosting the upcoming ALL ABOUT COLOR linky party with you! hugs…
For me, the whole point of a neutral wall is to create a clean canvas for COLOR. Lots of it! How else could my big red bird, orange/gold chairs, and big blue paintings all get along in the same room? 🙂
And your brown cabinets have inspired me. If I can get it together before Friday, I might have something to share at your party next week. If not, I’ll sure enjoy looking at everyone else’s creations.
I foresee those fugly (fish+ ugly) fish turning into bright,bold beauties. Looking forward to our party!
Kelly
So excited for this! I started painting my bathroom last week, so this is just the kick I need to finish things up!
LOVE love love this idea! Your home is so warm, cozy and creative!
Thanks for the reminder about the party 🙂
Have a great week Linda!
OMGosh,, Linda- What beautiful, beautiful images. I love how fresh and crisp everything looks- Beautiful- xo Diana
Whatever you decide, I’m sure it will look great!
Love the neutral bedroom and kitchen! Those live in my dreams as well. I have become a follower! Hoping you can check out my blog when you have a chance and follow back if you like.
Iva
One Chic Mom
http://fabmom12.blogspot.ca/
Yes, our “mind’s eye” is a very clean and soothing place isn’t it? But color and dust bunnies always take over here at my place! So good to have found you – can’t in a million years remember how but I am a devoted follower!
I recently had a similar experience. Where one day, I woke up and said… why? why do I look at serene monochromatic pictures of perfect rooms…White washed tombs? When really, …that very morning, It became undeniable–I like color!?!? I’m surrounded by it.
To have that crisp, shades of grey (ehem, not the book…)LOOK…would take far, far,too much work. Work this Empty Nester and Oma to 3 Littles on a daily basis…is not willing to invest! No.
Welcome to my world!
I think I’ll pop in for your party!
Pat
oooh I actually have something to share at this link party for once. I have become such a slacker on my blog recently. It’s hard when I have paid working begging to be done!
Looking forward to seeing what you share.
Zoe
I have the same “problem” I think all that white/neutral stuff is soooo pretty, but every time I get ready to paint something it is NOT white. I am going to paint a room white this year. It might give me a heart attack. And I do have a “white” pin board…..
I’m excited to see what you do! I love to look at tone-on-tone rooms, and they are beautiful, but I’ve just started to realize they’re not me, not where I want to live. (Why is it so hard to figure this out?)
Hi Linda! My husband wants our son’s room to be orange and blue… and we stumbled upon this post! If it’s not too late (2 years later….) what colors did you use? It’s exactly what we had in mind color wise… and a beautiful room! Great work! I can’t wait to look through your blog!
Thank you so much for your kind words!!! So sorry for the late response! The colors are Frivolous Berry from Dutch Boy, Pike’s Peak Gray from Benjamin Moore, and Rustoleum’s chalkboard paint. Hope that helps! 🙂 Linda
P.S. Is your hubby a Bears fan? 😉