Color and Paint Tips Archives

Tiny Dining Room Gets Color Makeover

It’s important that living, dining and family rooms feel warm and inviting— whether you’re trying to sell your home or decorating it to live in.

Here a tiny dining room, that was barely more than a hallway from the front of the house to the kitchen in the back was, given a dramatic face lift.

Old wood chairs were re-painted and an inexpensive wrought iron Ikea fixture is dressed up with beaded red shades.

As one might expect in a home from the early 1900s, the old plaster walls were less than smooth. To visually minimize this issue and save money, the walls were repainted and then a wash of a second deeper color mixed with glaze was added over top. This textured look gave depth to the room while making the bumpy walls no longer an issue.

Old wallpaper no barrier to inexpensive makeover

Written by Debra Gould -

Many of us live in older homes that have layers of wallpaper that have been there for years. The thought of removing it becomes a roadblock to redecorating because we’re afraid of all the plastering work that will be needed if we take it down.

This is particularly true when you live in a home with plaster and lath construction, which was popular through to the 1950s when drywall was introduced in the US and Canada. If you’re not sure what type of walls you have, try hanging a picture. The nail will go smoothly into drywall, not so with plaster and lath that will crumble with age sometimes turning what was supposed to be a tiny nail hole into a quarter inch diameter mess!

If you’ve run into this problem just hanging pictures, it’s not hard to scare yourself out of removing layers of old wallpaper that may indeed be holding those old walls together. This doesn’t have to stop you from radically changing the look of your room with a new color of paint.

With proper priming you can paint over wallpaper!

Granted, this isn’t considered the “right” way to do things, but does it really matter if the alternative is living in a depressing space that you hate, or losing money trying to sell a lack-luster home?

bedroom before color makeover

bedroom after color makeover

Given this older home’s plaster and lath construction, removing multiple layers of 20+ year old wallpaper could have turned into a 5 day messy and expensive re-plastering project. Instead this transformation was achieved over a weekend.

After priming, Debra Gould chose a deep caramel color that was painted right over the ugly wallpaper. New and more colorful bedding, and a properly proportioned night stand and lamp that she selected, completed the redecoration of this master bedroom.

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With a minimum two hour consultation in your home, we will tell you everything that needs to be done in your home (room by room and outside too). Contact us to learn more or arrange an appointment.

> Read more about our color consulting, interior redesign and home staging services.

Feel free to add your comments to this story. Have you ever tried to take down wallpaper before painting?

Home staging expert Debra Gould is president of Six Elements Inc. She has staged millions of dollars worth of real estate, including seven of her own homes. Debra has gained international recognition and has been featured in major media in the US and Canada including: HGTV, CNN Money, CBC National News, CBS Radio, GlobalTV, CityTV, The Wall Street Journal, Woman’s Day, Reader’s Digest and more.

How to Avoid an Expensive Kitchen Renovation

Written by Debra Gould -

Kitchen redesigned by Debra Gould — I redesigned this kitchen with paint and accessories instead of ripping out cabinets and putting in new counters. It was even featured in Woman's Day Magazine! Runner on the counter is from the Debra Gould Home Collection

Many families don’t have tens of thousands to spend on a new kitchen, or they don’t want to live through the significant inconvenience of ripping out this critical room and waiting for it to be rebuilt from scratch.

I did it once on my second property and it was a nightmare. The day after I moved in with my toddler I had the kitchen ripped out so that I’d have better cupboard space and a spot for a dishwasher. It took over two months to complete and in the meantime we lived in a construction zone with all the dust, noise and danger that entails.

Weekend Bathroom Makeover for Under $500

Written by Debra Gould -

Whether you are decorating your house to sell, or planning on staying where you are, this before and after story will help you see the potential that waits in the next room.

Studies have shown that renovating the main bathroom in a home has an estimated payback of 60% to 65% when the home is resold. But it can cost well over $5000 to complete, not to mention the significant inconvenience.

Before calling a contractor, consider whether cosmetic changes will be enough to get the look you need for resale, or better yet, for you to enjoy until it’s time to sell.

Many bathrooms look ugly or tired but the expensive items are basically there. This was the case in this weekend bathroom makeover example:

bathroom before staging

bathroom after staging by Six Elements Inc.

Before:

White walls, shag carpet with matching toilet seat cover, general clutter and wood shelf mirror and toilet roll holder, all made this bathroom seem old— despite the fact that it had been renovated.

After:

A weekend long $475 transformation. An insignificant investment in time and money, considering how important bathrooms are. Also worth the investment even if you were only decorating to sell because of the $475 in spending, only $195 went towards items that would be left behind if the house were sold!

What Six Elements Did

Six Elements Staging TIp — If you are selling your home, buy your new towels, mat and shower curtain before you move. You can use them to prop your house while it’s on the market and then enjoy them when you move to your new home.

The old plastic towel bar was replaced with a brushed metal one with matching glass shelf over the sink and toilet roll holder.

The white melamine cabinet was replaced by a shorter trolley (which could be painted to match). The top is used to display an art object and vase of dogwood branches or seasonal flowers, instead of general bathroom clutter which is now hidden in the baskets below.

The medicine cabinet was painted to match the walls and the 1970’s vanity light (not shown) was replaced by a brushed metal halogen fixture. It provides more general light than the original fixture, matches the other new hardware and contributes greatly to the fresh modern feel of the “new” bathroom.

So, whether you are moving or not, why not consider how your bathroom can be enhanced with paint and accessories? You will appreciate it every morning and make it your refuge at the end of a long day.

What it Cost (materials only)

Paint	$ 70
Towel Bar, Shelf, Toilet Paper Holder	90
Halogen Light Fixture (not shown)	35
Trolley beside Sink	125
Shower Curtain	75
Towels and Bath Mat	50
Vase with River Rocks and Dogwood	30
Total Cost	$ 475

NOTE:

If this house were sold, all that would be left behind is the $195 spent on paint, light fixture and hardware. All the other items can be used in the next home! Considering how important bathrooms are to home buyers, this is a very insignificant investment.

Debra Gould's home staging tip — Before contacting your real estate agent, or even a house fluffer if you decide to use one, there are simple steps you can take on your own, like decluttering, to improve the overall look of your home. Be sure to approach the task with a highly critical eye. It can be hard to see your own home objectively after living in it for so long.

Not Planning on Moving Any Time Soon?

Then what are you waiting for? It’s time to freshen up that bathroom you’ve always hated with a whole new look. “It’s really sad to see how many of my clients suddenly realize they could have enjoyed living this way for years when I come in to stage, or decorate their homes to sell. Spend some money now so that at least you’ll get to enjoy the results before selling it to someone else,” says Debra Gould Toronto’s leading home stager, or house fluffer as she’s also called.

Not in Toronto, and Need Help?

Through her Home Staging Coaching Service Debra Gould offers advice by phone and email to clients all over the US and Canada.

“Virtual Staging,” as this is also called, is an excellent way to have your questions answered by a home staging pro as you need help. Learn more about how you can get home staging and decorating help by phone.

Free Home Tips in Six Elements News

Written by Debra Gould -

If you don’t receive our newsletter Six Elements News, you can sign up free in the box on the right of this page.

Every two months you’ll get a newsletter filled with free home tips and articles to help you whether you’re moving right now or not. Here’s what one reader says about Six Elements News:

“Your newsletter is a perfect combination of openness, knowledge and professionalism. Thanks for all the great information.” (Toby Fouks, BC)

Inspiring Books to Help You Create Empowering Personal Space

Written by Debra Gould -

design and color expert Debra Gould — Very sensitive to the subtleties of color and how each hue is effected by those around it, Debra Gould was dubbed "as color conscious as Matisse" in a magazine cover story.

A house is just an empty shell until we make it a home by filling it with color, furnishings, art and special objects that have meaning for us.

Through thoughtful placement of these, we build an environment that enriches us, provides sanctuary and also one that is welcoming to others. They feel it as soon as they enter our space.

I’ll be sharing a number of books with you that I have found helpful in learning about design and color— more importantly they inspired me to think about interiors in a new way.

I have all of the books I’ll be recommending in my own library and I hope you will find them as inspiring as I have.

I welcome your feedback and any recommendations you have for similar finds. You can also send me your color and design questions for me to answer in an upcoming issue of Six Elements News.

Color and Paint Tips

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Before:

After:

What Six Elements Did

What it Cost (materials only)

NOTE:

Not Planning on Moving Any Time Soon?

Not in Toronto, and Need Help?

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