PAINT Archives - Everyday Edits

My Favorite Creamy White Paint

November 11, 2019

What’s your favorite color? Right now I am crushing on shades of navy and gray for interior paint and decor. For clothing, I opt for shades of gray and black. The thought of adding a pop of color to my wardrobe usually results in a pair of jeans and a t-shirt. But when I discovered Benjamin Moore’s Mascarpone, I knew I had landed on my favorite creamy white paint. It reminds me of marshmallow fluff.

My Favorite Creamy White Paint Color

The hardest part about this paint color is how to spell it. Is it MAR or MAS? It trips me up every time. The fact that it is the name of a type of Italian cream cheese is not lost on me. It kind of reminds of one of my favorite desserts.

If desserts were a paint color this dessert would be Mascarpone.

My favorite creamy white popped up in my surprise pumpkin patch.

It’s my go-to for little projects and big ceilings. I love it so much I negotiated with my painter to repaint our family room ceiling. By the end of the first day, he agreed with my choice and he picked up the cost of the Benjamin Moore Mascarpone paint color and I paid for the labor.

I keep a mason jar size of this Mascarpone in my hall closet for quick paint touchups or an easy paint project.

I loved the transformation of my yard sale milk can find a few years ago. Everything pops against a shade of creamy white. Right?

Who knew you can paint over glass! This discovery changed how I looked at glass. No surprise here I used my go-to creamy white paint.

There’s a little bit of creamy white in every room and many accessories. Like it’s name suggests it’s creamy like frosting.

Check out this painted pumpkin compared to the real white pumpkins I found in our front yard (after our Aussie played soccer with a pumpkin the summer before the pop-up pumpkin patch.

My favorite creamy white paint is Benjamin Moore’s Mascarpone (AF-20).

There are Pinterest boards dedicated to shades of white paint like this one or this one.

How to Pair Hale Navy & Revere Pewter Paint

October 21, 2019

Do you ever worry about change? When did a paint color take over our thoughts? When did a paint color send us to Pinterest pages and every home magazine in the checkout aisle? Searching for the right answer on a paint color? I had a nice break from painting after the interiors were painted Revere Pewter a few years ago. It was so much brighter than our previous, Tuscany inspired paint colors in the early 2000’s. But somewhere during this blog decision, I got bored with all the greige. And decided to pair Hale Navy and Revere Pewter paint.

I created a Pinterest board filled with pins of Hale Navy and Revere Pewter. I started small with arches and niches; they must have been the architectural thing in the early 2000s.

Like this little nook that sits under the staircase. Here was the Revere Pewter painted niche.

How to Pair Hale Navy & Revere Pewter Paint

I crossed the hall over to the dining room where I followed the trend of painting one more niche.

And, then I ventured into carrying the Hale Navy under the dining room wall around the windows. We had recently removed a half wall between the kitchen and the dining room.

With the additional light, I decided the room could handle a bold blue like Hale Navy. The kitchen transitions to Revere Pewter.

Here is the dining room window ledge after I painted the walls Hale Navy. Full room pictures soon!

I loved the dining room so much I went around the corner and painted my office Hale Navy. Here’s a peek at my office. It is the pantry for the next month during our kitchen demo.

Here is a peek of my office. This has been the longest reveal. I binged Bridget Jones when I painted the room on a weekend.

And, now I am wondering if I went off the rails in my quest to pair Hale Navy to Revere Pewter paint?

How to Paint a Stained Door

October 9, 2019

There was no turning back once I started to paint our stained door. The decision to paint the stained front door was a long, agonizing one. Translation? I spent too much time (and coffee) searching Pinterest.Of course, I am obsessed with these doors, but I am pinching pennies as we get ready to demo our kitchen. I know… #blogprobs. The difficult decision was based on the fact that if the change from a stained to painted door, was not one that was easily undone.

How to Paint to Stained Front Door

Here is the stained front door from inside the entryway. And, yes, the white trim around the stained door was an existing eyesore.

I made the decision not to remove the door from the door’s hinges. With my erratic Realtor schedule, it did not make sense to remove the front door from the hinges leaving the entrance open to Colorado critters or solicitors!

So I started in steps; lightly sanding the stained door. I painted the sidelights first. I figured if I hated the paint it would be easier to restain one sidelight than the fron tdoor. At this point, I could see the transformation from the oak stain to a bright white to match the adjacent closet door. You know that moment when you love the decisionthat you agonized over for weeks?

This was my moment!

New hardware to match the closet door hardware finished the look. If you take a close look at the front door you can see we missed a few hinges when we updated the door hardware around the house.

Painting the interior side of the stained front door made the space brighter.

Look at the before and after side by side photo. Painting the stained doors made a huge difference in a matter of hours and a 1/2 gallon of paint. If you want to do a deep dive on the prep details, check out this handyman,

5 Milk Can Makeover Ideas

October 2, 2019

It was love at first sight when I found this milk can at a garage sale. I loved it so much I stashed in the garage for a year. Questions like, “What color should I paint it?” Or, “Could I pull off a jumper with booties this fall?” kept me up at night? Sound familiar? So I turned to Pinterest to find milk can inspiration. I found 5 milk can makeover ideas and in the end created my own milk can.

Milk Can Inspiration #1

I loved the paint color on this one. You can snag the vinyl decal at this Etsy shop.

Milk Can Inspiration #2

This black milk can looks so much better than mine (see above). You can snag personalized vinyl at this Etsy shop.

Milk Can Inspiration #3

I am not sure what I love more- this dairy graphic on the milk can or the girl (chick) behind Artsy Chicks Rule. If you visit her, please scroll to bottom to see my milk can makeover.

5-milk-can-makeover-ideas-everyday-edits

Source: Artsy Chicks Rule via Pinterest

Milk Can Inspiration #4

Funny story with these vintage creamery cans. That was the description of these cans when I found this on Pinterest. I guess that is what Ma Ingalls would have called these can when she raised a family in the Little House on the Prairie. I loved these creamery cans and then when I clicked on the link via Pinterest I discovered this was a photograph of creamery cans. Maybe I should order the print and skip the milk can makeover. #wink

Milk Can Inspiration #5

Here is one more makeover idea. I love the greenery and the buffalo check ribbon.

Source: DIY Projects

With 5 milk can makeover ideas swirling in my head, I decided to go in a totally different direction.

I painted the milk can this creamy white paint that I used on this table. It is creamy like icing.

I am obsessed with this berry garland I found at Michaels. And, the pumpkin was the perfect way to top off the milk can (my version of a lid).

I used a little bit of a grapevine wreath to wrap around the neck of the milk can. Grapevine garland or wreaths are my go-to for planters and baskets that need a little more weight.

I am so excited about how this milk can makeover turned out. And, the best part…moving it inside gave me more space in the garage for my next garage sale find!

Looking for simple ideas to keep the kitchen sink pretty? Check out this list.

What do you look for at garage sales?

The Painted Hutch

September 30, 2019

If you have been a follower of Everyday Edits you know I am passionate about my furniture. I got a lot love when I published the story behind our dining room table. And, this is hands down our most popular piece of furniture. But, today is about the painted hutch in our living room. The painted hutch is a story about redemption and finding one’s place in a space. It was a lesson in patience and process.

Yes, I am talking about the painted hutch that found its way in a brownstone-ish home in the suburbs of Denver.

What did you think I was talking about?

Today is about the ongoing transformation of the painted hutch in our living room. There is a collective eye roll from my family right about now. Honestly, I do not think anyone in my family noticed the living room hutch had gone from the original finish (black), to a creamy white and settled on a half creamy white and Kendall Charcoal gray combo.

I loved the Kendall Charcoal grey on the exterior and kept the inside a creamy white. But when it came to the fun part of staging the hutch, the accessories got lost.

I don’t have the photo of the combo paint job because that was when my Nikon had a complete camera breakdown. But the light gray walls and the white interior gives you an idea at the bland hutch.

So with a 1/2 gallon of paint in the hall closet and a new camera on order, I finished my vision for the painted hutch 3.0. In about an hour I painted the glass shelves and the interior of the hutch to match the Kendall Charcoal on the exterior. I grabbed a stack of white dishes to give me an idea of the potential in my newly painted hutch.

It was love a first stack.

Here is a quick look at the before an after:

I love this color! I painted my front door the same color too. It gives the hutch warmth against the expansive wall behind it.

Revere Pewter Paint in Family Room

August 29, 2019

Do you know that feeling when you see a photo of yourself and your like, “That is not what I look like?” Well, that’s the same reaction I had when I uploaded house photos. “My family room doesn’t look like that? Oh yes, it does, Laura. Oh, yes it does. And, I remembered the power of paint.

Revere Pewter Paint

I spent months on this page to narrow down my decision on the paint color for our home’s interior.

I love the Revere Pewter paint on the family room walls, but these photos show a little more blah than boom. And, it wasn’t until I took those photos that I realized I have some family room goals this fall. I was on the right track when I added these pillows.

The basket with the pillows is one of my favorite things in the room. I love the contrast between the wicker and the blue & white pillows. See that tennis ball in the background? I have a photo collage of random tennis balls.

When you are a tennis family you find tennis balls just about everywhere. Last spring I painted the nook above the fireplace Hale Navy and loved the contrast against the Revere Pewter paint on the walls.

The Revere Pewter paint is carried throughout most of the house. Our home is an open main level so you can catch glimpse of the Revere Pewter on most walls.

Here is a glimpse of our new windows from earlier this summer. The new windows transformed the room. We replaced all the windows with clear glass (no grids).

And, then I captured this blank wall and I was like, “Oh, that’s rough Laura.” Now what?

Our dream, okay my dream, is to knock down that wall and add a dual-sided fireplace (the living room is on the opposite side). But until then I need something on those walls.

And, look I spy another tennis ball (and a wandering power cord).

Simple Idea to Update the Kitchen Island

August 19, 2019

My kitchen is on the waitlist for a renovation. Every month she moves up the list patiently waiting to get her measurements taken, her drawers evaluated and her cooktop lifted and replaced. But, until the kitchen moves to the top of the waitlist, I found a simple kitchen island update in an hour.

My family expected me to add under cabinet lighting with Christmas lights.

But I played it safe with a quart of paint and a roller. Seriously, I did not even haul out a roll of painter’s tape!

Simple Kitchen Island Update

In the time it took to watch the BH90210 reboot, minus the commercials, the kitchen island was updated.

Because it was an island I did not need to climb a ladder. Because it had natural stop and start points, I did not take the time to tape the space. I used the trim work to guide my brush.

The kitchen island paint color went from dependable Revere Pewter to Kendall Charcoal in minutes.

All of a sudden, my baseboards popped against the new paint color. Even my dulled floors look a little less scuffed.

A coat of Benjamin Moore Kendall Charcoal transformed the space. Just like Pinterest promised. I love this color because it works seamlessly with colors like Revere Pewter and Hale Navy. I posted sneak peeks of my Hale Navy dining room on Instagram.

A big part of the kitchen renovation includes the removal and replacement of a larger kitchen island. So my decision to paint the island was a low risk, low effort to just give her a little tweak.

If you blinked you might have missed the subtle update. The boys in my house missed it… for weeks.

What do you think? Do you have ideas for inexpensive updates?

How to Stain Small Objects in Minutes

May 30, 2019

I love a good hack! My family would say I hack every time I cook or follow a recipe. It’s true; following a recipe is so conventional. I created this hack on the fly when I had to stain multiple wood embroidery hoops for these orbs. I had a paintbrush, deadline and I needed to find a way how to stain small objects.

There was more stain on my hands than on the embroidery hoops. It was more labor intensive than I anticipated; technically there are four sides to each hoop and the area around the hardware.

It was a messy process and each hoop required additional coats and touchups.

Staining each embroidery hoop one by one was slower than waiting for a load of towels to dry… while standing in front of the dryer. It was a brain drain technique.

This hack shows how to stain lots of objects in minutes.

I loved this hack when I painted dozens of cabinet pulls without incident, meaning they did not wobble and smudge the freshly spray painted cabinet pulls.

I grabbed an aluminum tray from the ~~upcycle bin~~ the stack of take-out trays and I poured just enough of the stain into the shallow aluminum tray. And, then I dunked the embroidery hoops into the tray; like an Oreo cookie into a glass of milk.

I completed this stain hack with a sturdy piece of cardboard under the aluminum tray.

Instant stain…on all sides of the hoop ( interior, exterior, and the narrow sides). The stain reached the nooks and crannies around the hoop’s hardware where the paintbrush just missed those same nooks.

It was a great way to stain small objects.

How to Stain Small Objects

How to Paint Vinyl Windows

May 20, 2019

Did you ever invest in a project or purchase and realize something was not quite right? Now multiply that mistake by a few thousand dollars. That was what happened after our NEW vinyle windows were installed.

Like a HUGE mistake!

I had ordered the almond trim color windows instead of the white trim package.

I know.

With white casings around our kitchen windows, the almond window trim package was a huge mistake. And, those mismatched almond windows against the white window moldings was the motivatation I needed to learn how to paint vinyl windows.

The bigger challenge, was not to tell my family until I had solved the problem. The odds were in my favor that no one in my family would notice the mistake.

I searched online for solutions and told no one in my family. Just like the time I made this online shopping purchase mistake.

How NOT to Paint Vinyl Windows

My first attempt to paint the vinyl windows was unsuccessful. I used a paintbrush and white primer and just painted over the almond trim.

Do not use a paint brush to paint vinyl windows.

But with the visible brush strokes, paint drips and the crank handles (which is what I loved about my new windows), the paint brush application was a fail. I shut dow the project site and drove to Home Depot.

How to Paint Vinyl Windows

I grabbed a few cans of Rustoleum paint +primer spray paint at Home Depot.

To prep the window, I lightly sanded the vinyl trim and cleaned the window to remove any dust or errant bugs.

Neither do well around spray paint.

For the first coat, I used only a spray primer. And, finished with two coats of a primer + white spray paint.

Next time, I will skip the first can of primer and just use the primer+paint combo spray paint.

The dual primer and paint combo provided great coverage and meant one less step to screw up the window finish.

The spray paint went over the window crank like the first coat of a new bottle of OPI nail polish; a smooth finish with instant results.

And, guess what? As soon as I stepped away from the window I knew I had found the best technique to paint vinyl windows for my skill level and pay grade.

The spray paint adhered to the vinyl with a smooth finish. There was a bit of overspray on to the windows, but it was an easy cleanup with a razor blade.

The hardest part was getting a crisp picture of the white handle in front of the newly painted vinyl window!

Painted Vinyl Window Update:

After almost two years the painted vinyl windows look great. And that crank window that I was so nervous to paint? It looks great and is used quite a bit in the summer.

I am so pleased with the results of painting vinyl windows.

how-to-paint-vinyl-windows-everyday-edits

Interested in other paint projects you can complete? Check out a few of my favorite favorites here.

How to Refresh Window Well Grates

May 17, 2019

My family gave me a collective eye roll when I mentioned I wanted to paint our window well grates. Before our exterior was painted, I NEVER paid attention to the window well grates in our backyard. All of a sudden, the aluminum finish was a little dull, tired and did not look great against the freshly painted exterior.

Kind of like my complexion after the long winter.

Window well grates serve a purpose. They are the gatekeepers for blowing leaves, little critters and random debris that finds its way to the edge of the window well.

And, if you have a garden level or walk out basement you may have a few window well grates to cover your egress window. But, safety doesn’t mean window well grates can’t get a refresh!

You can see where a plan to refresh the window well grates was lower on the to-do list for some family members. The concrete foundation did not add a pop of color.

I used Primer + Paint black flat spray paint for this project. That’s it! I taped packing paper to the adjacent wall to minimize paint spray on the house. I’m not always the most diligent when it comes to the prep part of the paint. I always say, “That’s why there’s touch up paint.”

How to Paint Cabinet Hardware

April 30, 2019

I purchased and installed 14 cabinet pulls before I realized I did not like the oil rubbed bronze finish. I thought the finish would be more oil than bronze. It was not. Would anyone notice or care; not at all. Except it would bug me; like a mosquito bite. I was on a mission to figure out how to paint cabinet hardware.

Without anyone noticing they were different. Which, let’s face it those odds were in my favor. I could paint the front door pumpkin orange and 1/2 my family would not notice.

I wanted black cabinet pulls; to pop against my white laundry room cabinets.

Painting over a dozen cabinet pulls without incident (meaning no coverage gaps or drips) sent me on a paint fix search. And, then, with no help from Pinterest or Google I got an idea on how to paint cabinet pulls with a toothpick.

Yes a toothpick.

Never under underestimate the power of a toothpick.

How to Paint Cabinet Hardware

With an empty Amazon box, 1/2 can of black spray paint + primer and a handful of toothpicks I set up my impromptu paint station outside.

2. I spaced the toothpicks apart making sure to have enough room around each one to spray every crevice.

3. Once the pulls were positioned, I poked each toothpick into the box; just enough to hold the cabinet pull. The toothpick’s sharp point made it easy to press into the cardboard box.

4. I placed each cabinet pull on top of the toothpicks.

The cabinet pulls were hollow so the toothpicks handled the weight of each cabinet pull.

The cabinet pulls wobbled, but they did not fall down.

A can of black spray paint changed the look of the cabinet hardware in seconds.

The freshly painted cabinet hardware gave a fresh look to a space that is all about lost socks, grass stains and dirty laundry.

Afterall, the laundry is the most popular room in the house.

After hundreds of loads of laundry, the spray painted cabinet hardware looks brand new.

Love it! And, no one in the family ever knew of my initial disappointment in the finish. I started and finished and reinstalled the pulls in a matter of a few hours. In fact, NO ONE in the family noticed I had changed the cabinet pulls from the original pulls!

If you are thinking about painting your front door, read this post.

Here is tip for staining small objects!

Pottery Barn Kitchen Table Knockoff

March 14, 2019

I was this close to selling my kitchen table on Craig’s List when I saw this table on Pottery Barn’s website. In just a few minutes of side glances over my shoulder and back at the screen I knew I had a PB kitchen table knockoff in the works!

I looked at this table, zoomed in on the base and looked over to my World Market clearance table. This white PB kitchen table turned out to be the inspiration for my Pottery Barn kitchen table knockoff I finished last summer.

My veneer-ish, shiny black table was mix-matched with the shades of blue. I was so close to trading it in for something new.

I painted my round table with this Benjamin Moore color. It is Mascarpone and it is a favorite white at my house. The hardest part about this creamy white is spelling it correctly. I have to Google it everytime.

And, this Pottery Barn kitchen table knockoff is one of my favorites! My kitchen table went from a shiny, veneer-ish finish to a creamy color to brighten the space.

kitchen-table-pottery-barn-knockoff-feature

I think this table is the longest I have kept a piece of furniture free from new paint. Yes, I do touch it up, but I have not wavered in my decision to paint it a different color. I love it!

Garage Entry Door Makeover in an Hour

November 20, 2018

It’s the week of Thanksgiving. I should focus on mashed potatoes, fresh linens and a vacuum to reign in the dog hair. But that’s not what happened yesterday. In between a quick inventory of the Christmas trees and hauling out bags of clothes to drop off at Goodwill, I painted the garage entry door. That’s right in less than an hour I had a garage entry door makeover. Welcome home…

You know when you reach that point where you have to drop everything because something bugs you so much? Like a mosquito bite; that you can’t reach to scratch? Well, my garage entry door was that mosquito; except it was door and days before Thanksgiving.

This was the door a few years ago before it got a quick update with a coat of black paint and new hardware. But over the years the door got banged up with tennis bags and a 93 pound Bernese Mountain dog covered in mud.

She may also be the reason the updated door hardware tilts.

I switched things up with a couple quick coats of Chelsea Gray. The same paint I used to paint our living room hutch. There is an Instagram account just for Benjamin Moore’s Chelsea Gray.

In our house, the entry door from the garage is the most popular door. The only one who visits the front door is the UPS or Fed Ex guy. So it only made sense that my family members have a door with fresh paint.

In less than an hour, I had a garage entry door makeover. And I added a little something to welcome my family home.

It turns out the crazy, packed schedule is the deadline I needed to haul out a paint tarp. The time spent painted rolled by quickly with thoughts of all three of my children home for a few days. #fullhouse

I plan to make these as these breakfast rolls in the days before Thanksgiving.

Hello there!

Never Underestimate the Power of Paint

November 7, 2018

“Do you think we can find paint ideas on Pinterest?” My husband asked this question while driving home with three salvaged doors hanging out the back of my car. The fact that my husband knew how to use Pinterest in a sentence made me so happy. His question told me he listens to some of my crazy house ideas. And, my crazy house ideas and my time are not wasted on Pinterest in the early hours of most Saturday mornings. Never underestimate the power of paint.

As a Realtor, I remind sellers paint has all the power in a room. A paint color has the power to turn off or engage potential buyers when they walk thru the front door.