MY COLOR + MY MIRROR

It's ridiculous how long it's taken me to write this post- better late then never. A few months ago I had the opportunity (thanks to decorative painter Kristen Fountain Davis) to be a part of a study group on My Color: inspired by Pantone Paint. A group of Atlanta based designers, artists and bloggers got to sit down and talk about Pantone's paint line. We were also sent a package of 6 different colors to play with. I was thrilled to find Dandelion (13-0758) in my box because it's very close to the yellow in my guest room bedding. I recently spruced up my second bath and as a result the old bathroom mirror moved into my guest room. This became a perfect opportunity to test the product and give my mirror a fresh new look!

The mirror is from Home Goods and it's had many homes since I got it. It was originally white, I painted it this plumb color and hung it on a hallway wall that was the same color. When we moved into this house it was in the second bath which has gray walls. The colors worked well together but it wasn't the right style, so I replace it with something more modern and moved it into my guest room. It's the perfect size for my shinny little dresser but I wasn't feeling the color next to my yellow and grey bedding. And so, I sanded it down, taped it, and painted it Dandelion yellow. The My Color Paint is a paint plus primer product so I followed the directions accordingly. Looking back, I probably would have used a spray paint primer if I had to do it again. The mirror frame has a lot of dips and curls going on so I had to keep each coat pretty light in order to avoid drip marks and pools of paint. Between the intricate surface and the dark color I was trying to paint over, it took quite a few coats.

Ta-da, check out my super yellow mirror! In the end, My Color Paint went on nice and smooth and was very low in oder. It gave me a great matte finish, which I usually don't gravitate to but I love how it looks above my high gloss dresser. It's a huge upgrade for the room and it looks fantastic next to my bedding, which by the way is from Target's Dwell Studio Line. Another thing to note is the wall color in this room, it's Restoration Hardware's Pumice. I love the way it changes in the light; it's a really unusual shade of grey that I would  highly recommend.

To see some other great examples of My Color: inspired by Pantone Paint check out their blog here.

STRONGBOX WEST: BEFORE AND AFTER

I've been working on Strongbox West for a while now and I wanted to wait tell I finished before showing some Before and Afters BUT the exterior is so close. It's been so nice outside and I smile every time I pull up so forget it- I must show you some photos now. Strongbox West is a Co-working Community on the Westside of Atlanta (the best side of Atlanta). A lot of the members are in creative fields like web design, programing, graphic design, marketing, and so on. My clients Rick and Amy had a wish list addressing a lot of features and spacial issues they were ready to upgrade, but livening up the exterior was definitely on the top of the list. We decided on a deep grey and orange color palette because it felt lively and appealing to a Tech-savvy entrepreneur-type who may work here. The bold facade, custom signage and abstract photography are eye-catching from the street. We repaired the concrete and drew attention to the entrance with color and by extending the stairs to the left and added a clean pathway to the right. The new linear planter is built, lit and stained but empty while we wait for spring to get here! We're also still on the hunt for a funky vintage bench for the concrete platform on the left. After getting to know the rockstar owners Rick and Amy; keeping the original pirate flag was a no brainer.

We were able to keep the signage cost under control by hiring local artist Keri Cawley to construct the letters out of sheet metal and resin. You can also see in the before and after picture that the grey paint only wraps around the side to the window, you can imagine how much labor and paint we saved by doing this. We also reused the frames from the original window signage as an art feature and we found a new home for the giant red star inside.. More to come soon!