I do some freelance work as a historic homes color consultant. My neighbor and I chose colors and he painted his foursquare red with ivory trim - he has a black roof, it looks great. I'm painting my home olive with gold trim to contrast with his. They are a great pair of old houses that have definitely inspired others in the neighborhood. Id recommend NOT using the same color on the roof as anywhere else on the house. if you use red as the body, choose a non-red color for the roof (perhaps a deep deep green - it looks GREAT). And be careful of the shade of red you choose - Another neighbor replaced her original faded red standing seam roof with a new aluminum one in fire-truck red. it was not great, but I thought, at least she chose the "same kind" of roof. Then she painted all the trim RED - it looks like a KFC. Its horrible and an embarrassment to the neighborhood. Look thru Moss's exterior color books - he's the best man to research when it comes to exterior colors on historic homes. And please don't paint your house lavender with a red roof - just, please, don't

I think a bad base is different than color mix ups because the painters really should check to make sure the color is the correct one before actually painting. On the other hand, if a paint store gives you a faulty batch of paint, they should surely reimburse the damages. Some people pay thousands for their painting. That happened to someone else, where there was some sort of a problem with the paint itself (per SW, lots of complaints) and it remained sticky. How did you deal with the non-curing paint so you could paint again? Mine was a dumb color match. No one, including myself, verified it was a correct match. They blamed my painter for not showing it to me on the wall first and said they never check when it is in their formula base. (I wasn't asking for labor, I just couldn't believe how different the color was from the swatch and she reimbursed the cost of the paint which was $100.) I check carefully now and find the samples are frequently quite different. They tell me it is because it's a sample or quart size instead of a full gallon. But the first one this happened with was a gallon and it was not a custom match, although it was an acquired brand. It's happened at BM also, where the sample pots were completely different even for their own colors. They were dumbfounded and claim it rarely happens. But there I was with 3 out of 4 sample pots or custom quarts completely wrong.

This year I finally got tired of the chips in white dinner plates and the white bowls that were shaped oddly for pouring milk into and began investing in Fiestaware. Obviously, the colors are brighter than what you are looking at but I knew that I did not a different color in each place setting (too visually stimulating for me). My table seats 8 so I wanted 8 place settings in cobalt. If the table is full, I can have everyone with the same color for continuity. We are a family of 6 in the house so I am also acquiring 6 place settings of lemongrass and 6 of scarlet. This allows me to have our family all have the for dinner in an every day setting or helps with coordinating when I want the contrast. When shopping for other pieces like ramekins, individual casserols, buillon bowls, etc., those will all be in the same color for the set (for instance just 6 scarlet ramekins). What it comes down to for me is I love the dishes, they make me smile. I used to love white dishes but I can really appreciate how these colors set off foods. I also love the way the colors coordinate, most of the time. I am a moody person though and sometimes I do not want too many colors at once so this gives me the flexibility I need. Good luck and enjoy your new dishes.

Thanks for the advice!!!! I tried a little test of mixing the two colors and I think I am getting close to perfection! I love the feeling of Oyster Bay, but I find it a tad too "blue" and cool. I wanted a TAD more green and a little warmth. I might even try mixing in a bit of a "greener" color such as a drop of Svelte Sage to see if I can get what I'm looking for. I am so excited that I am finally getting close after MONTHS and close to $200 in testers. I am almost getting embarassed to go in the paint store anymore! Kpaquette! Please pics of "Stratton Sea"!!!! I tried both of those colors-Stratton Blue was too bright and almost "neon" (I found all 3 of those related colors: Palladian, Wythe, and Stratton Blue so intense), and Sea Pine a little too dark and gray. I bet they'd make a beautiful mix! It's kind of funny I have 4 fan decks and I can't find the color I want in all those! What is wrong with me! So would I just paint my final mix onto a piece of white cardboard and bring it in?