Oceanna - I enjoyed reading about your red room and Patricia's story about the red bedroom/green kitchen and I think I have to agree that color does make you "feel" something.
I love my EK mustard seed (it's in my basement and livingroom/kitchen) and according to EK it is supposed to be a very grounding color. I am no color expert - that is why I come on these boards for help - but I do think there is something to it.
I also have EK Lavendar Mist in my guest room and every time we have someone stay in there the next morning they say they had the best sleep they've had in a long time. The mattress is nothing special so perhaps it is the aura of the paint!
I am getting ready to paint my MBR and I am concerned that I won't choose a soothing color. I will be calling Ellen again!

Interesting topic!

I just said in another thread also how much I dislike yellow. I've known for years that I can't wear yellow with my skin tone, it makes me look washed out and sickly. When we first bought this house I painted my bathroom a cream color that ended up having way too much yellow in it.... I could hardly stand to look in the mirror, I kept thinking "god, I look awful". Finally relized it was the paint color doing what a yellow sweater does. I absolutely avoid it now - when I'm surrounded by yellow in a room, I feel washed out and sickly. I don't even have yellow flowers in my garden, lol.

I remember years and years ago, when the harvest golds, olives and oranges were a bit deal in kitchens, that I cooked constantly. I loved cooking and honed my skills pretty well at cooking. Subsequently, we have had various colors of kitchens as I like to paint and wallpaper as frequently as I can afford. I had a great kitchen back then with great plan, double ovens in wall and a cooktop with an oven over it. I cooked constantly, not knowing why. The wallpaper was a very beautiful brown with olive, lemon and orange large flowers, very crisp, brown oven, dishwasher, etc., with pine cabinets that I painted chocolate brown like the wallpaper background and a butcherblock countertop (well before it was popular in the USA). Subsequently, my first change was a French kitchen in off whites with greens, and it seemed I just quit enjoying cooking. I do believe it was the bright yellow, green and orange that made everything I cooked so enjoyable to prepare and serve and my family and/or guests to enjoy. I still recall entertaining a lot when I had that paper in the kitchen and breakfast room and what great comments I got on the colors but moreover the food. I do believe there is a direct correlation.

When we did our upgrade/remodel last fall, I painted the main guest bathroom blue and we were using it during the time of our bathroom being finished. My husband remarked that he felt "cleaner" when he showered in that bathroom. Yes, it looked almost spa-like before I changed the wallcolor to wallpaper with a texture to "warm it up" a bit. DH loved it but I felt like I was freezing with the blue walls, slate blue/gray floors, blue/pearl countertop and white appliances,

I always loved the color yellow for being cheery and happy and light pale yellow walls or walls with a hint of yellow or gold in homes of others I have liked. So I was surprised that when I painted my three bathrooms and Master Bedroom Ralph Lauren Deep Cream, I would not like being in a room that is so lemon but it does put me on edge. I repainted my Master Bathroom BM Navajo White that is so similar in color but is slightly deeper without the lemon tinge and someone it is soothing and happy to be in. My bathroom downstairs is little and the color does not bother me in it. My bedroom I still wish was a slightly different color since despite being such a happy color it is not soothing to be in a yellow room to me I have learned.

I still find the BM Linen White to be soothing in my home office two rooms. I love the soothing and warm BM Bone white in my storage room (spare bedroom), family room, kitchen and upstairs hallway so much. I find it golden with a touch of tan and so warm.

The BM Philadelphia Cream Color in my exercise room (have not exercised since my car accident but it still has a home stepper in there and prior season clothes and my personal files in there) has grown on me and I like it but I know I could not live with that color in my Master Bedroom.

I am still not sure if I am keeping my bedroom color or repainting it when I have time. It really is not that yellow but I just wish the lemon tinge that puts me on edge was toned down. It is amazing how color really affects most people's moods.

I used to be a purple/lavender person and despite still loving the color, I think I wore the color way too much and living in a room with purple sheets and a deep bright beautiful purple comforter for over 12 years finally made me realize I needed a change and a more soothing color to sleep. Making my bedroom a soothing Ivory/cream bedroom has made me enjoy wearing lavender and purple again.

In our last house, we painted our master bedroom a dark sage green, and the adjoining master bath a much lighter sage green, and we loved it. One reason we picked those colors was because I had heard how soothing and relaxing green is. Now that we moved into our new house, I am in the process of painting our new master bedroom Ralph Lauren Burlap. It's a dark khaki/sage green. I LOVE it. Again, it's very soothing and the dark color make the room really cozy.

I have always loved terra cotta painted kitchens so that's what we plan for our new kitchen. That color seems so festive to me and it's supposed to stimulate the appetite too. ;-)

For living areas, I have always liked a nice mustard color. It seems really cozy and warm to me, and reminds me of my living room back home at my mom's house.

The fad for red dining rooms made me crazy because I always feel on edge, antsy and irritable in red rooms, which is not exactly conducive to enjoying food and good conversation. (Combine that with the large mirrors many people put in their dining rooms, in which you get to watch yourself eat - how to feel selfconscious! - dinner can become downright unpleasant.)

Pale colors are downright disastrous for me: Other people's "calming and serene" I just experience as blah and depressing. I need some oomph to the colors in my surroundings. (Conversely, the sledgehammer-upside-the-head bright colors of Susan Sargent are perhaps a little TOO much oomph? That level of intensity gives me a headache, often literally. I prefer more of a "bass note" to my colors.) Beiges are VERY tricky, I can only use them as adjuncts to or foils for stronger colors. I would go mad in one of those so-elegant monochromatic shades-of-beige rooms. Just plain forget taupe (grayed beige). Too much white/offwhite leaves me cold and nervous. I can't wait to get this place painted/papered because I'm surrounded by white walls and antique-white trim, blecccch. *shudder*

Purple in pretty much every shade from amethyst to eggplant, except pastel lavender (too twee and cloying), is my go-to color for feeling mentally and emotionally engaged. It's also most likely to make me feel, um, romantic. ;-)

Yellows/golds are okay, they don't excite me but I'm not overwhelmingly averse to them either; lemony yellows are very unflattering to me personally but I still liked my yellow/navy/white (heh, lemon meringue pie with blueberries on the side!) guest room because that's what the space had asked for. However, I just love a perky egg-yolk yellow for kitchens, especially sunny ones, with white cabinets and little accents of Crayola red, blue, green. Mustards and golds are personally flattering to me but I'm not likely to use them in any quantity just because I don't find them very exciting, and I'm a little bit tired of them just because they've been "in" for the last couple of years.

Browns - I'm all about those wood tones (there is NO such thing in my book as "too much wood", I covet those old-fashioned rooms in which every inch of wall and ceiling is covered in wood, with wood floors and wood furniture!) but I also feel very grounded *ahem* with browns. Green is a close second to purple, in medium to deep tones; the deep forest feeling of browns and greens is what relaxes and calms me, not the pale "beachy" colors. When most people doing a mental relaxation exercise imagine a place where they feel calm, they imagine a beach, while I imagine a cozy den under a tree deep in the woods!

DH's favorite color is sapphire blue; he and I both find midtone blues conducive to focusing and just plain "getting things done" and deep blues relaxing. His office in the previous house was supposed to be cobalt blue, a color we both love. While people associate blue with depression, for me it's only pale blue that's depressing - deep blue isn't at all.

I think that's one of the things that drew me toward Victorian and Arts & Crafts decor, the unabashed use of (and perhaps even indulgence in) the darker colors.

Growing up we were a white/oyster white family. Then in my own home I've been taupe person for a lot of years. Then I realized I like blue and yellow so I did the guest BR in pale yellow and blue/beige toile wall border with yellow and blue accents.

After visiting this board I've seen so many other colors used in your homes and now my color horizon has broadened immensely. My DH and I both hated green. Now, we both find ourselves loving different greens. I know at least one if not more rooms in my new house will be green. I plan on putting it in the office as it is said green helps one to be more creative. Maybe that's because of the calming affect of green. I plan blue for the Master bedroom and a lighter variation of that blue for the master bath. I've picked out the toile I'm using in the guest bath. Don't know if I should paint the walls the lighter or darker gold that's in the stripe of the fabric. Maybe someone has a recommendation.

There is definitely something to be said about how color affects one's attitude. When I was young and sassy I wore a lot of red. It always made me feel confident.

Brutuses, I love your toile...may I ask the source ? It's lovely.

Hoyamom thanks! I think it's interesting too. Sometimes we need to live surrounded by a color for a while to know what it will do to/for us. That's good to know about your guest room. Blues and greens are the most often recommended for bedrooms, as they are calming. Let us know what you choose! What colors in the rest of your house make you feel good?

Rilie that's funny about looking in your mirror and I can really understand and I'm glad you discovered it. I'm the opposite of you -- I need yellow undertones in my colors. I think a room's paint color really does reflect on our skin, don't you? That's why we never want a blue or green lampshade -- they make us look like we're from Mars. What colors do you have in your home that you love and how do they make you feel?

Patricia I loved your story about the bright kitchen! I'd never even thought about kitchen coloring making us want or not want to cook. Clever you for figuring that out. So now do you use those cheery colors in your kitchen that energize you and your guests? They tell us to use food colors in kitchens and dining areas. That's really interesting how you and your DH responded to the blue bath so differently.

Lynn I'm with you on the yellow. I love it, but it turns out I don't love yellow rooms -- only on TV. I'm so sorry you were in an accident. Are you okay now? Aw, go ahead and repaint your BR if you're not happy with it. Better to feel comfy. Interesting about you getting burned out on wearing purple/lavender because of too much of it in your house. I'd never thought of that but it makes sense. Navaho White continues to be a very popular color year after year, and it looks beautiful with snow white trim, too.

Kittycat you are at least the second person I've heard say they loved their green bedroom and remember it fondly. I love green too, so do you have any pics to share of the Burlap? Your love of the terra cotta kitchen relates right back to Patricia's post. Maybe you two are onto something? I had a terracotta (really a dusty pinky peach) in my kitch in my last house and loved it. You two make me want to rethink my kitchen. What color are your cabinets? Which paint is your favorite mustard color? Do you have it in your home now and if yes can you post a pic, please?

Johnmari I agree about red dining rooms and the mirrors, not for me. Mirrors are good for checking for spinach in your teeth, smeared mascara, and TP hanging from your waistline and beyond making sure I'm not going to scare anyone or get laughed at, you can keep them. It must be men who think a mirror above a bed would be a good thing! You seem to really know your color preferences and that's a great thing. I love woods too. I could feel snuggly in a log cabin. Icy colors make me feel cold. Please post some pictures of your home!

Brutuses isn't this a great place to broaden our horizons? I learn here all the time, even after 23 years as an artist for Boeing. That toile looks more green on my monitor than gold. What color will your woodwork be? I can't wait to see pic of your new house. When will that happen? I wore more red when I was younger too. Now I love it as accent color, but wouldn't want to paint a room that color.

This is a really fun conversation!

ocean, The toile is gold or it's described as "tan." I'll have beadboard 2/3 of the way up the wall in the bath. I thought I'd paint the beadboard and trim a soft white, nothing glaring and the ceiling black so it will dissappear. It's a 10' ceiling in a little room so I thought it best to make it dissappear. HA! Have you not seen some of my photo's of the house, thus far? I have some posted on the building forum or I can post them for you here. Let me know.

I was going to originally paint my guest bath red and have the black and white toile, after seeing a beautiful BR on rate my space. Then because of my color scheme in the rest of the house I rethought that decision and decided on the more subtle gold. Still have the black in the room as the floor will be black and white octagon and the fixtures are called tuscan bronze or rubbed bronze and they are almost black. Should be really pretty. It will look like a 1940's N.O.'s bathroom. Just decorating in that era brings back so many fond memories of my great aunt's home that was filled with gorgeous antiques and was always so warm and welcoming. She'd pay me a quarter to polish all of her furniture. Hell, I'd done it for nothing. HA!

I've linked the online album with pictures of my previous house which we moved out of at the end of September, and some pre-moving-in pictures of the new house below. As yet there are no post-move photos of the house we moved into, since it's still so far from presentable it is not funny! We're waiting to do anything until after we've gotten rid of the other house (long story) and evaluated what structural work this one needs and what money (ha ha, "what money?" indeed!) we're going to have to work with.

DH and I are both incredibly opinionated and incredibly picky about color. He was raised by an artist and cut his teeth on color theory, while I'm just stubborn. :-)

Here is a link that might be useful: Johnmari's album

Brutuses I don't think I've seen the pictures, but it sounds just wonderful! I'd love to see them.

Johnmari Your new house is darling! I can't wait to see what you do with it, but you certainly have my understanding that it does take quite a lot of time to get settled and get things presentable. I looked, but didn't see the link to pics of your old house, sorry, must be my bad. Can you help me out more?

Sorry, in the same main album I linked to there are various sub-albums marked "Exeter" (where we used to live) - "Exeter living room" etc. Those are the old house. (I miss it. *sigh*)

Interesting...my daughter just last night said that she wanted to have our bedroom (yeah, right) because the color was so calming and soft (EK Pumice, including on the ceiling, where she pointed) that she could really fall asleep in there. A surprise, coming from the girl who wanted an all-red bedroom until about yesterday. I think I've delayed enough that she may be coming around :)

Patricia, I bought the fabric from Fabric.com

Ocean, here are some photo's of the house thus far. Sheetrock is starting to go up next week.

Front lights

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back door

back porch

looking at back of den leading to back porch

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About 25 yrs ago when we built this house, I chose a peach colored wallpaper for our hall bath...I've been thinking about that wallpaper...I always thought I looked prettier when I was in that bathroom!

We just did a complete remodel of our master bath this yr. and it has a lot of noce-colored tile, tan-gold (pecan) walls, and ubatuba granite. I LIKE my bathroom, but when I look in the mirror, I don't look as pretty as I did in that peach bathroom...go figure!
Susan

Peach is my color too, and my master bath is a very pale peach. Have you noticed it's almost impossible to buy peach colored things these days? What's with this idea of colors being "in" or "out?" Seems to me we used to be able to buy any color. But in the last few decades if your color isn't "in" good luck finding it anywhere except in a thrift store!

Noce colored?

Sounds like you need to go back to a peach bathroom. :-)

Wow, what a darling house! I love, love, love your porch. What an exciting, and no doubt stressful time for you, huh?

Oceanna, Thanks for asking if I am OK. I am still in so much pain from the accident and it bothers me since I have my tax season coming up and I need to make sure someone helps me lessen the pain before then.

That is such a pretty house. Brutuses, thank you. I love your fabric!

Good luck on convincing your daughter to go for a calming bedroom color. When I sold my last house I had painted the entire thing Navaho White with white trim and it looked brand new. Immediately one of the teenagers had her bedroom painted the most nauseating bubble gum pink. I really had to bite my lip!

BRUTUSES!!! A HOUSE!!! I think that's the first picture I've seen of your project - what cool digs!!!

Thanks y'all, I forget you don't see photo's because I post them on the building forum.

mpw, peach is the most flattering color to skin tone. I just read something recently that recommended bedrooms be painted peach so everyone looks their best, if you get my drift!! HA!

Well, oceanna, thank goodness my daughter is allergic to pink :) Seriously, she hates it with a passion--it's an easy way to get a rise out of her anytime. Makes buying clothes a challenge, though...

Oceanna, Which brand of Navajo White did you use? Thanks!

I've been thinking of these things while deciding on master bdrm paint. i've been trying to explain the choice of blue to my husband and while doing so a light bulb went off. I work out of my house a couple of days a week, and over the past 10 years I've had 3 offices in two houses. The first one was in a spare bedroom in my old house, painted in BM China White (builder's choice). I could not concentrate in there and had a difficult time being productive. Then I moved my office to a basement location where I have BM Rosemary Sprig on the walls. I loved working in there. Currently, my office is in the bonus room of the new house with what on the walls? The dreaded China White (builder hasn't changed his colors!). The color makes my crazy..I still can't concentrate and I don't like being in there. It's also a craft room and well, there's not much crafting going on in my house these days. Needless to say, I can't wait to paint, but htis room is in line after my foyer and bedroom.