I hope I am wrong, but I don’t think so, as my dad put it down in his remodel in the 80’s and it was in our downsize house (1976).

NICKERSON HOUSE · More Info

I am so familiar it…your floor is NOT Vermont slate. It is a product called Kentile, which was popular in the 80’s, until it was discovered an asbestos product. The company was closed down.

It’s okay if you leave it undisturbed, but once you try to remove it or cut into it, take major precautions.

We had the hallway floor removed, but did it with the help of environmental clean ups.

https://mesothelioma.net/kentile-floors/

Yikes! Thanks for letting me know! That's scary, as I was originally thinking of taking it up but then I was going to leave it because I thought it was from VT. I really think it's ugly anyway. I guess I can have it professionally removed thereby solving part of my design quandary and hopefully making the house safer... thanks! C

Hmmm.. actually on further research, I think it might be VT slate... https://camaraslate.com/vermont-slate-floor-tile/ I'm going to ask the original owners who built it.

that looks like real slate w/a super glossy topical sealer. (that can be stripped off) if you have real grout, it's slate. (just go to a corner or something covered w/furniture and take a sharp object to see if you can dig out a bit of the grout (or the tile. slate is very soft) That should give you the answer.

I'd strip those tiles of every last bit of that plastic looking top coat.

looks like a Montauk or a Vermont Green/gray slate

this is how the vermont slate looks naturally, with no sealer of any kind, and what yours will look like once you strip it.

after stripping, if the grout is still discolored, you can lighten it w/grout renew.

Vermont, mottled purple slate. you prob have some of these colors too.

looks like you got the Ashlar pattern

montauk

Thanks all for the slate convo, though I really do wish someone would answer my original question, lol :)

christina, you'd have to pick your furniture first. what I see in the pics are a pinkish tone carpet, reddish toned wood trim, and the green/gray of the slate. I would not bring in any blues. Pinks, whites, maybe a few purple accents (pillows/throws/art) would be it.

that tile and carpet color are going to dictate your wall paint. a slight grayish green (think BM Coventry Gray) would work.

(creamy beige if it leans yellow, isn't going to work w/the green/gray tones. if you want a creamy white, make sure it's on the red end of the spectrum)

crushed ice is a very light, warmer gray.

maybe Pale Oak, or the Aloe color

you could also lean more taupe tones like Alpaca

Decide what your main furniture color palette will be and remove this tile if you are going to, then we can help with paint color. We can throw a zillion "neutral" paint colors out for you, but can't get focused without context of furniture. I think I saw a back of a sofa that is medium blue?

Thanks guys! I'm going to keep the slate and strip it as suggested above. I'm flexible on furniture colors because just about everything I have I can paint, and I don't have a couch chosen yet. There is an old broken blue futon Flo saw, but that's going in the only partially finished basement. I'd rather choose wall paint based on the flooring and trim and then make the furniture work with it. I am also trying to choose a shiplap color for the master bedroom bed wall...

edit: I did ask the original owner/builders and they said it's real VT slate :)

Thanks, Beth, for all the great choices! I love grey, but I did a different house almost entirely in it and I'm kind of burned out on it. Taupe is a really interesting thought. I was thinking leaning more toward the natural side of things to play up the beautiful VT landscape around and create a calm, peaceful environment...

SW Natural Choice is great neutral. If you want more green, SW Sea Salt is great color. With your slate and wood, SW Sea Salt might really be pretty. Then just do neutral fabrics or leathers. You could even do great carmel leather sofa and chair with possibly navy print. I would at least figure out main sofa choice. Millions of paint colors. I always start with items hardest to find. Art, rugs, sofas. Paint comes last. What if you find great emerald green sofa? Sea Salt would clash like crazy. So definitely get at least a sofa or rug in mind. Or a piece of art you love. You can build a color palette around that.

The walls here are BM Raindance.

Ughhhh! So I thought I liked BM ashen tan 996 but wanted to get SW since it's on sale 40% off. So I went with SW 7037 Balanced Beige. Waaaaay too dark! Also the paint looks the exact color of the rug, which is no good..

On my computer screen the paint in this 2nd photo looks more gray than what I see in real life, which is more like dirty diaper brown.

I really want to take advantage of the sale but tomorrow is the last day, and I live 40 min from the store. I'm afraid to buy many gallons of paint without being confident in my color ie trying more samples (not that I went to spend a ton of $ on samples) but I also don't want to spend all day driving back and forth from the store!! Eeeeeeeeek

My local Lowes carries Sherwin Williams and samples are $3.50 - or at least were a year ago:) Maybe you have a Lowes close by? My neighbor has a similar floor and dark trim. She does not like gray and has a pale green. I don't care much for grays, but I have seen some gray greens in Parade Homes that were pretty. SW Sea Salt and Rainwashed look pretty in pictures but I've not seen them in person - look gray on the sample chip

I like creams myself. I painted my similar trim white over a couple of years - it was very dinged up and was just dark stained pine, but my neighbor likes hers dark and her wood is much nicer species. My neighbor recently did the grout paint / refresh on her floor and it looks much better. However, she got what she thought would be like the original cement color (Silverado), but it was lighter and she wishes she has gone a little darker.

OP, SW paint is often on sale. Or there are coupons. Don't buy just to take advantage of a "bargain". What are you trying to accomplish in the spaces? How many rooms and how many colours do you want to use? Your pinterest board is full of shades that are very far from what you are testing. Where are the blues,purple creams going to appear? Have you changed your mind?

Color on the walls is but one part of a whole. Don't panic,plan. Hone in on YOUR inspiration..... https://laurelberninteriors.com/2019/04/24/how-to-select-the-perfect-color-scheme-for-your-home/

This much paint is worth taking your time to get right. It is not a good idea to paint on your walls. It might be worth priming a wall then get sample colors from Samplize.com. You get 12x12 samples true to colors. And no pots of left over paint samples to safely dispose of either. SW Sea Salt could be really pretty with your woods. It is in the green/yellow Hue family. LRV 63 so a medium level of reflectiveness. Worth a try.

I have the tricolor (Red/Purple/Green) VT slate in my foyer and used it as the basis for my home's color pallet.

Color selections in progress:

Overlay with a pic of my slate

The Blue Greens are Benjamin Moore Quiet Moments, Beach Glass and Stoneybrook.

The Taupe is a custom mix BM

1 quart / Medium Base

Oxide Yellow Y3 4.25

Black S1 5

White W1 12.125

Oxide Red R3 2.5

I have not found the perfect purple or red

Master Bedroom - Purple - light flooring

Master Sitting Room - Taupe light flooring

Master Bath - Quiet Moments - light flooring - white vanity

Hallways, office - Taupe - light flooring

Guest Bedroom - Beach Glass dark flooring - Stoneybrook Cabinets

Guest Bath - Beach Glass, dark flooring

Livingroom, Dining Room, Foyer - Taupe light flooring

Kitchen, Laundry - light flooring - undecided on wall and cabinet colors. Leaning toward a lighter taupe cabinet and deep red walls.

I could not find a marketed taupe that was a true taupe and didn't read pink or purple, but had enough purple to work well with the purple in the flooring. Tried dozens of BM, SW, Behr and Valspar colors. Even ordered a few C2 Colors to try to get the right one. Finally decided to take some of the samples and start mixing and tweaking until I got exactly what I wanted. I did a lot of oil painting in my younger days, so I knew how to work with the colorants and what would happen if I added or removed a bit of colorant.

Seems like the color selection in progress photo doesn't want to load. Will try again using a different browser

Very pretty, Jennifer.

Look at Behr's Lavender Suede. I redid my sister's house a few years ago and painted her MBR this color. It is gorgeous.

i like the right board, middle taupe paint next to the burgundy swatch. looks great w/that tile (or whatever that is) and your flower fabric and the lavender.

Jennifer, do you live in Vermont? I really appreciate your post. It has made me think more reflectively about the slate which I hated at first, and now I realize the truth of what you said, which is that the colors are essentially my favorite ones--blue/green/purples. So why would I want to get rid of that, and why don't I work with it?

Problem: In trying different samples up on my walls today (all SW--white duck, drift of mist, and natural tan), I think I figured out what the problem is. The undertones of the carpet (pinkish-beige), trim (reddish brown) and oak floors (yellowy) are all warm tones, but my favorite colors--blues, purples, greens are all cool tones. (I do like pinks and fuschias in the warm family.) So essentially I'm left wondering how do I pick a neutral or neutrals that can tie together the warm colors I'm stuck with in most parts of the house with the cool colors that I prefer and which are in the VT slate?

Thank you Beth. The center taupe is the custom mix that I noted with the formula above.

The two large tiles are the two LVT floorings that I selected.

The lighter flooring will go everywhere except the foyer (has the slate flooring) and the guest bedroom and bath (getting the darker flooring). Both LVT tiles have the purple color that is in the slate, the lighter one just has a touch of it in the darker shaded areas.

The board on the left is a sample board of wall tiles for my shower in the guest bath. Love how the decorative tile ties into the darker floor color.

Christina,

I wish I was closer to you, but I am in Pennsylvania.

I love picking colors and figuring out color pallets and the challenge of finding those perfect combinations that all work together. Warm and cool should both be present in your home - think of the spring flowers look with the yellows and pinks and purples and greens. It's just a matter of toning down the colors (neutralizing) and finding just the right shade of each color to make them work together.

What I am seeing is that the white that is currently on the walls has a yellow undertone. It works with the kitchen floor, but not with anything else and really pronounces the pink in the carpet.

You can't test the colors that you want against this yellow white. It is going to make things appear way different than if you have a full wall painted.

Buy a large white poster board, foam core board or even a scrap piece of drywall.

Go to Michael's/ hobby lobby and pick up 140 lb water color paper. For testing neutrals I like to use a 12x18 sample, but you could also get the 9x12 paper and paint 2 sheets with each color.

Paint the water color paper with your samples (Tape the edges down on a cookie sheet or large piece of cardboard using painters tape, paint 2 coats (let it dry between coats) (I use disposable foam rollers from the dollar store for this step and just toss them out when I am done).

The paper is heavy enough that you don't get much warping. If it does warp a bit you can lay a sheet of parchment paper over it and iron it flat.

Go to BM and get the following 3 samples:

The custom mix taupe that I am using (the formula is for a quart, so they will need to cut it in half

The other 2 samples they can look up in their color system - they are all from a company that was bought out and eliminated by Valspar/Sherwin Williams, but the woman who created the colors was a master of subtle neutrals.

The company is Devine Color.

The colors that I would try are

Devine Latte and

Devine Glass

I think one of these three will work for you with the pink beige carpet, the yellow wood flooring and the blue greens/purple grays in the slate.

Tape the samples to your board and sit in each room and look at it at different times of the day and on different walls. Lighting can make a huge difference in the way a color appears.

Take pictures of the board and post with notes on what you like/don't like and between Beth, Judy, Flo, me and a few other regular posters we can help you tweak the colors till you have exactly what you want.