I had not heard that latex paints darken with age. I have heard that oil based paints and oil based varnishes and shellac will amber or yellow with age, but I don't think that latex paints which are widely used actually darken with age. pauly, your home is lovely and pink is right that this is the time to do something about it if you aren't happy. I agree with some above posts that an easy fix is the ceiling color. If you go two colors up on the paint strip that compatible cream is on you will find dover white. One color up is napery. Both of those would look beautiful on your ceiling. And, if you do what your husband was talking about and throw some crown up there it will look even better. I am with Lindy though, I wouldn't paint the ceilings pure white. This is your house, and it appears to be lovely. You obviously picked compatible cream because you like it, so stick with it! Color is such a personal choice, just like scent. I personally love color on the walls, I think it warms up the space and is so inviting and it enhances my mood. I think white walls are sterile and cold and unwelcoming, but my parents have always had them and they love it, so that's what counts. My point, and I do have one, is that my opinion about color doesn't matter!! It's your home, now is a great time to do what makes you happy. Keep us posted! Spottedhorsegal, beautiful home. Are those soapstone counters? Oh, I just love soapstone!! Amy

@ lizbeth-gardener: Thanks for your vote and for explaining why you voted the way you did. @olychick: Thanks for the reassurance that the house will look good no matter which way we paint the garage. @funcolors: Thanks for your advice. So, when you say black for the light fixtures, do you mean true black or oil rubbed bronze black. The door handle was oil rubbed bronze, but it looks black. @andee: Thanks for sharing your thoughts on the house. I was surprised how much of a difference painting the garage door the same as the siding colour made too. You are right we could start with painting the garage the siding colour and then deciding if we want to do the trim the grey. Any more votes on the garage or thoughts on the light fixtures? Carol

This won't help you immediately because I can't give you the name or model number. We installed something similar at our vacation home. It's in the middle of the woods and we needed something to light the way when we take the dog out at night. We put up 4 fixtures at the corners of the house and they always come on when we walk into the sensor zone. They're on an adjustable timer so they stay on for 10-15 minutes. They're also operated by a switch next to the door so we can turn them off when we go to bed or leave. I really don't need those lights to come on every time a deer walks down the driveway. I'm not sure when we'll be back there but I'll try to remember to jot down the info the next time we visit.

Allison, just saw your thread as I haven't been here in a while but I think if you're four years out, wait until your about one year out as you said. Lot of talk here about "forever houses" and how most really aren't because life circumstances change, same is true here. Mrs. ARG and I have GC'ed three houses over 40 years and those worked out but we bought two other lots with the intention of building but for a variety of reaons, sold them. But that doesn't mean you can't be getting ready and learning about residential design, especially the intangible aspects of it. Here's a link on some good books to read https://www.houzz.com/discussions/3281434/book-suggestions Probably "Patterens of Home" is one of the better ones. And a thread on what makes for good house design https://www.houzz.com/discussions/3285825/what-makes-a-house-have-good-design As far as the arguement of "floorplan or no floor plan for the architect", every architect is different of course, but when that happens to me, it doesn't limit me as I'm looking at a floor plan more in DIAGRAMMITIC terms as oppposed to actual physical terms and asking question like "What do you like about this?". And then once I learn that, ask "Have you thought about this.....?" as I begin to freehand ideas. But if you have a plan, don't get too "stuck" on it and be open to other ideas. I've had clients that have said "But we've spent MONTHS on this", like the task is akin to washing a car with the more time spent on it, the better the result. Design doesn't work that way. As an example, here's an example of a client working diligently on a design(s) and what we (and I say "we" because it's always a participatory process) came up with. Client plans: And what we came up with: But of course, Mark and Jen (the owners) were great listeners and for this to work that's what you and your aerospace engineer husband needs to be. FWIW, here's his thread: https://www.houzz.com/discussions/5401415/stuck-with-floor-plan But the best of luck in your build. Exciting times ahead!!