Help me end this Stain v/s Paint conundrum
3 months ago
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- 3 months ago
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Absolute conundrum....please help
Comments (22)Wow. Those hedges were like...furry caterpiller eyebrows! To me you have a Ranch home. It's only vaguely reminiscent of the great Frank Lloyd Wright's Prairie style with the deep overhang and brick. Closer to the Usonian style, the simpler "for the masses" design. You can either "go with the flow", or try to turn it into a fluffy pig's ear. A Ranch has strong horizontal lines. Vertical materials (not the plants) have to be substantial and STRAIGHT-EDGED. It isn't a Craftsman, which is closer to Robert Adam than Frank Lloyd Wright. I love FLW so I would continue his design ethos. The best distillation of Wright's design genius is applicable to your situation and can be found in this superb post from Architectoid, linked below. The misspellings are the author's fault, not mine, LOL - to begin with, it's USONIAN, not Unisonian style! Nonetheless, the 32 guidelines are precise, just as Wright's architecture is. Also, in the West, shade is not an indicator of a low UV index. "Shade" in the East Coast is not "shade" in AZ, UT, NM, NV, and CA. We can often grow full-sun plants with a couple of hours of sun and bright shade the rest of the day. Much as I love roses, they are antithetical to a ranch. The strong lines and beautiful xeric plantings that bahia (David Feix in San Jose, CA, who posts some amazing photos here) are much better suited to a horizontal architectural design. Think phormiums and senecio or kalanchoe (disclaimer: I don't know if these work in your zone) - e.g., structural instead of cottage-y. I now apologize profusely to the owners of these photos, which came from Google Images: This is FLW's Robie House: This scale model of Robie House shows the overall proportions: This FLW Prairie House shows the massive vertical elements needed to balance the horizontals he used: Now for some landscaping. Note how the overall effect is low and away from the house. The thin redwood holding up this porch overhang is quite odd for a FLW. I'm wondering if that's original or was a replacement: A really beautiful landscaping job, in proportion to the house: Now...your house. Forgive my very bad pseudo-Photoshop skills. My drawing program is really old and couldn't duplicate your brick color/texture. The biggest issue is your door and porch are off-balance to one another. Ideally your door would be substantially wider and centered with the porch entrance. But that means moving a window - which can be expensive! In this, the new solid walls are similar brick to the house, capped with concrete (one of FLW's loves). The new porch columns are boxed to give a massive look and stained the color of redwood or a dark brown, whichever looks better. You now have a wide enclosed front patio that gives depth to the house (which it needs) and entertaining/lounging space for you. A wider walkway of concrete squares gives a clear entrance and easy access. I don't have a plant design program so I'm envisioning the following low and medium-height plantings: - low plants on the right between driveway and house - plantings on the left start low near the path and go to medium-height as the sightline to the edge of the house starts to align on the diagonal. Here is a link that might be useful: Wright's 32 design basics...See MorePaint Color Conundrum
Comments (20)Yayagal, I'm with you on the white spectrum being to the warm side. Put those pictures now on your other computer into a tiny USB smart drive that can be used anywhere. Then we won't be denied our "fix" while waiting for you to get back to the lake...when will that be, SPRING? OH SIGH.... :) It is surprising what a tiny bit of color can do. And even reflected light onto white (other colors but white especially) can do to a room. I learned that when I painted one wall in a room a nice broken lavender. (Broken color is easier on the eye than a smooth paint coat). I put it on the wall opposite the window, and the other walls and ceiling were white. When the ambient light fell on that light lavender, it bounced it onto the white walls and ceiling, and changed as the day progressed. Awesome. Folks might think that yellow, for instance, is a "warm" color, but not necessarily. It can be an EARTHY yellow, like ochre, or it can be a hard chemical CHROME yellow, which is a brazen color and does not fit with a warm pallette. So finding out the formula for your paint is a good recommendation. Going back to the basics is important if you wish to have a cohesive environment....See MoreNeed help - North Facing Room conundrum - opinions on my colors (pics)
Comments (39)Hi again Mysteryegg -- have you run screaming from your own thread yet? Just a quick question so we can incorporate our various views into helping you find a LR-to-hall color that makes you happy...even though if it's one color it will probably look a little different room to room! can you share some photos/art/clothing that you're drawn to? could be rooms, landscapes, street scenes? can you tell us a bit about why you like what you're sharing? Sometimes that helps provide a great starting point when combined with a room's lighting, geographic location, "permanent" elements like floors or tile etc. Because if you're someone who's drawn to soft misty shades, or bold jewel tones, or earthy forest hues and your room's natural + artificial lighting isn't doing your favs justice...that's where compromise happens. You'll either need to get to a color that works well *enough* for your personality AND place or choose a side.* *see April, I did read your posts ;) Temperament: it may explain that Scandi love of white walls even when the snow's up to their chins....See MoreRETIREMENT HOME: 80s Golden Oak, No Wall Space, Large T.V. -- HELP!
Comments (31)I read your post and looked at your pictures. My thought was: "What a comfortable home - I could move right in!" So what really bugs you about it? I agree with removing the clock. You could mount the tv on the wall, (hiding the cords?) but is it really worth it? Same with bar stools. I would use them, but if you're sure you never would, why buy them? If you decide to get 2 anyway, choose a style that fits neatly under the island overhang - perhaps a "saddle" style? Wall art? Your wonderful windows are wall art! And... you have a lovely glass case for displaying art objects that you can change out on your whim. Golden oak furniture. I live in a house filled with golden oak furniture my parents accumulated during the 1980's. And golden oak kitchen cabinets they chose when they built a house in 1991. It wasn't until I started reading Gardenweb forums in 2010, I learned that golden oak was "out" and "orange-y". Up till then, I simply thought of all these pieces as "wood". And wood that went well with other (inherited) pieces in the house that date back to the 1920's- 1940's. Trendy or not - it works in MY house. If you truly dislike golden oak, why not sell it and buy what you would like used? Might be more cost effective than buying paint, or hiring someone to professionally paint your furniture. Especially if you might not be pleased with the finished results. Again, I suggest you ask yourself...what REALLY bugs you about your home?...See MoreRelated Professionals
Brushy Creek Architects & Building Designers · Alabaster General Contractors · Champaign General Contractors · Fargo General Contractors · Pine Hills General Contractors · Port Huron General Contractors · Riverdale General Contractors · Rock Island General Contractors · Summit General Contractors · Agoura Hills Kitchen & Bathroom Designers · Martinsburg Kitchen & Bathroom Designers · Cherry Hill Kitchen & Bathroom Designers · Dearborn Kitchen & Bathroom Remodelers · Vashon Kitchen & Bathroom Remodelers · Effingham Cabinets & Cabinetry- 3 months ago
- 3 months agolast modified: 3 months ago
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