You all are going to think I’ve lost my mind. And, that might be true, but I’m still sticking the “pregnancy-hormones-make-you-do-crazy-things” excuse.
A week or so ago, I posted about painting our master bedroom this rich blue:
And, two days ago, I started painting it . . . . this color:
It’s Shoji White by Sherwin Williams. I know, I know. But, after living with the blue swatches on the wall for a week or so, I started to feel like it might be too much. Considering how much more chaotic our lives are getting ready to be in another few months, I kept finding myself drawn back to images of calming, neutral rooms.
Lonny Magazine
This will be the first time I’ve ever had a white room in any of our houses. What does that say about me? I’m getting older? More nervous? Less brave? I don’t know. White actually seems like more of a risk to me. The paint job should be finished by the weekend. So far, I love it.
love this! i’m with you- i think white seems more like a risk taker, too!
Love the white idea, Emily! I know it’s going to look fabulous completed. Also, love the first photo from Tracery Interiors (I love their work)as they are located locally to me here in Birmingham, AL.
I adore white rooms; however, I have yet to actually make one happen.
It says you need a respite, a place to call your own, a spa-like retreat with sumptuous textures and comforts!
I love it.. you can always add color to that backdrop as you tire of it,
Nancy
http://www.powellbrower.com/2012/02/custom-planter-boxes.html
I’m getting ready to paint our master bedroom white and I’m PETRIFIED!!! You’ve given me confidence.
I am so excited to try this! I love the idea of an all white room. I say its a brave move forward in life! Erica
Love this!!!! I can’t wait to see the finished product. I’m ready to paint a room white too. I think we all need some calm in our hectic life.
The white is really nice and clean and crisp. I don’t think you are losing your mind! But I think you should paint your ceiling that blue, you don’t want to waste it right?
I don’t know about where you live but I find at this time of year I”m soooo ready for light, bright interiors. You can always add big pops of colour if you decide to later. I think it’ll be the perfect retreat for a mom of 5:)
I don’t think stark white and automatically jump to boring. It can be, but it can also be a beautiful back ground to really make your furnishings and accessories jump out. I think I’m going to have some white rooms when I get my own house. I’m excited to see your finished product!!!
White is more risky to me. It can be tough to pull off, but I know it will be great! Can’t wait to see it.
A brave choice. I think you’re going to love it! Our master bedroom was the first room I’ve ever painted white too – and now I want to paint all our rooms white! Its such a livable colour.
I think it’s going to look gorgeous. It’s funny, I realized a few weeks ago that not one of the rooms in my house is painted white. I can’t wait to see how it turns out!
Brave indeed! I think it’s much harder to decorate a white room and I’m excited to see how you do it.
Good choice in choosing white. Life is going to get very hectic for you and your bedroom will be a place for you to decompose. White is the perfect “color” to stay calm in.
so funny! white always gets my vote. I love the clean, simplicity of it and how art and accessories really pop against it. I grew up in an all-white house so it’s nothing new to me. I experimented a little with colour over the years but I find it too much of a commitment and tire of it easily. It’s white for me!
I love it! I have used Shoji white in my own home…it is one of my favorites. I think you will be most happy…hormones or not. Add some pillows with that bright blue, like the peacock feather ones you featured from you sponsor shop/ten/25…lovely!
When I first moved into my apt. and found out I couldn’t paint I was so disappointed, but after a year I was loving it. I know because it was trendy probably affected my taste some because I was reading blogs and saw lots of Scandinavian decor where everything’s white and a bit more modern with color. In Europe, you see painted rooms less too, so I think it grows on you. When I went home after a year and saw my mom’s green walls I used to love, I was like “oh, this is terrible and so 90’s”. ha. Go white! I can’t wait to see how it all turns out.
It’s been a while since I did the all white thing, but I loved it when I had it. http://www.goupstate.com/article/20060319/NEWS/603190304?p=all&tc=pgall
Well paint is only temporary so you can always change your mind if you want to later. I think white is a nice clean fresh feeling, I couldn’t do it in every room but in one or two is beautiful!
Can’t wait to see the finished results! I love the blank canvas of white. It’s so modern and refreshing. It draws attention to all the other furnishings in the room- particularly love how it plays with warm woods.
The best thing about paint is that the worst thing that happens is you just paint back over it. So go for it!
I love all your inspiratin pics so it can’t turn out too bad. Actually, I’m planning on painting my master bathroom in Benjamin Moore Linen White with a pale blue ceiling. That will be my first white room and I can’t wait.
I may be wierd but I don’t care for colored walls as a rule.I am a white/tan/neutral girl and always have been. Mostly because I get so tired of it so fast and I hate to paint! Last year we remodeled our house and I painted the entire house and trim in BM Manchester Tan. I have always done the trim white but a friend of mine built a 1.7 million dollar house and used this color throughout. I was so surprised how calming it was and how the rooms flowed. So I told her I was going to copy her! I love it. The only exception is my daughter’s room and the play room which are pink and yellow respectively. My house is really small so the same color trim doesn’t seem to chop it up so much. All that to say you will love the white/neutral room.
I agree. This feels riskier. But I’m doing an all white (with a bit of black) guest room as soon as I’m done with Holden’s big boy room. I know you’ll make it beautiful! You’re doing the right thing. xo
thanks for the comment today!
I have to agree that white is more of a risk- its hard to pull off white and it not look like apartment or rental living. But I have the utmost confidence that you of all people will be able to pull it off brilliantly! Cant wait to see the pics.
I am on board with everyone else…white seems more like a risk to me as well. Maybe you can use blue for a pop of color. Can’t wait to see the finished room.
I’m totally on board with the white room. In fact…you’ve just given me the ammo I need! I’ve been trying to convince my husband to paint our downstairs guest bedroom white. Now, I’m gonna show him your blog post & say, “see…I’m not crazy!”
I think it’s a great idea! You can invite in so many other colors and textures (and neutrals) when you start with white walls. And just think how simple to change things up down the road!
Looking forward to seeing how it turns out. :)
I think it’s a great idea! You can invite in so many other colors and textures (and neutrals) when you start with white walls. And just think how simple to change things up down the road!
Looking forward to seeing how it turns out. :)
I think it’s a great idea! You can invite in so many other colors and textures (and neutrals) when you start with white walls. And just think how simple to change things up down the road!
Looking forward to seeing how it turns out. :)
I think it’s a great idea! You can invite in so many other colors and textures (and neutrals) when you start with white walls. And just think how simple to change things up down the road!
Looking forward to seeing how it turns out. :)
I think it’s a great idea! You can invite in so many other colors and textures (and neutrals) when you start with white walls. And just think how simple to change things up down the road!
Looking forward to seeing how it turns out. :)
I recently painted our living room white, and it’s my favorite room! It’s so relaxing and peaceful… just what you’re going to need at those 3am feedings :)
Liking the white. It is very risky and will be a soothing retreat from 2 newborns (if you ever get to retreat!!)
I can’t wait to see it. I LOVE white rooms! (Funny how a few years back I insisted on painting every single room a color other than white!)
With the addition of two more little ones maybe an all white room will be a restful haven for you :)
Love neutral rooms! Especially bedrooms…most of the rooms in my home are white and I love it! Excited to see the finished product.
I am so with you, Emily! We are going to be repainting our bedroom (ant the rest of the house) in the next few months, and I’m leaning towards white, white and more white. It’s modern, clean, and calming. It makes a room feel bright, airy, and best of all – NEW again! WTG!!!
I have a question for you…I bought Shoji White for my kitchen and it is a really light tan on the walls. Is yours a light tan also or did I get a botched gallon of paint?
@Candi I don’t see any tan in mine at all. If anything, I would say it has some gray undertones. . .
Yay for some calm; I think it’s a great idea. :)
Who wouldn’t want a white room that looked like those pictures. Just gorgeous. I’m interested to see 1. how this turns out, and 2. how you maintain it with 5 (5?!) kids. Secretly I’m jealous. I want a white room too:)
How funny! I just had our whole (new) house painted white (to contrast with our dark floors) and because our lives seemed SO hectic–and I just have 3 kids! I LOVE it…Its so clean and calming, and now I just concentrate on adding texture to warm it up. I think you will really enjoy the peaceful space.
Amy
http://www.11magnolialane.com
I CAN’T WAIT to see how you put your “golden touch” on the White Room issue. If anyone can pull it off, it’s you, and we’ll all be copying it in no time.
I love the white!!!
I really like the beautiful dark blue you showed in the last post (I’m thinking about painting my dining room a similar color) but I do love how fresh and new everything looks with white. Can’t wait to see it when you’re done!
I have always loved white/off-white in any room. Such a great calm color. And you can jazz it up or keep it toned down with accessories. Love it!
I’ve always loved white walls as a neutral background to other special pieces in the room. I mean, not *everything* can be a bold color!
Marissa
roost-home.blogspot.com
I have the palest of blues on my walls with all white bedding and cream furniture and It is the most soothing room in the house. White walls will give you so many options. Kathysue
Hello
My First White Room
Amazing blog post as always! I am very glad to see your post, I located what I was in search of here
Thank you!
I think doing white is risky too but I know you can pull it off! It will be so nice to have a haven to come to at the end of a long day.
Since I voted no on the blue, I’m so glad the babies guided you away from that mistake! White is absolutely timeless and with your flair, 100% sophisticated.
I love all white, its soothing. We cant paint as we are renting, so its all white, but to be honest I grew up in an all white house so to me its natural, and really lovely and light. Cant wait to see the finished result!
I just painted my first room too… my living room… a few months ago. It was a surreal moment covering color with white. I’ve never done it!!! I love the calm of the room though. You can see it here. http://marquissclan.blogspot.com/2012/01/fabric-that-forced-me-to-sew.html
That’s so ironic. For the last month I’ve been struggling with choosing a paint color and fabric for my living room that would work with the carpet and sofa that both have to stay for now. I kept trying to work around the light honey color that’s already on the walls, while incorporating the teals, greens and aquas. I just couldn’t get it all to gel in a way that I liked until yesterday. I found several fabrics I love and I’ve decided the best look will be to pain the walls white. I’ve never had a stark white wall either… so I’m kind of apprehensive.
Can’t wait to see how your bedroom comes out. I think it will be very calming, as you say.
I think white is definitely a good choice! It is calming and it matches pretty much any color scheme. It can also be a super modern or traditional. You can’t go wrong with white :)
http://www.idesignlove.com
I agree, white is actually risky and bold! But so versatile, as you can change the accents and textures around it and completely change the feel. I’m a firm believer in white rooms!
White will give you flexibility. My husband says about me, the one thing that you are consistent about is change!
Drastic change from the blue, but I think you’re going to love it and I also think it will look fab! :)
Hee! Giddy over this one! So funny that painting it white seems like a risk. I’d be biting my nails with worry painting a room navy — though I LOVE the way it looks.
Camille
I have noticed a trend in every picture I’ve pinned lately…all the rooms I love are white. I think that as my children have gotten older, and my life has become more chaotic, I crave simplicity in my rooms. I have yet to pull off a white room of my own, so I’ll be looking to yours for inspiration!
Emily….My whole house is white and has been for about 5 years! Funny thing…I am still not tired of it!!! I love that I change a whole room and not have to paint. I think you are going to love playing with such a clean palette!!! Can’t wait to see it….
Thank you for taking the time to write on this topic.
busana muslim
LOVE the color! Do you think the Shoji would work for trim? Struggling to pick a white trim for throughout the house and not loving the gray tones in White Dove. TYIA!
Love the post and the blog!