This post is sponsored by BEHR Paint.
Slowly but surely, I’m getting every upstairs bedroom painted. (I say slowly because I’m doing it myself.) After finishing my son’s room, it was time to start working on my oldest daughter’s space. Despite the title of this post, she’s not quite a teenager yet (although she often acts like one), but we’re designing this room for the years ahead. I’ll be sharing more of our progress along the way, but I started by coming up with a color scheme. Her only request was that the walls were some shade of light pink. Here’s our plan:
We landed on a color called Ole Pink by BEHR Paint. It’s a soft blush that doesn’t scream “I’M A FAIRY PRINCESS!”
Of course, there’s always the question of which sheen to use when choosing paint, and I opted for a satin finish (in BEHR Premium Plus Ultra®) because it has a pearl-like look but most of all, because it’s easy to wipe clean. (Need more sheen help? BEHR has a complete guide here.)
Here are a few other tips when choosing a color:
-Pull color inspiration from a favorite accessory. A painting, a pillow or even a fabric dress could be a good starting point. (You don’t have to be a designer to put a paint palette together for your space, by the way. Pulling several swatches and laying them out can help you envision how you’ll work in accent colors, too.)
Since we wanted this room to feel a little more grown up, we went in an unexpected direction with the rest of the color palette. Our inspiration was this colorful painting I previously had above our fireplace.
-When pulling colors, don’t (necessarily) try to match your walls to the exact shade of anything else in your room. Layering shades of the same color adds depth to a space. We used her pink lamps to come up with a lighter color in the same pink family.
-And lastly, don’t judge a paint color by its name. I know this sounds like common sense but I’ll admit to sometimes leaning toward or away from a color based on what it’s called. (Same deal with nail polish!) For example, I pulled this green called Tuscan Herbs to paint a few storage boxes for her desk and shelves. (I used a semi-gloss sheen to make them look less like paper.) Nothing about her room says “Tuscan” but it ended up being just the right shade of green.
And now, for some fun news. . . This Wednesday, March 14, I’ll be available live on Instagram (@behrpaint) to answer your burning paint questions! The BEHR Color Clinic will start at 10am EST and run until 1pm EST. You can find more details here. I hope you’ll join me.
This post and my participation in the BEHR Color Clinic is sponsored by BEHR Paint.
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laura says
March 12, 2018 at 8:59 amLove! I just shared a diy faux fur side table on my blog on Friday! It would be a fun project with a tween too! And, I never thought to paint my existing storage boxes with a semi-gloss. Great idea for leftover semi-gloss paint too!
Lyndsey says
March 12, 2018 at 9:09 amThat pink is perfect! I love it! I have 4 boys (and a husband) so there’s not a lot of pink around here. I’m much more of a blue person, so that’s usually fine, but this pink has me wondering whether I need to find a way to work it in!
Susan says
March 12, 2018 at 11:31 amI have a question about the carpet you decided on for your bedrooms. What did you end up choosing and are you happy with it? I know hardwoods are all the rage but I would like to see a post occasionally on choosing durable but beautiful carpet for bedrooms.
Emily Clark says
March 12, 2018 at 9:03 pmI’m getting all of that information together from our contractor and will do a reno update post–hopefully this week!
Julie S says
March 12, 2018 at 12:21 pmNice – my 5 year old requested that her new bed be painted pink, so I steered her toward a deep peony pink and I’ve been working to cut the sweet factor (NOT my style and I just can’t choke it down) with moody greige walls and plenty navy, green, and gold elsewhere… with just enough pink the fabrics to relate to the bed.
I want to note that Behr’s sheens all seem a bit shinier than the equivalent sheen in other brands. I really like their Eggshell as it’s a tad more wipeable than others’ eggshell, but the satin is too greasy looking for me. PPS sheen shows less on light colors than medium or dark ones IME .
Stacy says
March 12, 2018 at 12:35 pmWhere did you find the adorable white mirror?
Emily Clark says
March 12, 2018 at 9:02 pmAt a scary thrift store. So, I linked to a similar one at the bottom of the post. ;)
Jamie says
March 12, 2018 at 1:06 pmThis is beautiful! And that sweet painted portrait just makes the space for me.
Emily Clark says
March 12, 2018 at 9:02 pmI love it, too. She was embarrassed I included it in the photo but I think it’s the best :)
Jennifer says
March 12, 2018 at 3:16 pmHi!! I am looking at painting my daughter’s room a similar color! Do you mind sharing what bedding you chose? I am at a complete loss. The bedding I was thinking was discontinued!!
Emily Clark says
March 12, 2018 at 9:01 pmHi Jennifer, we bought this comforter but that’s as far as we’ve gotten…
Kelly Whitaker says
March 12, 2018 at 3:43 pmCan you tell me your source for the mirror? Thank you!
Emily Clark says
March 12, 2018 at 8:59 pmI found it at a really questionable thrift shop 😂 but I linked to a similar one at the bottom of the post.
Karen L. says
March 12, 2018 at 4:41 pmLove it! Wish my niece could have seen this post before she painted her room (she’s 27) in a bright bubble gum like shade. Ha! Oh well, we live and learn especially with paint colors, don’t we?
Emily Clark says
March 12, 2018 at 8:59 pmAnd hair colors and other things. . . :)
jennifer says
March 12, 2018 at 9:59 pmHi Emily- great choice on wall color and the whole pallet is pretty and most important “unexpected and predictable”
Can you give the source for the navy rug?
Thank so much.
Emily Clark says
March 12, 2018 at 10:10 pmIt’s black in person–and from IKEA. :)
Jennie M says
March 13, 2018 at 12:40 pmWould love a source on your ceiling fan. It’s really simple and classic looking. All of the ones in our house look like they were made in the 90s and I am itching to update them.
Emily Clark says
March 16, 2018 at 9:37 amHere you go :)
https://emilyaclark.com/2018/03/upstairs-update-ceiling-fans-kids-carpet.html
Nancy McPherson says
March 13, 2018 at 1:53 pmIs there a link to the ceiling fan … so pretty! Thank you!
Emily Clark says
March 16, 2018 at 9:37 amHi Nancy, Here are the fan details:
https://emilyaclark.com/2018/03/upstairs-update-ceiling-fans-kids-carpet.html
Colleen says
March 13, 2018 at 10:53 pmWe just finished our daughters pink\navy room (we used Sherwin Williams Romance-it’s a bolder blush but my daughter is 4). Are the shades from JC Penny? I think those are the ones we used?! Your daughters room looks great! Thank you for sharing how you mix the colors!
Sandy L Sewell says
March 14, 2018 at 10:06 amHi Emily
I have a newly built house and had all flat color paint put on all the walls and ceilings now I’m more for the semi gloss washable paint but I’m afraid of the new paint not matching up to the old paint what do you suggest I do to make the transition less painful?
Laurie Rhoney says
March 14, 2018 at 1:06 pmSounds funny, but i love that ceiling fan with the little bits of brass. where did you score that?
Emily Clark says
March 16, 2018 at 9:36 amHi Laurie–Here are the details on the fan:
https://emilyaclark.com/2018/03/upstairs-update-ceiling-fans-kids-carpet.html
Katie says
March 14, 2018 at 4:24 pmBeautiful room! Can you tell me where you got your ceiling fan? It’s so hard to find a pretty one!
Emily Clark says
March 16, 2018 at 9:35 amHi Katie, Just wanted to make sure you saw my follow up post on this:
https://emilyaclark.com/2018/03/upstairs-update-ceiling-fans-kids-carpet.html
Natalie says
March 15, 2018 at 12:33 amWhat color is your trim work in this room? Love the pink!
Emily Clark says
March 16, 2018 at 9:35 amI’ll have to see if the contractor left any in our garage. I didn’t paint it. :) It’s just a bright white.
Caroline says
March 25, 2018 at 2:25 amI love what you did with this room! I had recently and reluctantly also painted my little girls room pink… I used Pink Shadow SW 0070… and I love it! I am working on another room now and I’d love to know where you got your Roman shades… so classic! And a nice alternative to blinds.
Melinda Dodd says
April 1, 2018 at 11:13 pmDid you do some type of finish on the desk/vanity legs? When I pull it up, it seems like a light, yellowish wood but yours looks like it has a bit of a rubbed brass look.
Emily Clark says
April 2, 2018 at 8:17 amI did! I sprayed the legs gold :)