Office Details 1

Here's a few more details about the paint job I recently completed in the tiny back bedroom. The whole thing came together with the magic of painter's tape and an overhead projector.

I was inspired to do a two-tone paint job by a recent post on Apartment Therapy. We knew we wanted a bright, energizing color in this room so that we will look forward to hanging out in here, paying bills and burning the midnight oil if necessary; however, because of the room's small size I felt like I needed a way to leaven the impact of the color so it didn't feel overwhelming. I decided to paint the ceiling and top part of the walls in a light color, and go for a bright coral underneath.

First, of course, we taped off the trim and put down a coat of primer (I should probably buy stock in the Kilz company). Next, I painted the ceiling and a few feet down the wall with Behr's Linen White (two coats!). I didn't measure, but I had an approximate idea of where the wall would transition from white to coral.



Next, I went around the room with a long tape measure, pencil, and level, marking out a line for the border between white and coral. I realized it was really important to take my time with this step: I measured from the floor up the wall to a given point (I think it was around 80 inches), making a mark with my pencil about every 10-12 inches. I then used my level to realign these marks into a horizonatal line, since the floor in our old old house is not perfectly even (shocking!). Next, I connected the spaces between each mark with blue painter's tape, being careful to let the pieces overlap and to firmly press them down to the wall. I was also careful to place the tape so that its bottom edge would form the top line of the coral paint.



Then I painted, this time with Behr's Cool Lava. Then I painted again.



Check out how the Cool Lava makes the room glow in the afternoons. Fancy!