Sunday, January 17, 2010

Crossing Our Ts And Dotting Our Is


While Mr F and I always kind of liked this whimsical blue fireplace the former owner had painted, we realize it will not work for everyone. It helped that he had a massive piece of artwork that rose up out of the blue like the most perfect pedestal. Even for me, liking the splash of fun the blue brings, working it into our home decor has been a challenge.

We painted our kitchen a mushroom brown and a spicy paprika color to coordinate the cherry cabinets with the linoleum floor tiles and the marble counters. You may recall that our kitchen used to be peach. Peach, people! It was like a clash-o-rama in there. Now it looks fantastic and purposeful.


(pardon the mess... and the flash which is messing with the muted colors... the brown does not actually look green...just trust me)

And yes I know the oriental makes all the difference in that kitchen! I love that it ties everything together and breaks up the linoleum a bit. It's hard to get a good feel for space but our kitchen is huge and that is a lot of linoleum ;) OH and I made those valances last week. I happened to have been hoarding maroon and cream finely striped fabric for nearly 15 years... sometimes hoarding pays.

The fireplace is now sporting the same paprika shade. Is it the color we would choose? No. But it blends well with the existing wall and trim color and the cherry mantel and the hardwood floors... and we had this paint on hand. Also red is my accent color in all our living spaces so it ties everything together. And it plays off the stain glass windows flanking it nicely.

Love it or not, I think it will be a lot easier for a prospective buyer to walk in and picture their own furniture. Unless all their furniture was made by Little Tykes... in which case we just made a big mistake.

13 comments:

Anonymous said...

The kitchen looks GREAT! Those colors are awesome! And painting the fireplace..def. the best thing to do to appeal to the most people. And hey..the more you do now the less there is to do during the selling crunch (when/if it comes!)

Mr Furious said...

When we sold our house in MI to come to NC it was a mad dash at the end to finish the list of little things around the house. Many of which would have been nice to actually enjoy ourselves while we lived there instead of merely handing off to a buyer.

So we've decided to get a jump on things this time. They need to get done one way or the other, we might as well do them now so we can benefit from the improvement too.

Programmable thermostat? I'm looking at you!

Mrs Furious said...

Mr ADD,
How about we finish the fireplace before you start on the thermostat?


Marie,
I've been wanting to scrap that blue for the longest time, just never could justify it being a priority before. Every time I'd try and decorate I'd be like "damn this Christmas mantel is stunning... too bad it clashes with the blue!"

Anonymous said...

LOL..I can't wait for tomorrow's post..you know, the one with the half-painted mantel, the thermostat that was taken out but NOT installed, the random hole in the wall for some dreamed up project...

Oh wait. I think thats my house! :)

Mr Furious said...

Oh, it's our house too...

P/F said...

...I have unfinished dining room chairs (Louis style) that we went to Indiana to buy last spring. Also: an antique secretary that I vowed to paint white after we found it in Iowa last February.

I will paint those chairs this week. Then go to Hobby Lobby to look for coordinating fabric.

Mrs Furious said...

P/F,
Notice the wacky Ikea chair amongst antique chairs in our kitchen? Yeah we have a set of 6 period chairs to go with our table... 4 have deteriorated leather seats... seemed easy enough to get them fixed, right? It's been about 5 years. We're limping around on the two we have not busted through. When we move I vow to have them refinished! What is the point of having those beautiful chairs all piled up in the basement?!

Kinder said...

Looks good Furious family! How do you have time to sew, Mrs F?

Mrs Furious said...

Me Only Better,
Ha! I don't really. I made them last weekend, had been planning on it for the last 6 months but never got around to it. I knew they had to be done for the kitchen to look finished. I'm worried if I leave anything for when Mr F is gone I'll find I can't ever do it.
Of course my desk still looks like an avalanche hit ;)

Andrea said...

looks great love the colors!

inkelywinkely said...

hahah..I can't help but picture someone with all little tykes furniture.

We had a VERY crappy day. I would love to tell you about it via email as it is slightly personal...too much so to mention in an open area..LOL...suffice it to say that if Bitch fest Friday was held on Sunday, and a prize was rewarded to the worst one, I would seriously win, like a house, a yacht, and a trip to some exotic island..that bad..like at the police department for over 6 hours bad... I am so tired.

The fireplace matches better for selling the house.. I love that color BTW.

inkelywinkely said...

email sent, mrs. f.

Please all you guys reading this post, pray or send good thoughts to my stepson, Blaine. He needs it more than you could ever imagine.

Deb said...

I always loved that blue fireplace and the owners' picture over it, too. But I love how the new color brings everything together. Beautiful color scheme, and I'm jealous you can sew.

Mr. F's comment reminded me of our home in SF which had cracked Spanish tile front steps, and a tiny backyard with gorgeous roses, but no grass (four dogs!) Right before we sold the place, we had slate tiles put in, and we laid sod. I cried when the gardeners left, realizing how many years we'd put off those little projects in an otherwise stunning home, and how we were never going to get to enjoy the improvements. I'm so glad you guys are doing this stuff for yourselves.

Inkely, consider it done. I hope he's okay.

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