Some girls love fashion and everything to do with clothes and shoes.
But this girl right here? My heart goes pitter patter over paint swatches. Yep, that’s right! Paint colors.
The other day I was talking about how I love certain paint colors and such, and my husband turns to me and says, “I do not understand feelings about paint colors.”
Well, it’s totally my language, so I am going to dive into making sure you know how to find your own feelings for paint colors. I love picking paint colors and making sure they speak to me and make my heart sing.
Currently I’m choosing between two colors for my kitchen. Yes, I painted it Stratton Blue (Benjamin Moore) when we moved in and so many people love it, but I feel like it’s too dark since I painted the cabinets white.
I’m now sampling Palladian Blue (Benjamin Moore) and Sea Salt (Sherwin Williams). Let’s take a look at them in a couple of rooms…
Office Reveal with Palladian Blue from Bower Power – stunning!
Master Bedroom with Sea Salt from Life on Virginia Street – so peaceful and calm
I posted my choices on Facebook and Instagram over the weekend and it was fun to hear everyone weigh in on the subject. I’m pretty sure which one I’m going to choose, but before I tell you, let’s talk about HOW to choose a paint color for your home so that you don’t have to repaint or live with a color you don’t just love.
Y’all, I’ve gone over this before, but let me reiterate it again. When it comes to painting your walls, you MUST sample a color (preferable more than one) on your walls first before you commit. I have done that will all of my wall colors since I painted my main living area and it makes all the difference.
And if you don’t want to paint the walls, then paint a piece of poster board and hang it up on the wall.
Here’s why …
You cannot tell the true color of a paint swatch without putting it on your wall. It will change with the lighting throughout the day – and so many other factors. So, what may look so beautifully gray on the card you hold in your hand, may look completely blue or purple or brown or green or (any other color) on the wall. (I think you get the point. Put it on the wall!!)
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When we moved into this house the walls and cabinets in the kitchen were all beige. I needed a color on the wall pronto, or else I was going to lose my mind. So I found some beautiful kitchens on Pinterest and one of them had Stratton Blue on the walls. I loved that color. And I also fell in love with the lighter shade, Wythe Blue. So, I went to the paint store and picked up Stratton Blue for my kitchen and Wythe Blue for my dining room.
I didn’t try anything out first, I just painted. Thankfully the dining room with Wythe Blue was a home run. It’s my favorite color in the whole house and paired with the tall ceilings, lots of natural light and wainscoting, it works beautifully.
The Stratton Blue was nice, but many times I wished I’d painted it Wythe Blue, too. If I had tested them out first, I probably would have chosen differently.
Palladian Blue vs. Sea Salt
When I finally painted the cabinets white a couple months ago, the wall color was just too dark for me. (Even though I loved it paired with white cabinets in the pretty inspirational pictures.) I know some people like the contrast, but I just don’t.
So, the obvious choice would be something similar to Stratton Blue, but lighter. Palladian Blue fit that bill! It’s a shade lighter than Wythe Blue and I just knew it would be perfect.
If I operated in my old ways, I would have gone to the store bought paint and painted the kitchen. But it would have still been too dark. And I would have lived with it, even though I didn’t love it 100%. No big deal, but why be a little off when you can be spot on!?
When sampling a paint color on the wall, I like to try at least 2 colors, but 3-4 colors is even better. I was sure that Palladian Blue was the color I wanted, but on a whim, I got a sample of Sea Salt, too.
Looking at the paint cards, I knew I’d choose Palladian Blue.
As soon as I had painted them on the wall, I knew I would choose Palladian Blue.
But as I’ve lived with the swatches on the wall for 24+ hours, I think I’ve changed my mind.
I have seen them in all lights of the day and night. Sometimes I’ll cover up one color and just look at the other color. When Palladian Blue is the only one showing, it still just seems to saturated. But when Sea Salt is showing, it seems just perfect!
I am 99% certain that Sea Salt is the right choice.
What?! I know you’re thinking I’m just being fickle for the fun of it, but I want the color that I LOVE, not just that I like.
Palladian Blue is still too dark for my walls. Sea Salt is less saturated, has more gray in it and I think it’s going to compliment Revere Pewter in my living room just perfectly!
Once again, what seemed like a futile exercise saved me from making the wrong paint choice. (And sometimes it just confirms what I already knew. But, I’d rather be 100% sure than get half a room painted and wish I could change it.)
I can’t wait to get it all painted and share the results!
How do YOU choose paint colors?
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Nancy Pennea says
It is so refreshing to hear how important color is to you! I am exactly the same way. When I first moved into one of my homes I selected a pretty subdues beige plaid for two walls in my kitchen/family room (this was in the 1980’s), and after the paper was hung I picked a beige paint for the other two walls that (I thought) was a good match. After it was painted it made me sick to look at it. The beige in the paper was a yellowish beige and the paint was a pinkish beige. I literally could not stand looking at it. And of course, no one else knew what I was talking about. There was no way I could live with it – looking at it was, to me, what scratching nails on a blackboard is to most people. I immediately got a better color and paid the painter to paint it all over again. And then I loved it – it soothed my soul.
Laura says
It’s amazing how much paint colors can have an effect on our mood! So important to get a color you love!! xo, Laura
Angie Patterson says
I am considering Sea Salt as the exterior color of a beach cottage. White trim and unsure about door. Do you think Sea Salt would work outdoors?
Meeta says
Love Sea salt! It’s one of my favorites. The color has a chameleon quality that shifts with the light but it’s always subtle. I used it in my bedroom and find it soothing.
Mom says
Hi i love the edgecomb grey i googled online says its the best paint for a small hallway with less lightness so i brought the paint sample to a different paint store to mix n match. To be honest it was beautiful i love how airy and bright it done to my hallways it was breathtaking it is a mix of grey cream and white i would recommend this paint for any small hallways or mud room its beautiful . I want to paint my bathroom but want something to go with the flow in the hallway. Any suggestions please nothing dark. Thank you.
Chanda says
Hi there, I am building a new chalet style home. It has a high front wall with lots of windows. This front wall is also spruce lumber and so is the side wall. I am trying to find a nice paint colour that will offer a coastal feel and I am considering Palladium Blue….I am also trying to figure out the best complimentary colour for my high feature wall which is going up to the loft. Can you help? Ceilings are also Spruce lumber so there is a lot of wood going on and I need the right colours that will pop but not be overbearing. PLEASE HELP!
Virginia Strunk says
Does anyone know the Sherwin-Williams equivalent to palladian Blue?
Joan says
No but if you really want that color in Sherwin Williams paint, just take the paint chip into the store and they’ll match it exactly.
Dawn says
SW Rainwashed is almost identical to BM Palladian Blue. I am partial to Benjamin Moore paints, even though I have to drive 45 minutes to get Benjamin Moore versus 5 minutes to Sherwin Williams. Worth the drive. Every time.
LeeAnn Smebak says
I completely agree with Dawn about driving 45 minutes to get Benjamin Moore paint. One coat – no regrets – no smearing – no bleeding. I love that paint. It’s way more expensive than SW or Behr or (gasp) Valspar – but I LOVE it. Consistant color no matter what. It’s worth the drive to only have to paint once. If the color Sea Salt is what you want, I’d just taket that chip to BM and have them match it. So worth it.
Audrey says
I do love BM paint and used their self leveling paint and primer on my cabinets, but SW does have a one coat paint if getting the highest end they carry. It’s the Emerald. They even have a washable matte, so if you don’t want sheen or are hiding imperfections, it’s great. Only time more than one coat was needed was going over a dark paint with a light shade. If you go SW, just pay a few dollars more for the Emerald series…less time, less paint and fast drying.
Laura says
Cool tip! Thanks, Audrey!!
Bernie says
Not to add to your confusion but….I painted my kitchen Behr’s Marina Isle (same color family as your samples) 12 years ago and I still love it! It looks great in any light, day or night. the adjoining family room is the same color, but cut with white (maybe 50%?) Whatever you choose will be wonderful!
Chris Pyle says
I have so many different glass mosaics on my walls it was difficult to choose a color. I finally just had to jump in there and do it. First I started to paint the semigloss version of the same color in the room which is an off white. YIKES two hours later after painting around edges of large wall mosaic and a sleep to wake to see it in the morning I was sorry I chose that color. I did the paint on the wall tests too. Sooooooooooooooooo I got my craft paints out , which I know is a huge no no, and started mixing in my canning kettle until I LOVED the color. I painted the master bath and the color was Apple Barrel Wild Iris mixed in with white. I forget the actual amount because I did start with this off white almost beige but lighter paint.
The master bath is of course adjoined with the master bedroom which is painted a mint green. I was worried to see through the green room to the now wild Iris room and back again. It works. The Wild iris is also good with so many of the glass colors in my mosaic it makes them pop , and I hate that expression, LOL
So I went onto my guest bath saving back one quart of paint and started mixing again. We are a 90 mile round trip to the paint store so it is not like I can just drop everything and go grab more paint. Guest bath is attached to laundry room through a door of course so I also did laundry room the same color.
Looking through my kitchen to laundry room I am loving the same wild iris paint color mixed with the white enough to soon commit to bringing this color into my kitchen. I have a different huge glass mosaic back splash in the kitchen, 22 foot of it or so, and I am sure this color will be perfect. I have to say I first painted this kitchen the light mint green I LOVE so much and it did not work with my back splash. So I painted it back the same light off white the house was to begin with. In some old photos this looked bright white but it is far from bright white.
Right now I do not have the time or energy to paint more the yard is calling and I have a sick hubby, Hopefully I will get time to paint within the year. Even if I only do one wall at a time and work my way around. The kitchen is open to dinning room and living room. Living room is the same very light mint green ad master.Enjoying your painting tips here.
Shirley says
I would LOVE to see photos of your rooms.
Chris Pyle says
Hi Shirley, If you were asking to see my house I will add a link to all of it. I have no way to divide out the house from the yard and other misc photos. I can assure you all will be a pretty crazy adventure. The older photos start in 2008 at the very last page of photos and come forward as my house yard paint colors glass work evolved over the last 10 years. You can scan whole pages at once or click a photo to get into it in larger form. The link is safe. Since I posted this comment in 2016 hubby died and I went on another painting frenzy. The mint green is no more it is now a very light aqua in living room hallway and master bedroom. The wild Iris is still in the other rooms and my master tiny walk in closet with crystal chandelier. OH Yes I did that!!! With help. I also painted the whole outside of the house from a light yellow with white trim to White with Black trim. HA let them think I am normal on the outside. Giggle. Shock of a life time one the front door is entered. Enjoy. https://www.flickr.com/photos/[email protected]/
Claire says
So I couldn’t tell, what color did you paint over your beige walls? And do you have any tips for trying to brighten beige walls – I feel like the beige underneath a lighter color would totally mess up what I think the color is going to look like
Sue says
Love the colors. We painted our dining room and hallway Palladian Blue and love it. I may try searching salt for the kitchen.
Kristi says
Tons of samples for sure. I spent 400.00 on samples choosing colors for every room in our house last fall. I thought palladian would be the winner in my open concept kitchen/family room but Wedgewood grey took the prize and palladian won in the master bed and bath! Amazing how different something can look in another room. And the 400. For paint samples is a drop in hat compared to the paint bill of over 3000.00 for Benjamin Moore Aura paint. That would be an expensive decision to live with, if you chose the wrong color!
Laura says
Oh my goodness! I can’t even imagine picking out paint for a whole house all at once, but I guess if you build, or are moving into a house with hideous paint colors, then you have to! Yes, a $3,000 design mistake would be a touch pill to swallow. Good for you for putting in the extra time to test out each one and make sure it’s the right decision. Saves you time AND money! 🙂 Have a great day!! xo, Laura
Daniela says
Hi everybody,
I am italian, I just moved to the States and we bought a condo. We are repainting the whole thing cause altough it was freshly done it’s a horrible light yellow!
I like the farmhouse style and chose Classic Gray BM for the living room. Now I am in the process of choosing a light green for dining and kitchen (white cabinets), I want green to follow a mediterranean olive idea in my mind). But is’s sooo difficult. The colors I like are too dark on the wall (rooms are small and I don’t want to make them look smaller with dark colors). I tried today Guilford Green that look great in the pictures, but is seems to grey on the walls. For the master bedroom I wanted a light blue. Love your pictures with Palladian Blue and Sea Salt, but after trying many colors that appear similar on line but seem too dark in the house, now I was almost convinced to go with Haitian sky, from Behr. But your post put me in doubt again! Which one is actually lighter? But happy at the same time? Thanks!!! Daniela
Laura says
Hi Daniela, of the two colors I have on my walls here: Palladian Blue and Sea Salt, I think Sea Salt is lighter. And that’s the one I chose. If you want to see how it looks in my whole kitchen, check this post out – https://theturquoisehome.com/2016/03/sea-salt-kitchen/
Good luck with your paint choices!!
xo, Laura
Deborah Raney says
Our master bedroom (which gets lots of light) and our laundry room (which has zero windows/light) are both painted Sea Salt, and I adore the color in both rooms. It truly is a neutral and it just makes me happy every time I walk in those rooms. I have several other places I want to use that color, including the ceiling of our entryway (after I have the popcorn scraped off 🙁 )
I can’t wait to see your kitchen painted!
Laura says
Yay! I bet the color looks very different in a room with light vs. room with no light. We have a tiny little toilet room in our master bath. I haven’t painted it anything yet, but I’m thinking about Sea Salt. Haha!! I bet it’ll look so different than in my kitchen. 🙂
Check out the finished kitchen here: https://theturquoisehome.com/2016/03/sea-salt-kitchen/
xo, Laura
Winnie says
My entire main level is painted Sea Salt and I get constant compliments on it. It’s super soothing and goes well with so many other colors.
L.Z.Kern says
Me too….I just painted my laundry room Sea Salt also. Very easy to live with,goes with every color imaginable and after almost 2 years I still love it. So do our guests.
Kathy says
I was going to use Palladium Blue in my bathroom and Sea Salt in the master bedroom. Ended up with Woodlawn Blue in the bathroom and Antique Jade in the master bedroom. I’m still thinking about putting that Sea Salt somewhere…cuz I love it, but it didn’t go as well as the other two choices in the places where I needed them!
Kathy says
Being a color consultant, I thought I should weigh in…Sea Salt has a lot of green in it. It is a beautiful color, but the choice should be made based on what is gong on in the room, counter tops are bossy, are your counter tops white? Is the kitchen open to another room?
If you haven’t heard of Maria Killam’s blog, Color Me Happy…you should march right on over to it and sit yourself down and read, read, read. She is the master of color and undertones. She will be your new best friend. Palladian Blue is a beautiful color, so is sea salt…it’s about the undertones and what works with what else is going on around it. Good Luck !
leslie says
That is such good advice! What color would you paint bathroom cabinets in a sea salt bathroom? Any ideas of Sherwin Williams colors?
lesli says
I too find immense JOY in colors and like you can, and have, spent hours pouring over the decisions. I Love your choices and follow your thought process.
Our living room is Sea Salt
http://myoldcountryhouse.com/monday-makeover-sea-salt-living-room/
and our master bathroom is Palladian Blue http://myoldcountryhouse.com/monday-makeover-master-bathroom/
Can’t wait to see it!
Laura says
They are so beautiful, aren’t they?? On my way to check out your rooms!
Laura says
Your home is GORGEOUS!! I love that egg next to the paint swatch. I have loved the “robin’s egg blue” color since high school. And the pops of color?? Swooning.
Debra says
I am painting my whole house Oyster Bay which changes color throughout the say…. For me Sea Salt was to white, but I get the look you were going for… I am doing one accent wall of Retreat and even thinking of painting my cabinets that color…. I believe Oyster Bay is the third color down on the Sea salt strip…
Laura says
That’s funny, because my 5-year-old daughter doesn’t like the Sea Salt because she says it looks white. But I think I’ll like it. 😀
Laura says
I just came back from my sister-in-law’s house and her living room and playroom are Sea Salt and her kitchen is Oyster Bay. They look great together!
Alexandra @ Clean Homes says
I can also ‘feel’ the paint.. The color of certain room has a huge impact over my mood. This is why I chose light, pastel colors for my living room and I absolutely love your idea – the combination is so fresh, reminds me of summer days, seashells and the jingling of wind chimes : ))) Lovely!
Lindsay says
I recently compared sea salt with Restoration Hardware’s silver sage. I was expecting the two to be very similar – boy was I wrong after painting samples! Sea salt really isn’t green at all. Both are lovely, but for my laundry room I’m going to go with the silver sage to compliment the green tones in my slate-look flooring. Thanks for sharing your process!
Laura says
That’s so fun! I used Silver Sage in my old house, but that was 6 years ago. I’d love to see the two side by side. Sea Salt looks so green on my wall right now, but I think it looks more gray on the swatch.
Lzk says
My whole main living area is Sea Salt ! Loved it then and still do after 2 years on the wall. Changes subtly with the day … And a real neutral. Will b painting more of my home from that strip . You won’t be sorry 😎
Jenn @ Loveland Lodge says
I’m going through the same thing – though in a twisted turn of fate, the colors I actually don’t like were the ones I sampled on the wall. And the ones I love, I chose solely based on the paint chip. I just wrote about my errors (http://ow.ly/XywpC) , but I think I was going for such a stark change from what the previous owners had, I didn’t really have a vision or know what I liked. I just knew I hated the current wall color! I’m currently choosing between Valspar Oatmeal, Valspar Light Raffia and SW Accessible Beige for the kitchen & Hall. Good luck! Loving the Sea Salt in your kitchen!
Julie says
Love both shades but I really love Sea Salt. Love the subtleness of it. Good choice. 😉
Michelle says
Paint colors are definitely the hardest choices in decorating for me! I painted our master bathroom Palladian Blue a few years ago, and it lasted maybe a year. It was just too dark, and I still don’t know why. Lots of white cabinets, a huge white tub, and a bay window that was basically all of one wall. It should have worked, but it didn’t. I am now having trouble choosing a color for a guest room, and I think the problem is the color that is on the wall now. I think I love the swatches until I put them up (all shades of gray) but the walls are the last of my red and gold phase, and the gold just turns every swatch a weird color. Maybe I should paint a large square of white on each wall to test the swatches on? Your cabinets (and your whole kitchen) look great, and I’m looking forward to seeing Sea Salt on the walls. I know it’s going to be beautiful!