Not long ago, we had a ketchup and mustard look on our unfinished entertainment center.
After my bathroom painting marathon, I decided to knock out the entertainment center so we didn’t think of hot dogs. While I painted, Ben added the face trim, side detail, and crown molding.
Of course painting isn’t that easy. Oh no, first I had to fill every nail hole, wait for the filler to dry, then sand it smooth. And then the priming phase.
Man was I ready to start painting. Originally Ben and I had agreed on a white entertainment center with a colorful backing. So I tested out my options inside the cabinets he built and liked Ben Moore’s Yosemite yellow. But then we started talking it over and decided white wasn’t the direction we wanted to take. Why the sudden change of heart? Well, Ben pointed out how much light the front window lets in, which also means a lot of glare. Bright white might cause a lot of eye strain when we’re relaxing in front of the tv at night. White is a safe choice, and maybe too safe. Let’s try a darker color, like gray. But I didn’t want a sea of gray, so it had to be different enough from the wall color. I picked out two Ben Moore colors, Kendall Charcoal and Amherst Gray.
Kendall Charcoal was a great deep gray, but too blue for our liking. Amherst Gray was too light. While at Home Depot shopping for some other supplies, we walked to the paint department and looked at more swatches. I pulled out a Behr color that I’ve liked for years, Squirrel. About six years ago, I painted our master bedroom this color, but Ben said it felt like a battleship. Since then, he has come around to more modern designs, and doesn’t hate all gray paint. But we quickly agreed Squirrel was too light. That’s an easy fix, we just chose the color below, Dusty Mountain. Without hesitation, we bought a gallon of eggshell paint and headed home.
In the pictures above, you can see we bought the paint before I was ready to paint. After finishing the prep and priming, I started with the color.
Love at first sight. Especially paired with the reddish Bubinga top. Yum.
Ben came home, saw this and proclaimed his love, too.
I think the green undertones are lovely and reminiscent of an expensive library. Just picture this color on crazy tall shelves with a brass bar for the sliding wooden ladder.
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But I couldn’t let go of wanting a splash of color. Using the yellow left over from the cabinets, I tested it on the backs.
I love the idea, but the contrast was too much for tv watching.
Ben suggested I paint the back Wood Smoke like the walls. Instead, I took the easy way out and painted it Dusty Mountain.
Ahh, that’s better. Ugly speakers blend in with this more. We’ll build doors for the side cabinets, but the yellow will be a fun surprise inside.
If we had cabinet grade plywood, we could have built the drawers. Sadly, Home Depot doesn’t have any in stock because it’s seasonal. Ummm, what? Hopefully they get it in, because we can’t make the fronts until the drawers are installed. I’m telling you, our plans are always contingent on something else.
Progress is progress, and I’m happy.
So, what do you think of the color? Are you into darker, saturated colors, too? Or are you more of a light and airy person? Do you and your significant other agree on colors easily?
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Looks great.
Looks fantastic!!
love it!
Dusty Mountain for the Mountain house. Perfection. 🙂
Hi Julia!
Ha, I hadn’t thought of it that way. 🙂 Totally perfect.
Thanks!
Amanda
I love it!!! I love the moody grays. I have a bathroom with a gray/green undertones and then used gray with brown undertones in several art niches. You can’t go wrong with a great gray.
I love the colours, and the cute surprise pop of yellow… great choices!! I can’t wait to see it completed… and I can’t believe that wood is seasonal. Really? That’s actually comical lol.
Hi Andrea!
Thanks so much! Yes, kind of comical as long as they get it in sometime soon or we won’t be able to build anything! So so strange.
Thanks!
Amanda
I love white bookcases! But I agree that the grey looks really nice against the walls! Looking forward to seeing it ‘all done’ 🙂
Hey Katrina!
I too love white, but I’m glad we did something a little different than usual. It makes me smile when I see it. I can’t wait to get it done so we can share it!
Thanks!
Amanda
LOVE the Dusty Mountain! Well done!
That is a beautiful gray. I agree with your hubby that white would reflect too much. Can’t wait to see it all finished!
Love the gray. Very pretty. I love rich colors–looks so nice against white trim. It has its place though. Deep colors cannot be used in every room, but bright and airy colors can be used just about anywhere. A lot of people are afraid to use color, but I really think color is what makes a house a home.
I can’t believe are speedy fast you guys get things done around there. We were just there and now everything is different! 🙂 LOVE the gray and the entire entertainment center build. It’s looking so great! And all those new windows are so exciting! Miss ya already!
xo,
Jen
Hey lovely!
Well, it goes in spurts. Pretty soon we’ll be at a stand still if Home Depot doesn’t get their ‘seasonal’ plywood. Thanks for your never ending encouragement, too! I miss you and can’t wait to see you again!
Thanks!
Amanda
Wow! You’ve made so much progress since the last time I checked in a couple of weeks ago. Love the gray entertainment center. It looks like a million bucks! The new windows make a big difference, too.
The Dusty Gray is awesome! I am having such a hard time picking a gray color, but I may have just found it 😉 Thanks for sharing!