Our Dining Room Makeover

Whenever we paint, I’m amazed by what a difference color makes. Case in point: Here’s a photo of our dining room “before.” The walls are painted Chantilly Lace, and it’s fine. But! After six years in our house, we were curious what color might look like.

My friend Maud, who is a creative director, helped us visualize things by photoshopping paint color onto the walls. How handy is that? (Apparently, you can do this on Benjamin Moore’s site, too.) Here’s what Duck Green would look like.

Here’s Parma Gray.

Here’s what Hay would look like.

And, finally, India Yellow. Which would you pick? Here’s our choice…

* drumroll, please *

We went with Parma Gray, which reads as a cool blue. What do you think?

I love it! A wall color makes the whole room feel like more of an experience.

We also added bookshelves to both sides of the fireplace. Our (amazingly handy) friends Grace and Jack built them, and now we love displaying favorite books and family photos on the shelves.

We’ll feature an updated home tour in a few months (our most recent home tour was five years ago!), but I was too excited to share this room with you.

Curious: What paint colors do you like? Have you painted any spaces in your home?

P.S. A Connecticut cottage with colorful rooms, and a family’s dream home with a black living room.

(First “after” photo: Bookcases styled by Oliver Cano. Buffet table: antique hand-me-down from my grandmother. Framed black-and-white flower photograph: Permanent Press Editions. Table lamp: Menu. Second “after” photo: Dining table: Lulu and Georgia. Navy chairs: Anthropologie. White chairs: DWR, similar. Rug: Lulu and Georgia. Third “after” photo: Floor lamp: Urban Outfitters. Bar cart: vintage from Craiglist. Striped stool: Oka. Ship plate: John Derian. Vegetable candles, on mantle: Fruit and Flower Shop. Fourth “after” photo: New York print: David Ehrenstråhle, sold out. Vase: Gisela Gueiros. Placemats: Heather Taylor Home.)