This Old House

I need to make a fast decision on what color to paint my house. By fast, I mean that I signed a contract for painting my house nearly a year ago, but now the new windows are in and my contractor is ready to go.

We’ve sampled seven different colors, with no winner in sight.  I actually have been googling things like “the perfect gray for an exterior house color” or “best color for 1970s colonial.”  I am hoping some magical color chip will appear over the weekend. When my mom asked if she could help me with the kids tomorrow, I asked her, instead, to choose a paint color for me.

Which reminds me. Perhaps you have the color for me on your house. Do tell. Pretty please. My husband, my contractor and my neighbors (perhaps tired of the many samples now on my house) all beg you.

It’s times like these when I really envy people who make fast decisions.

Like my close friend Becky and her husband Joe. You may recognize them from the fall 2011 season of This Old House as they renovated their 1720 Massachusetts home.

In a matter of months, they made more decisions on their house than I will probably make in a lifetime of renovations. Sure, they had lots of expertise from the This Old House team, but that very guidance brings with it a mind-blowing amount of products and opinions to consider.  I believe at one time Becky mentioned that there were seven people in a meeting to discuss her mudroom tile. Yikes!

I was lucky enough to go to the Wrap Party to see the gorgeous reveal, those one zillion decisions in perfect confluence.

The plan had been to re-paint the house red, but Becky liked the primer color so much they went with this blue-gray color close to Benjamin Moore Pilgrim Haze. Hmm…maybe they should prime my house first; then, I’ll decide.

While we’re at Becky’s house, you should really see inside.

Isn’t this a gorgeous family?

Oh, and the island.  A very thick slab of gorgeous white carerra marble paired with a prep sink and a built-in compost bin.

I’m crazy for their banquette.  I’m about to replicate it in my kitchen (minus the exposed beams — boohoo)

I could live in Becky’s pantry – love the sliding barn doors and chalkboard wall.

And the powder room with bold custom canvas wall coverings I dream of commissioning some day.

The powder room is tucked into a catalog-perfect entryway, with an adorable splash of yellow.

Inspiring, isn’t it? And it’s so comfortable and simple, it almost looks easy.

I can definitely handle picking a paint color, right? Unless you have a suggestion?

All photography by Keller & Keller, posted on www.thisoldhouse.com.