Happy New Year!
Today is the official start to 2021. You, like me, probably thought the new year started 11 days ago. How funny! Me too! But there was a giant mix-up with the calendars and today - TODAY - is actually the launch of a new year. Apologies for any confusion. I blame it on that creepy Elf on the Shelf who just doesn't know when to call it quits.
We all want change this year. We want to wipe out the pandemic and the political unrest. We want to lose 15 pounds and start doing yoga and stop pouring eggnog in our coffee. We want our kids to go back to school for real.
Those things may not happen today because those things take time. I hate things that take time. That's why I like the Nespresso machine. Very little waiting. You know what else I like? Paint. Paint is practically immediate gratification which is why I like paint and I like Josh who works at Benjamin Moore. I think he likes me too.
There are a few rules:
Stay calm. Paint day for The Neighbor's House's clients inevitably includes at least one panicked call ranging from it's too dark to it's too light to it looks like a diaper.
Use really good paint and pick colors that make you look good since you are the one doing all the hard work. This also applies to holiday cards as proven by every single piece of mail you received in December. Who looks good? The mom. Why? Because the mom had to schedule the photo shoot and buy those itchy pants that her 14 year-old hates and wonder why her husband got in the shower four minutes before they were supposed to leave and deal with the 12 year-old who hates her hair and then address, lick and stamp every single one of those gorgeous cards. So you better believe she's choosing a photo that makes her look like a million bucks even if the others appear to be having a seizure. It's only fair.
Benjamin Moore's color of the year is a lovely little color. Meet Aegean Teal, a charming combination of warmth with style. I am recommending this pick as a front door option. Isn't it pretty?
AEGEAN TEAL
(a pretty paint and probably a really nice vacation spot)
This article in The New York Times talks about Aegean Sea and other trending colors, including Urbane Bronze by Sherwin-Williams, a color I have used four times and Dead Salmon - not to be confused with the infamous and beloved Boulder, CO band Leftover Salmon.
URBANE BRONZE
DEAD SALMON
(a pretty paint with an ugly name)
LEFTOVER SALMON
(an amazing band with an equally amazing name)
The thing about paint is that it is personal. Because color, like music or food or things that annoy you (hypothetically: toothpicks, barking dogs, Andy Blackford's loud tortilla chip habit and being on the phone with Apple Tech support for two full days), is personal. So while colors and trends come and go, trusting your intuition is always in fashion. Go paint something and stop with the eggnog - you'll feel better.
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See you next time at The Neighbor’s House!