“Hey, let’s paint our own bedroom. It will be FUN. And EASY.” -Said. No. One. EVER.

That’s how we began this fun little exercise in futility… although I guess I can’t really call it that because we did succeed in the end.

First, I started by looking for inspiration in some of my favorite books. When looking for color, I usually start with Farrow & Ball Living with Colour. Their colors are beyond exquisite- rich, warm, full of history and character, just what you would expect from the British.

I narrowed it down to these options (although I could have looked at green paints for the rest of my life) and ordered large samples from Benjamin Moore. I taped them all over my walls and looked at them in the sunlight, in the shadows, on every wall, day and night.

And the winner is… BACKWOODS! I love how it’s dark but it’s not over powering, it’s not too blue, too yellow or too gray. It’s just a perfect true green that reminds me of nature and feels more like an earthy neutral than a color.

We shoved all the furniture into the middle of the room because it’s super fun- and easy- to paint around it. Also, our ceiling fan light expired and the glass dome got lodged and we couldn’t change the bulb so we basically painted by candlelight. It wasn’t as romantic as it sounds.

We painted for two days, finished two coats on the walls, took a look at our work and then my husband said these famous last words: Don’t you think we should paint the ceiling too?

Oh how I laughed! Why yes, I agreed it would look great, but have you ever painted a tray ceiling around smooshed together furnishings? Well it’s not as easy as it looks; it’s actually EXACTLY as hard as I predicted- and told him- it would be.

So we needed more paint and supplies and then we were onto painting Day 3.

I was so proud of the excellent job I did with cutting in perfect crisp lines along the ceiling. Now that we were painting the ceiling, all of that painstakingly long process was essentially a waste of time. It turns out painting a ceiling is also fun and easy, especially when you add in the tray ceiling angles in a dark flat paint that shows all of the brushstrokes when the light hits it just so.

I wasn’t happy about it in the moment- in fact I was downright resentful that I had let my husband talk me into it- but now that it’s done I can say it was worth the pain. It makes the room feel taller without the harsh line separating the green wall and white ceiling. The room feels dark, cozy and cocoon-like.

PS. We have vowed to never DIY paint again and will be putting all of our painting supplies in the Goodwill pile.

Stay tuned for Part 3 of the transformation, which will feature Furnishings. To be continued…

And if you’re late to the party and you missed Part I: The Before, read it here

Modern Equestrian Design- The Bedroom Part II: Paint