Weekend Recap (or diary of green paint gone wrong)

After a fun yet exhausting week with A and B, the boys packed up and hit the road to Michigan on Friday to spend time with the grandparents. Mr. Marvelous also left on Friday morning to spend the weekend in North Carolina with his parents. I elected to stay home, thinking that a long weekend of rest and relaxation solo would be just the ticket after a non-stop week with two toddlers.

I spent the day Friday as a lazy maiden should: I trimmed things back in my garden, sewed a bit on a baby quilt, tried to take a nap, finished a novel . . . but by evening, I was restless and missing my guys. All three of them. I was rather pitiful really, sitting there, missing my boys, with Goo Goo Dolls “Name” on repeat on Itunes. Pity party for one!

The surefire way to snap out of my blues? Paint a room, any room! Paint, paint, paint! So I set off for Home Depot, in jammy pants, no makeup, hoping I could grab some supplies without running into anyone I knew. I have been wanting to paint our downstairs powder room for some time, I wanted it to be a “barely there” soft green: in the same vein as our kitchen is a “barely there” soft blue. I chose a color from Ralph Lauren’s Whitewash line and went home and got to work. The paint was just fine going on the wall, but dried to a color which can only be described as the perfect McDonald’s Shamrock Shake Green.

I was not pleased.

I quickly sent a text to my BFF, Abby: “It looks like Kermit the Frog exploded all over my bathroom!” Refusing defeat, I found some cream paint leftover from our guest bedroom stripe project and mixed a bunch of the cream in with the green paint. “Custom Color!” I thought. Perfect!! I proceeded to repaint the entire bathroom, called it a night, and went to bed. What little treat did I find waiting for me in the morning? A bathroom that dried to a nearly identical color as “Shamrock Shake Green.” WHAT???!!! Sad, but oh so true.

I stood in the tiny space assessing the damage, drafting a curt letter of complaint to Mr. Ralph Lauren in my mind:

Dear Ralph,

I should be able to rely on you to only supply paint colors which breathe style and romance into a room. You are, after all, Ralph Lauren. What is up with your Shamrock Shake Green!?? If you come to my house and repaint my bathroom, and also bring some samples from your fall line (no size 2s please!), all will be forgiven.

Warmly,

Erin Marvelous

Of course Ralph was probably on Nantucket celebrating the 4th, oblivious to my Shamrock Shake bathroom, so I did what any proud homeowner could do, I went back to Home Depot and back to the drawing board. New color selection: Ralph Lauren Goal Post (what can I say, I’m quick to forgive.) Home I went to paint the bathroom for the third time.

Result?

True Love.

The perfect, barely there green. Ralph, if you are reading this, we are good. 🙂 But please do send clothes. Again, no size 2s. Thanks.

I can’t wait to share pictures of the bathroom, just as soon as my camera is back from the repair shop recovering from the dive it took onto the hardwood floor courtesy of Mr. A and his desire to photograph Fred Thomas all the live-long day.

In the meantime, a smattering of loveliness courtesy of Houzz.com to cheer up your Monday morning.


Here’s to a beautiful week, friends.

13 Comments

  1. Too funny. I did the same thing recently. Painted my whole kitchen an “oyster” color and it literally “glowed” in the sunlight the next day. Had to repaint the WHOLE kitchen the next day, but finally got it right. Glad your bathroom looks good and I’m looking forward to the pics.
    Blessings,
    Traci

  2. Too cute!! So glad to know someone else has an occasional paint color that isn’t quite what you’re looking for!! I bet it’s gorgeous!

  3. I’m glad you got your paint problem straightened out.

    The pictures you posted are beautiful – I especially love pictures number 4 and 6.

  4. Hee hee, this post made me laugh, Erin! (Loved the letter to Ralph!) I can just see that ghastly shade of frog. I’m glad you found a color you liked and can’t wait to see it!! Hope you had a happy 4th!

  5. Thanks for making me laugh! You described the painting fiasco so perfectly. You would think Ralph Lauren any-color would be great.I painted our front room the worst color ever about 6 months ago. It gets on my nerves everyday but I am about to straighten it out.

  6. A thoroughly entertaining story! Getting colors right can be soo tricky- thanks for sharing your struggles with the rest of us. Can’t wait to see pics of the final product.

  7. Hilarious! I really felt your pain with the Shamrock green shake colour. Pop over to my blog to see some of the mistakes (and triumphs) I’ve had when decorating our home. At least your paint colour was fixable. Some mistakes aren’t so easy to fix… Wendy xx

  8. Oh Erin – I thought things like this only happen in our nightmares and we wake up and are thankful it was just a dream! It reminds me of the time my hubby died my hair Barney purple. The box said Mahogany. You would think any color from a “Whitewash” line would have been soft and calming. So happy to know that you were able to get Kermit off the walls and start over. Looking forward to seeing the Goal Post!

    Blessings,
    Marie
    http://emmacallsmemama.com

  9. I am trying to start my heart back up beating, because it completely stopped when I saw that picture of the garage door. (!!!!!) I sooooo want carriage-style garage doors, but didn’t know exactly *how* to pull it off since the upper corners of our garage door opening are notched (just like the ones in this picture). Woohoo! Those are gorgeous doors…. And the rose…we have been wanting to do that, too, above the doors once they were replaced. Oh, I just love it when I find a good inspiration pic. ;o) I just love your blog, by the way. Where did you grow up in Mich? My husband is from Harbor Springs. We love to go up there (esp. on the Fourth to watch the fireworks over the bay). Such a postcard town. Have a good day, Erin!

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