Limestone Flooring

Christine,
Thank you for your advice on my home. I would like to replace the stone floors and carpet that run through the whole downstairs of the house. Should I put in wood floors or another travertine stone?

How about limestone? Check out the examples I posted here for you- a limestone with a cool gray undertone to it would be great with your cabinets.

One more thing- my whole house is painted the color you said I should change. Should I change the whole house to a blue or green?

I do not like the current paint color with your cabinetry at all. If that natural maple is found in a room- leave that paint color out of it. Would I do the entire downstairs the same color? If your downstairs is under 1000 square feet- perhaps I would- but overall- it is hard to say without pictures...

or should I paint the cabinets?

Your cabinets appear to be such a nice quality- I am very hesitant to have you paint them- which would also be a solution to some of the decorating issues in your home. I would suggest you replace the backsplash - keep the cabinets. I posted some backsplash ideas also. Keep it simple- keep your floors simple. These are expensive long term items. Think solid colors- a pallet for you to decorate with. Add pattern elsewhere. Keep these two items simple.

Where do I start?

Start with the floor. Then go for the fabrics and rugs- then do the paint.

I feel overwhelmed.

Relax- it will all come together. I am really glad you are replacing the flooring. Yours was a hard combination. Start there. Start with getting some gray limestone samples and taking them home and seeing how they blend with your cabinets and other items that "stay." The gray limestone that has a combination of warm and cool will be easy to decorate with. Combine this will a simple glass backspalsh in a coordinating shade. If you have more questions- take more pictures and send them my way.

To White Wash or Not to White Wash

Hi Christine,

I was reading your blog about whitewashing. We have just bought a house and in the den is some sweet 70’s barnboard. We are putting a cinnamon colored maple flooring throughout and painting all of the trim white. What are your thoughts on whitewashing the barnboard? It’s not coming down so either way it is either going to be painted or some other kind of process. The room def needs to be lightened up! Also- on the far wall is entirely stone. I have attached a picture- I’m sorry it’s a bit fuzzy. Thanks for you help. –
Amy

Oh yeahh- that is fuzzy! It is hurting my eyes! Amy- I'd like you to look at the photo I found on decor pad for your inspiration. I think that not only does your wood need lightening- but your stone does as well. I don't know how to tell you to do it- I am not a do-it-yourselfer. I am a hire-it-outer. But lighten not only your paneling but also the stone.

White wash on your paneling is a great look to try- I would give it a try- and see how you like it- if you don't-you can always paint it. I hate to say "Do it!" when it is so unsure what the final look will be.

Anyone have ideas for Amy on how to white wash her stone? Is it as simple as a watered down paint? Go cream on your colors- not stark white. I'd love to see an after picture- a little less fuzzy perhaps :).

The Little Bath

Hi Christine,
Love your blog!
We recently bought our first house (yah!) and thru the help of Craig and his list, we have put together a collection of pieces that I love. I included those pictures so you can get a sense of things that I like. On to the thing that I don't like: our half bathroom. As the pictures show, it is located off a laundry room (that desperately needs a new light fixture... I was thinking a chandelier? Something a little more interesting than the awful plastic thing that is currently up there! I am also antique shopping some great laundry art. Does that even exist??! Or maybe I will create my own suds-y fabulosity! We started with some wainscoting on the ceiling and an olive color that coordinates with the drapes in the adjoining living/dining room. Added some interesting black/white storage boxes since people will actually pass thru there to use the facilities. I digress...) So the bathroom. I shudder at mention of that room. It is TINY. It has exposed plumbing. It has linoleum flooring. It has *brass* fixtures! And sadly, it is the main restroom that our guests use. The other two options are upstairs, one occupied by our two boys, the other is the master. Looking at the positive, the room is incredibly small so a great floor will not be that expensive! And aside from the tight quarters, it will be a quick paint job.
I am so overwhelmed by my hatred towards this bathroom, I do not even know where to begin!
Help!!
Carolyn

Dear Carolyn,

A note to you and everybody - could you please send your photos in a jpeg attachment format so that I can save them and use them in my blog? Thanks. However you sent them - my computer did not like it :). I will add your photos when I get them.

On to your wee little bath...

When you do not have a tub or shower- you do not need a large towel rack - or a medicine cabinet. Take them both down, add a towel ring close to the sink - so as to not be the big focal point on the wall.

Get a new TP holder in a matching series as your towel ring. You have silver on your sink - so let’s go with that. Replace the basket on the top of the commode with a cute box like the one at the top of the post from Global Views. This is all the storage a little bath like this needs.

Your pipes are dirty old things. I don’t mind the exposed pipe look at all - but I like them shiny. Research and see how you can clean them up.

Add some pizazz to this little room. Something that you might tire of in your kitchen could be totally fun in a small bath - like this wallpaper from Stacie Garcia. A small bathroom like this is not an enormous expense - so you can afford to switch it out in five years and totally change the look. This is the perfect place to be bold and trendy.

Add some softness with a relaxed sheer Roman Shade on the window.

Add some style with a beautiful white leather mirror. This mirror is from Global Views. In a little powder bath like this, I don’t worry as much about having a large mirror, like you would insist on in a Master Bath.

Put in a beautiful timeless floor - like this onyx mini-brick.

I liked this little soap holder - then you could find cute square soap...

On the large wall when you walk into the bath - that no longer has a towel rack on it - hang the ceramic carnations at the top of the post. (from Global Views)

Add crown molding (not too small!) and coordinating stone baseboard - nine inches high. The crown molding should be a crisp white and the ceiling should be a lighter shade of the green in the wallpaper.

There you go. Have fun with this little bath!

My Master Bath Floor

My Bathroom Floor

When we moved into our home- about a year and half ago- the bathroom floor was NASTY- And although I would have liked to have gutted the entire room- (and still plan to one day)- we were just going to replace the floor right away. (My DH did the job!)

Not wanting to "lock myself in" to anything, I wanted to put in a floor that would go well with a lot of different stones -so that when I do replace the tile in the shower and bath and counters- I would have a lot of options.

I also have a pile of tile in my master closet- for when we replace the counters with some that have legs. I wanted a floor that would look alright with my current California tract home oak cabinets and cream tile- while waiting for the re-model which might not happen for years. I chose a 16 x 16 limestone, had it set on the diagonal- and made a grid with a mosaic travertine. This pulls in a lot of colors- including warm tones and cream for my existing materials- while still giving me numerous options for the future. I like how the mosaic also makes the floor not too slippery when wet.

Here you get a peek at my Masland carpets. I chose the highest thickest nicest carpet that Masland carries. Stores use different names- so I am guessing- but I think it is the Shangri-La- the carpet that I just told Jill to not use- because it made too boring a rug. (although it might be Espresso) You can see the looped piece- that is being utilized as a mat during the flooring installation- that carpet is a sample of the Masland carpet I put in my children's bedrooms and office. Super durable- fabulous- I have loved them both. I like dark colors in carpet. I think they are just as beautiful as light carpet- but hide more. I also wanted colors that would not be limiting- as I like to "re-decorate."

Ali's Kitchen Questions

Hi Christine,
My sis-in-law directed me to your site. I have a question regarding my kitchen. Here is the rundown of where I am. We've lived here for 3 years. Our house is about 12 years old. We replaced the counter tops with silestone about 2 years ago, and installed a tumbled travertine backsplash. It was our intention to strip and then re-stain the cabinets. They are structurally sound, and I don't want to tear them out. They just need a face lift. I have gone back and forth with the idea of stain vs. paint. Now I am thinking I want to paint the cabinets. Now for the questions: Can I do a dark color on bottom and light on top? My thinking on this is that I have small children who love to leave hand prints, etc. at child level. I think a dark color would hide things better. I am afraid to put the dark on the top because I think it might make the kitchen feel smaller. There is only one small window over the sink (in addition to the open bar which lets light in). For that reason I want to put a lighter color on top. Also, do you have ideas on flooring? Right now it is a parquet floor that I don't really like. I like the look of travertine, but I am afraid it might be too cold in the winter mornings. What about vinyl/linoleum? Would I regret putting that down? We have oak in our dining room - should I continue it into the kitchen? Would it get too beat up by all the stuff that gets dropped?

Anyway, thanks for any insight/ideas you can give me!

Thank you!
Ali

Dear Ali,

Here are some things to consider in deciding colors for your cabinets:

1. BALANCE When doing a combination of two colors, always have the darker of the two on the bottom. Otherwise, your kitchen can seem "top heavy", and lack balance.
2. CONTRAST. Since your counters and backsplash are light, and if you have a good sized room, consider painting both the top and bottom dark, to give your room some contrast. When the dark is next to the light, everything shows up more. Whatever your colors, make sure you have good contrast, so it doesn't all blend together too much. See this post for another example. The top picture of the white kitchen looks good becasue the counters are black. You need some contrast somewhere.
3. For fingerprints... consider a glaze.- think distressed. Keep in mind that a black car needs to be washed more frequently than a white car. Sometimes dark doesn't mean that it hides things. A clean, smooth finish in a dark color can show quite a bit, whereas a distressed finish, (like the photo above of the black kitchen) whether light or dark, can be very forgiving. See this post for an example.

Flooring for your kitchen. First of all- know this- there are pros and cons to EVERY floor. None are perfect, and none will look like new forever.

• I don't like large areas (over 4 feet) of flooring changes. If I had wood floors in a family room that was OPEN to the kitchen, I would put the same wood flooring in the kitchen. With wood, you will have to keep water off of it. Yes, it will scratch and dent eventually. I had wood in my last house, travertine in this one. I loved them both.
• Travertine is cold. I have over 1000 feet of travertine in my home right now. It is hot outside, and the floor feels great! However, I get the feeling from your e-mail that you don't live in California or Arizona. Keep in mind that you can have radiant heating put under your stone, or wear slippers :). Stone is easy to live with regarding water. It does require periodic sealing. Oil or dark colors can stain it if it is not tightly sealed.
• Vinyl. I am not a big vinyl fan- really just because I don't like the look. It is a very practical floor most of the time. (Unless you have a high moisture content in your slab- if you are on a slab).

• Linoleum. Linoleum is different than vinyl. I like it a LOT! It is made of linseed oil, and considered a very "green" choice for your home. It comes in fabulous colors, can be a sheet or squares. I have used this a number of times in customers homes, and it looks GREAT! The photo above is from Marmoleum. You can do some cool patterns with it. It is a great surface.

• Amtico. I am a HUGE Amtico fan. It is beautiful and practical. Flooring for a kitchen doesn't get much better than Amtico. It is easy with water spills, not cold and hard like stone, fun to personalize- all around GREAT. (Amtico should pay me huh?) Again, I have put in a lot of Amtico floors for clients, and had a lot of happy people. I would not use Amtico wood next to real wood. However, they have some great stone looks that would work great.

Good luck Ali! Send us a photo when you are done!

- Christine-

Post script- Ali just e-mailed me the "after" shots. Looks fantastic Ali! Thanks for the pics!