Painting the Walls in the Living Room…

A Living Room Refresh

A few years ago, I painted the walls in my living room a color called “Natural Bark”. I used the Colorplace brand (from Walmart) of interior semi-gloss paint and at the time, was thrilled with the results. Over time, I decided that the color was a little dark and making my living room look similar to a cave. Plus, when I needed to take pictures of projects for my site, they always came out a little yellow!

My friend had some paint left over from a living room project and I really liked the color. She is really good at picking colors of paint and swears she had “help”. I don’t believe her, I think she’s just awesome that way but won’t admit it…

Anyway, she gave me what was left over and the color is “Parachute Silk” (an interior satin) by Behr.  I’ve never used really expensive paint before and after the first coat, I could tell there is definitely a difference! It hides everything!! Wow, I am a convert!

My living room walls had a chair rail around the center. Initially I painted around it but now I’ve decided to remove it. I filled the holes with Dry Dex (hole filler that goes on pink and turns white when dry – a must have!), and sanded the line where the paint was with 220 grit paper on my sander.

Once I was happy with my sanding and couldn’t feel the line, I painted the wall. I did use two coats and am so proud of the results! I can’t tell where the chair rail used to be!! Woo hoo!

Recognize the mirror? Stay tuned for a post on the shelf in this photo! What tips do you have for painting the living room? Leave a comment below!

Originally posted 2012-04-23 08:00:51.