Thursday, May 26, 2011

Green and brown, it’s a color match made in heaven!

Our house is painted!!!! Oh sure there are still a few details to be done but the majority of the work (in other words the parts let me garden like normal, replanting, mulching, and the like) are done. It's dark, and I love it! Here is that fabulous Yucca, all planted up. Love it! The group of containers…the one on the right yet to be planted with a Red Banana, (Ensete Maurelii). Doesn’t that dark brown just make the foliage colors POP!? I need to give a big thank you shout out to our painter, Mitch of Brushin’ N’ Rollin’. As you all know one of the biggest concerns I had was how the plants would fare during this project. Well he did a fabulous job! He went above and beyond to be careful and take care of the plants, having to contort himself to get behind and around the Hydrangea and Rhododendron, not to mention the veggie stock tanks in the driveway, placed just a little too close to the house. He was constantly aware of where his feet and ladder went, making his job more difficult than it had to be, and he did it with good humor. You know how sometimes when you’re working with a contractor they tell you one thing and then do another? (“oh sure lady, we’ll be careful”… SMASH!) Not the case here. If you are in the Portland vicinity and looking for a painter I recommend him. He even has a nursery background…so he knows a thing or two about plants! What more could you ask for in a painter (oh ya…he’s good with the paint too!)… The overall “after” shot of the house will have to wait…until the finishing touches happen. Front steps painted, front door painted, window trim painted, brass door hardware changed out for nickel (finally!)…I can’t believe it took is 6 years to do this! I’ll be sure to include a couple of before and transition shots too, because it’s amazing!!!

21 comments:

  1. OMG...it looks wonderful! I'm completely, insanely jealous! For gardeners, dark is the way to go...seriously shows off plants to their best...and yours just proves it!

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  2. The foliage does look just fab in front of that dark chocolate paint! Sounds as if you had one helluva guy doing the painting.

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  3. AnonymousMay 26, 2011

    PERFECT background for the wonderful palette of your plants.

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  4. good job painter guy! Always nice to find considerate people for hire.

    My BF was recently upset because his roommate got some work done on his balcony and they dripped paint onto his tomato plants below :/

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  5. Truly FABULOUS.......what else can one say!

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  6. a HUGE difference. It looks great, the greens and the blooms and the whites all just POP against the background.

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  7. The house looks great! That is the perfect color to make your plants really pop! I never realized before how good brown was. I'll have to consider it if we ever get ours painted.

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  8. Beauuuuutiful! The dark brown really does make your greens, esp. the chartreuse, pop. Dark house colors are unusual here in the deep South because the sun fades the paint. I'll just enjoy yours!

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  9. Wow, your house looks good enough to eat! And since I also live in Portland and will someday need to have our house painted (it's the most boring beige right now) I'll keep Mr brushin' n rollin' in mind. Thanks for the recommendation!

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  10. Beautiful paint job and the plants look really fresh against the color.

    Boy do I ever know about a contractor not listening to instructions. I was working overseas when they came to clear the lot for the new house 2 years ago, our instructions we to clear ONLY what vegetation was necessary. I came back to find the ENTIRE 1/3 acre cleared and burned, with only two surviving trees (which they evidently tried their hardest to bulldoze but those trees refused to budge). A couple lantanas grew back for which I am grateful. The rest I had to stsrt from scratch!

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  11. Yep, looks really good. And best of all is how it must feel to finally have it - at least the biggest part of it - done. You can't really buy plants when you don't know how the paint's gonna look...

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  12. scott, thank you. Now I just hope it wears well. Going so dark over white was probably not the smartest idea, especially on an older home with somewhat trashed siding.

    Darla, dark chocolate, I wonder if my love of it had anything to do with the color choice?

    Patricia, thank you...I've yet to come up with anything that clashes with it. Love it!

    Mary C, I'm not surprised, a lot of people just don't get it!

    Thank you Beech Street G!

    Ryan, you know even foliage not looking so good looks better against it. The difference really is amazing. A white house just doesn't do a garden any favors.

    Alsion, even a lighter brown is great. We went dark because of the gravel out front. Without grass the contrast needed to be bumped up a bit.

    Thank you Grace!

    Pam, I think we'll be seeing a little of that on the south side of our house, where what sun we do get will really bake it. Probably have to give that area another coat next year or the year after.

    sandra, I know what you mean about boring beige. That's our kitchen. When we moved in the floor, walls, cabinets, countertops, backsplash, and ceiling were all beige! We've replaced the floor (chartreuse marmolium) and next up is paint...

    Nicole, that sounds like a nightmare!

    Kate, ha! I didn't let a little thing like that stop me from buying plants...

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  13. Just beautiful! Your plants look sooo good backed by that yummy chocolate color, and I like the charcoal foundation, too. Your shot of the unfurling banana leaf (or is that a canna?)is the perfect example. Thanks for recommending Mitch: we'll be happy to get a bid from him for our paint job this summer!

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  14. I just sent Mitch an email--before the rush starts!

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  15. MulchMaid, it is a banana, good eye! I had to chop the leaves because I stupidly planted it to close to the house and there was no way he could paint around it, luckily they grow so fast it doesn't matter. So does that mean you've decided on a color?

    Patricia, smart move. I know our neighbors were going to ask him about some work too.

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  16. I love that you put in a good word for your painter...looks like he will be busy wielding his brush for some time to come as a result. Perfect color choice, and so in keeping with your overall style.

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  17. Always a good idea to check the contractors size of feet before hiring.

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  18. The color you have chosen ia a great foil for your plants, and you are lucky to have found a good painter. When we last had our house painted, the painter took it upon himself to scrub all of the moss off from my aged concrete planters and gave them a fresh coat of glossy white paint so they would match the rest of the house.

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  19. Fabulous color choice. Makes everything 'pop'!

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  20. A bit late to join the party but fantastic paint job on the house :) Looks really good and sets off the equally lovely planting very well!

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