If you visit me here regularly you may have noticed I am mildly obsessed with painting our hardwoods white. I am 99% sure I would love the result (hubby not quite as much). Talk of this is sacrilege to some and I’ve never seen it done in anyones home here despite our grey winters to which white floors seems a common remidy in Scandanavian countries. So, should I say, Ha! to convention and just deal with any possible consequenses if we ever sell, or play it safe?
oh and that bench in the middle with those great legs is from an old high school locker room, here. Anyone in Seattle want to drive it down to me? (images via the gorgeous blog emmas blog)
I too have “pined” over painted wood floors. It’s a tough call. I think I would be more likely to do it to some (not all) of ours IF (huge IF!!) I knew the paint would adhere well and look great for the long haul. Do you have any tips/info/feedback on using the correct paint and prep?
Here are some more to drool over:
http://www.ohdeedoh.com/ohdeedoh/nursery-tours/nursery-tour-ashley-089192
heidi-ya i’ve looked around and is seems everyone has a different opinion on the best way.
carrie-thanks, what a beautiful room!
I painted all the wood in my old home white including the floor in the kitchen and LOVED it! Several male friends who were very skeptical at first actually ended up loving it. Luckily my husband was game. My only recommendation for the floor is be very careful if you have pets around. We had to do ours twice, due to stray pet hairs.
thanks for all the input! still pondering…
Lisa-I have recently redone my dining room including painting my (once garage) concrete floors white. I researched for months before taking the plunge. I used a high gloss enamel floor paint, good for concrete + wood. I searched for a water-based paint for a long time and spoke with many paint experts, each told me only oil based would stick well enough and dry hard for high traffic. Needed 3 coats to cover with 24 hrs to cure in between coats. We have 3 very active kids running around and the floors have held up really well so far. Here are some images of before/after if you want to see. http://twitpic.com/photos/korinnej
Thanks Korinne! I still pine over that white bench/couch from the store you’re using in your dining room. I think I’m pretty sold now I just need to convince my other half…
Oh, the resale dilemma!
We renovated our place with resale in mind, and of course, played it safe – neutral, neutral, neutral.
After 6 years (and a couple of extra kids) I’ve had it, and have vowed (inside my head and soon on my blog) to let my kids grow up in a colourful, bright and creative space.
I think, look, if you’re going to live there for years to come, and you’ve got a family with memories to make, throw it to the wind and do your home the way you want.
Paint the floor – and really enjoy it!
I saw India Hicks holiday/guest house in a mag yesterday, and it was totally painted white inside and looked amazing!
Really nice posts. I will be checking back here regularly.