bye-bye baby blue!

Last night we put up test patches of both Caponata and Wenge.  The Wenge looked fine – I can’t say I had any complaints - but we both really loved the Caponata (even from across the street, which is the true test, I think!) 

So, it seems we’ve settled on a non-authentic bungalow body color! Since the depth of color is similar to the dark stain on Craftsman Farms, we’re viewing this as ”a modern interpretation of the Craftsman Aesthetic” with apologies to purists everywhere.

Do you live in the Portland area?  Curious about bungalow colors?  If so, and if you have nothing else going on this Saturday morning, please feel free to pop by the Architectural Heritage Center to say hello. I’ll be giving a presentation called “Painting Your Bungalow – Inside & Out” and would love to meet some of my fellow housebloggers!

Family folklore has it that when Julio’s great-grandparents bought their summer cottage in 1920, the previous owners left behind a five piece set of wicker furniture. This same wicker suite has been passed down through several generations. In fact, our daughters will be the fifth generation of kids to claim the petite rocking chair as their own. Unfortunately, back in the the 1970s, the third generation painted everything shamrock green. (Pleased to meet you – I’m Paddy O’Furniture! Sorry – couldn’t resist!)

1920 wicker wearing 1970s paint

Julio couldn’t understand my interest, mostly because he had a hard time seeing past the bright green paint. But I knew it would be a lovely addition to our home. First of all, it’s roughly the same age as our house, and I really loved the idea of having something of the same vintage. Secondly, the scale is absolutely perfect. While our house is roomy by bungalow standards, most modern furniture is too large to fit comfortably in our living room, but this wicker set fits as if it was made for the room. Lastly, I’ve always loved the interior photographs I’ve seen of Gustav Stickley’s Craftsman Farms, in part because of the unexpected juxtaposition of curvy wicker chairs and settees against Stickley’s masculine, rectilinear wooden furniture. Beautiful!

Of course, Stickely’s wicker was natural wicker, and our recent acquisition was bright green. Since you can’t easily strip wicker, we decided to go with a deep espresso colored paint that seemed at home with our dark tables and woodwork. Next on our list will be finding an upholsterer who can recover the cushions in something more bungalow-appropriate, but for the time being I suppose I will have to live with the existing cushions. Eventually I would also love to add a small tabouret table next to the large rocker, and an area rug to serve as a room anchor (Oak Park Home and Hardware has a few drool-worthy contenders) but since we need a few slightly more important items before we can purchase a rug (new roof, anyone?) the rug won’t be joining the family any time soon.

And so, without further ado, here are some snaps I took of our recently painted family heirlooms. (Julio, who is quite particular about photography asked me to specify that I took these photos, so that if you find them less than technically flawless, you won’t blame him!)

Living room as viewed from the front entry

Wicker furniture - close-up view

Living room - alternate view

The term “VOC” stands for “volatile organic compound.” The definition of a volatile organic compound really seems to vary depending on who is doing the defining, but basically, a VOC is an organic (carbon-based) chemical compound that will evaporate at room temperature.

As volatile organic compounds evaporate – changing from liquid form to gas/fumes – they will enter the atmosphere and contribute to the formation of ground-level ozone and smog. They will also enter the lungs of, say, someone who is painting. What’s the big deal about that? Well, here’s what the EPA has to say about the health effects of VOCs:

Health effects: Eye, nose, and throat irritation; headaches, loss of coordination, nausea; damage to liver, kidney, and central nervous system. Some organics can cause cancer in animals; some are suspected or known to cause cancer in humans. Key signs or symptoms associated with exposure to VOCs include conjunctival (eye) irritation, nose and throat discomfort, headache, allergic skin reaction, dyspnea, declines in serum cholinesterase levels, nausea, emesis, epistaxis, fatigue, dizziness.

The ability of organic chemicals to cause health effects varies greatly from those that are highly toxic, to those with no known health effect. As with other pollutants, the extent and nature of the health effect will depend on many factors including level of exposure and length of time exposed. Eye and respiratory tract irritation, headaches, dizziness, visual disorders, and memory impairment are among the immediate symptoms that some people have experienced soon after exposure to some organics. At present, not much is known about what health effects occur from the levels of organics usually found in homes. Many organic compounds are known to cause cancer in animals; some are suspected of causing, or are known to cause, cancer in humans.

Hmmm. Not too comforting.

The EPA says that for a flat-finish interior paint to be considered “low-VOC” it must contain less than 250 grams per liter (g/L) of VOCs.

Green Seal sets the bar much higher than the EPA does and allows only 50 grams per liter (g/L), so looking for Green Seal certification when shopping for paint is a good start.

Certain paints such as milk paints, clay paints, Yolo Colorhouse, Freshaire, Mythic or Bioshield solvent-free wall paints, for example, are no-VOC paints. This means that they contain no volatile organic compounds at all. Other paints are classified as low-VOC paints. Benjamin Moore’s Aura paint, for example, contains less than 50 grams of VOC per liter. And Aura uses a water-based/VOC-free coloring system, so the 50 g/L paint in the can remains at 50 g/L even when you add color. What most people don’t know is that many other low-VOC paints use solvent-based coloring systems, so as you add color to your paint, you are also adding VOCs. Thus, it’s always a good idea to ask about a product’s coloring system before making a purchase at your local paint store.

For moms-to-be, new babies, small children and people with respiratory conditions, a no-VOC paint is probably your safest bet, with a low-VOC paint being the next best choice as it will off-gas far less than a standard latex paint.

As with oil or latex paint, when using a a low-VOC paint, good ventilation (open windows, fans, etc.) is important because even with good ventilation, it will take awhile for fumes to completely dissipate. So, if you’re involved with a painting project and it’s warm enough to do so, leaving the windows open for a several days will let your freshly-painted room air out. That way, it will be fume-free (and hopefully pretty-much VOC-free) by the time you start furnishing the space.

For anyone who is interested, Popular Mechanics recently tested and compared Benjamin Moore’s Aura, Home Depot’s Freshaire and Mythic paints and their results and commentary are posted here.

Most bungalow-lovers are familiar with the Sherwin Williams’ Arts & Crafts color collection, the Eddie Bauer Home Bungalow Color collection at Lowe’s, and Pittsburgh Paints’ Chicago Bunaglow color collection, but there’s new color collection released earlier this spring that may also be worth a look.

Kelly-Moore Paints has introduced a new palette called “Historic Lifestyles of the West.” Developed by respected color expert Robert Schweitzer (who wrote the book “Bungalow Colors Exteriors“), the collection contains 106 lovely, mellow colors inspired by the architecture of the late 1800s and early 1900s. The collection is dived by era/architectural style and includes shades appropriate for Victorian, English Revival, Spanish Revival, Arts and Crafts, Jazz Age and mid-century modern homes.

Kelly-Moore Paints are available in Arkansas, California, Colorado, Idaho, Nevada, Oklahoma, Oregon, Texas and Washington.

Has anyone out there tried the new Freshaire paint they’re selling at Home Depot? If not, here’s your chance to try it for free…

Just head on over to the Freshaire website, check out their color palette (which, granted, is a bit limited at a mere 65 fairly mellow colors) and choose your three favorites. Freshaire will then mail you three 2 ounce packets, free of charge, to try out at home.

We haven’t received our free packets yet, but we are definitely looking forward to seeing how the paint performs. We’re hoping it lives up to the hype. A major issue with most low- and no-VOC paints is that as soon as you add color, you’re adding VOCs. So it’s really only no-VOC paint if you use it as-is, straight from the can, and who wants to do that?!?!

The big selling point of Freshaire is that the colorants are VOC-free, so even if you choose their deepest darkest blue, the paint remains VOC-free. This isn’t the only company that makes this sort of no-VOC paint – Yolo Colorhouse, for example, makes lovely no-VOC paint in similarly muted tones – but chances are, if it’s being sold at Home Depot, Freshaire will have a slightly more consumer-friendly price-point. Here’s hoping, anyway!

In addition to offering wall paint in flat, eggshell and semi-gloss finish, Freshaire also makes ceiling paint and interior primer, and all of their products come with a lifetime warranty.

One thing that caught our attention right away is that they really do seem committed to employing environmentally-friendly practices. Not only are their paints and coloring system VOC-free, but their paint cans are made from 100% recycled materials and can be recycled again. Their labels are made with 75% recycled paper and printed with soy ink. And their paint chips and brochures are recyclable too. Pretty cool.

We promise post a review once our free samples arrive and we’ve had a chance to play with them. In the meantime, if you have tried Freshaire, please let us know. We’d love to hear what you think of it.

Attention Portland-area bungalow lovers! The second annual Portland Bungalow Show is just around the corner and is sure to be chock full o’ bungalow goodness, complete with fabulous vendor booths, informative lectures and hands-on window restoration workshops.

A separately-ticketed wine-tasting and lecture event is scheduled for the evening of Saturday, May 17 from 7 – 10 p. m. and will feature presentations by the astoundingly talented CJ Hurley and renowned bungalow photographer Alexander Vertikoff.

If that isn’t quite enough to pique your interest, we have one more little tidbit of information to share with you. The “Painting Your Bungalow” lecture scheduled for 3 p.m. on Saturday, May 17 will be delivered by none other than Stephanie Brown of Local Color – otherwise known as Mrs. Bungalow Insanity.

Hope to see you there!

Foyer: the red looks much richer in real life than it does in the photo. It’s Sherwin Williams Rembrandt Ruby SW0033. This is probably my favorite color in the entire house. The ceiling is Sherwin Williams Hubbard Squash SW0044.

Living room: walls are Miller Paint Green Acre 8144M (Stephanie chose this one to match the green in the shades on our light fixtures – bungalow greens are usually a little more olive-toned.) Ceiling is Sherwin Williams Hubbard Squash SW0044.

Dining room: Walls are a Miller Paint custom mix (recipe: 05M0470,B – 6,C – 2 x 44, F – 3 x 28,W – 5 X 32, P/G). I have no idea what that all means, but supposedly it results in a pretty cool color. Stephanie says that Miller Sunburst 7845D is pretty similar to this. Ceiling is Sherwin Williams Hubbard Squash SW0044.

Kitchen: Walls are Miller Paint Fog Buoy 8574M. Ceiling was “a very custom mix – we mixed some buttery yellow paint we already had with ceiling white to achieve a creamy color that matched the caramel-swirled art glass in our kitchen light fixtures”

Bathroom: Lowe’s Spongebob Squarepants collection Seaweed. Ceiling is just standard “ceiling white” paint.

Upstairs, main room: Miller Paint’s Pekoe Tea 7673M. (Miller has changed their palette since we painted the playroom – this color is no longer in their fan deck, but they do still have the recipe in their database.)

Chloe’s room: Not recommended for anyone other than 4 year old girls! Sherwin Williams Impatient Pink 3854. I never knew the name before looking it up just now, and somehow it seems very appropriate for Chloe!

After my past experience of working with my dad on painted trim, I find that it now takes me twice as long to get it done. The tradeoff, though, is that it looks at least twice as good. I never used to bother with caulk, and the result was gaps all over the place. Unlike stained trim, which camouflages gaps quite well, white trim appear to have all of these dark lines in it. It can really cheapen all the hard work you put into carefully cutting and installing the trim in the first place. While my dad potentially uses caulk to the point of overkill, working with him on our bathroom wainscoting showed me how good painted trim can look. Caulking ever single visible seam makes it look so much more professional and substantial. While I “wasted” at least an entire day’s worth of time caulking this trim (not to mention the day I spent with the spackle and wood filler), it looks really, really good.