That’s the name of the new bedroom color. It doesn’t exactly roll off the tongue, but it does look pretty good rolled on the walls. We finally made a decision to go with the middle band on the Valspar swatch at the top of this photo (though we got it color matched to Olympic’s No-VOC paint in a satin finish). We liked that it was green and a bit more saturated than a color we’d choose for our last house.
Here’s one last look at the room paint-less (and mostly furniture-less). Oh yeah and look at poor semi-disassembled Ed the Bed. We had to remove one slat on the top so that he could slide forward into the middle of the room without hitting the fan while we painted around him.
And thanks to the magic of the internet, here’s what the room looked like around five hours later after two coats of Sweet Caroline Club Carolina Inn Club Aqua (we never got the name right a single time that we tried to remember it) on the walls. Amazingly we only needed one gallon (we’re not used to rooms this big so we totally expected to run out and have to do that annoying go-back-to-get-more thing in the middle of the project).
It’s definitely somewhat reminiscent of our last bedroom color (Glidden’s Gentle Tide) but it reads a good deal darker and greener in person, so it’s definitely a step towards our vision of a bolder color scheme when it comes to this house. We debated going a lot darker or brighter when it came to the walls, but ultimately decided that we didn’t want the wall color to be the star of this room. So keeping it somewhat subdued leaves room for colorful curtains, art, and even some painted secondhand furniture if we decide to go that route.
We actually hesitated before painting Carolina Country Club Inn Carolina Inn Club Aqua in the bathroom nook because we thought we might want to go darker, lighter, or bring some other accent idea in there (decorative wallpaper? a tone on tone stencil?).
But since our goal has been to de-emphasize the bathroom-ness of this space and help to better connect it to the main room (so that it visually makes sense instead of sticking out like a sore thumb) we went for the cohesive look and used the same color on the walls in there. Good old Caroline County Aqua Carolina Inn Club Aqua. Oh but we used a semi-gloss finish for extra wipeability since it’s near a sink. Don’t mind the fact that it looks lighter in the pics (it doesn’t in real life- must just be the lighting).
And yes, we’re still talking about painting the mirror everything from gray to white. We go back and forth between leaving it and letting the room evolve a little more before doing a thing and whipping out the paint brush and getting ‘er done later today. Whatever we do, we’ll share pics when we do it.
The color on the wall is also reading a bit light in these pics. We’d definitely describe it as something in the “mid-range” (not light but definitely not dark). You can see from the swatch in that top pic that it’s definitely not super subtle, but it’s also not ultra saturated. We actually really love that we landed in that middle-ground area. Everything from the crown molding to the trim and even Ed the Bed really pops, but it’s not too much that it would compete with bold curtains, art, and other stuff that we can’t wait to mix in. Oh and Ed’s poppage is a bit more evident in the first pic of the painted walls above though. Scroll scroll scroll.
None of the furniture placement is permanent (heck some of the furniture itself may soon be replaced, like that old ikea dresser from our guest room above). But at least it’s starting to feel like a our bedroom. Sherry has this big idea to get two secondhand dressers that “go but don’t match” and refinish them (or paint them a bold color) and then place them on the walls on either side of the bathroom doorway for some nice balance – and some his & hers sock and pj storage. Then the chair will probably go live in the corner to the left of the bed as you face it.
Oh and speaking of going but not matching, we like how Cape Carolina Canaveral Carolina Inn Club Aqua picks up the color of the duvet nicely too, without being perfectly plucked directly from the fabric itself (which we think could have been waaaaaay too much).
Actually, you can better see how saturated the walls are in this shot with the lights off (so it doesn’t read as yellow on camera). Oh and the walls/duvet look a bit more true to life here (see how they kind of work with each other without competing or looking too flat?).
And yes, that’s still our Christmas tree in the background. It’s on the list.
Anyway, it feels GREAT to have this room painted because it was a big leap towards making “the new house” feel like “our new house.” And consider us as having officially caught the painting bug. We’re thinking one of the big living spaces might be next. If only we could settle on a color…
Psst- We’re spilling one of our favorite money and space saving baby secrets over on BabyCenter. Oh yeah and there’s a video of Clara screaming over there too. Good times.
Sarah@StyleandCentsability says
Love it. I have a problem where I want to paint all our walls greens and blues or a combination of the two.
Our bedroom color is kinda similar:
http://styleandcentsability.wordpress.com/2010/06/02/before-and-after-master-bedroom/
Alie says
Loooong time lurker, first time commenting (so be gentle with me! :)
I was wondering with your bed placement – with a straight shot from the front door to your bedroom door, does it bug you that the bed is visible? Or do you just keep the bedroom door shut? I do think it was the only good option (like my opinion of your bed placement keeps you up at night!) – with the other walls having windows or the bathroom, it’s kinda the only place for it.
I was just curious if you ever think ‘man, i wish the bed wasn’t visible from our front door!’ or if you think, ‘man, our bed is so rockin, i love that everyone can see it!!’
YoungHouseLove says
Hey Alie,
Good question! We messed around with a ton of different placements for the bed and ultimately love the balanced look that it gives us there (you’re right about those off-centered windows on the other walls ruining it for us). We also love putting things that are long into a room longways (if that makes any sense at all). It just makes things feel more spacious, and placing the bed on either wall under an uncentered window wouldn’t just look unbalanced, it would have cut our long room in half instead of “working with it” as it does in this configuration. We thought we might mind the bed being visible from the front door, but we actually don’t at all. See, when someone rings the bell it’s not like they walk right in. We hear them and hop out of bed (if anyone’s in there, which isn’t usually the case anyway) or one of us let’s them in and the other one shuts the bedroom door. So no one can just drop by and peek int our bedroom or anything. And now that we have a big ol’ crush on Ed the Bed and our new duvet, we kind of love that when the bedroom’s all ready for visitor’s eyes, they can see it when they walk down that long hallway. It’s kinda like drama at the end of a very-boring (at least for now) walk from the front of the house to the back. Hope it helps!
xo,
s
Sheila Zeller says
I can’t wait to see the final decision on your mirror – you didn’t ask but I can’t resist – I would paint it white and blend it with the window trim. That way instead of the dark frame being the focal point, the one looking in the mirror is instead… in a very subliminal way!
YoungHouseLove says
Hey Sheila,
Done! Check out this link: https://www.younghouselove.com/2011/01/the-deed-is-done/
xo,
s
Stacia says
You honestly have the best taste in paint. I swooned over gentle tide for many a months, but my home depot’s color matching was off. I finally chose a BM color, but not without painting the room a different color first. You two always seem to choose just the right color from right off. Kudos to you. Love to watch the journey unfold!
sara says
if anyone is interested, i just noticed your west elm bedding is on ebay. One of them is at $25 and ends tomorrow I think. I didnt think it was a bad price.
YoungHouseLove says
That’s a great price! Thanks for sharing!
xo,
s
Susan says
This is so completely none-of-my-business, but I was just noticing in your current post that you look down the hall and into the side of Ed, the bed. I wonder if you could move the bed to the wall (with the window) so you could walk in and see the foot of Ed. Maybe a pretty chair with a table and lamp in that corner the you will see coming down the hall. :) I’m not sure Ed would fit over on that other wall…tried to see how much space was available in this post but couldn’t tell exactly. Anyway, just a little suggestion and again…totally none-of-my business. :) Don’t you love unsolicited advice?! :)
YoungHouseLove says
Hey Susan,
There are off-centered windows on the other two walls of the bedroom (and a sink on the fourth wall) so where Ed lives is the only spot that looks even remotely balanced. After having him there for a while, we actually love the placement (and the fact that we can peek in on him and see our beloved duvet from the hall). Hope it helps!
xo,
s
Susan says
Ohhh…I see. That does make sense now. :)
MelissaG says
Do you have any advice for people that are “gun shy” of painting woodwork? I would LOVE to paint the trim in our house…it’s a 60’s house and the woodwork is nothing exciting. Our 2 family that we own and lived in was from the 20’s and I would never dream of painting that beautiful wood but here I’d love to. My husband thinks it’s SIN to paint any wood! A few rooms are painted (kitchen, one bedroom, family room, 2 bathrooms but the rest aren’t. Do you ever wonder what happens if painted trim is “out” and plain wood is more desired? These are silly questions and I should just aim for what I would like to do…if only dh were on board!!
YoungHouseLove says
Hey Melissa,
Personally, we think life is too short to worry about what will be “in” or “our” in a few decades so we just believe in making your home a place you love. It’s definitely a personal preference thing that you should think long and hard about (since it’s not easy to undo) but we think white trim is just as timeless and classic as wood trim, so it’s just about what you like!
xo,
s
stacy says
Just saw this pillow and thought of your new duvet with the goldish tones and your sentimentality for bees… http://www.potterybarn.com/products/bee-pillow-covers/?pkey=cpatterned-striped-pillows might be a must add for the new bed!! =)
YoungHouseLove says
So cute!
xo,
s
Megan says
Hi John and Sherry,
I love the color of your room! I was trying to pick a color like this for my kitchen. I noticed the 2 samples at the bottom are Martha Stewart swatches. I’ve hung a few of hers in my kitchen. Can you tell me the names of those colors you were considering?
Thanks!
Megan
YoungHouseLove says
Hey Megan,
They’re Tidewater and Rainwater. So pretty! Good luck.
xo,
s
Deborah says
I went to Home Depot looking for the Martha Stewart “Rainwater” color swatch, but they said it didn’t exist. Is there somewhere else to find Martha Stewart colors? (They did have the Tidewater color swatch at Home Depot.) Thanks!
Deborah says
I found Rainwater online, so I’ll just order a sample that way. Thanks! :)
YoungHouseLove says
That’s so odd. We got it at our local Home Depot, so maybe some carry more colors than others? I’m stumped. I did just google it and it came up as MSL 120 if that helps. See more here: http://www.google.com/search?q=rainwater+martha+stewart&ie=utf-8&oe=utf-8&aq=t&rls=com.yahoo:en-US:official&client=firefox
xo,
s
Lissa says
Hi,
Just want an opinion. We have lived in our new place for a year now and the only rooms I haven’t painted are the powder room (had plans to follow your old stripy bathroom!) and the master bedroom. Since I have like 3-4 different colored bed covers (or to be replaced by future purchases) how do I look for that (neutral?) color to match the covers?
YoungHouseLove says
We’d just bring home a ton of neutral paint swatches and hold them up against all the bedding and go with the one that works best with all of them.
xo,
s
Sunny says
Hi guys I just came across your blog. Actually, I had seen the Before/After pics of the Master Bath on another blog but they didn’t give the source. I was wondering what the color paint was, and someone else said it was Rainwashed by SW. But I see you used Carolina Inn Club Aqua and agree the saturation is just right. At this time, I have gone through at least 99 different paint samples, but am leaning towards a little more blue. Can you please let me know what are the names of your paint swatches that look more bluish, the tall one in the middle, and the small swatch just over the light switch plate?
YoungHouseLove says
The middle tall one is Martha Stewart’s Rainwater (Tidewater is also in that blue family, so you might want to check it out). As for the small one above the light switch plate, so sorry but we don’t remember that one (and it has since been taken down to paint, etc) but another one to try might be Silver Sage by Restoration Hardware (it sounds like it should be green from the name but it’s definitely a blue-gray hue). Good luck!
xo,
s
Christianna says
I love your home and all of your wonderful ideas. Whst great inspiration! oh, and i love the color! The Carolina Inn is where we had our wedding reception, beautiful historic landmark in Chapel Hill, NC :)
YoungHouseLove says
Aw thanks Christianna! Love the history of it!
xo,
s
Jenn says
So, for weeks I’ve had my heart set on a cheery eye-catching aqua (think along the lines of Tiffany & Co blue), and have compared so many SWilliams and BMoore paint chips that I’m growing weary. It is for my little girl’s nursery, and she is due next week! I threw out all paint chips when I saw this picture of ‘Sweet Caroline Inn Club Aqua’ (my husband & I did that too) in your master. In your expert decorating opinion, do you think this color would work for a nursery? Your white bed looks great against it, and our crib is also white-that is what first caught my eye! I will be adding pops of light pink and white and a darker shade of teal.
Thank you :))
YoungHouseLove says
Oh yes, it would be gorgeous in a nursery! Good luck Jenn!
xo
s