It all started with the view above: in the corner right from our mantle that contains a working fireplace, I placed this FENCY plant rack. Every time I looked at it, it looked so messy, too small for that corner, and just not very cozy. This corner of our living room features our large Cubit sofa, the television, a Cubit sideboard, our little jungle with the tall Euphorbia and Strelitzia and some more cacti & succulents. And then this mantle and this strange corner. We decided not to use the fireplace for now, as we don’t need it for heating and I’m not looking forward to the mess of wood and ashes. So when I had a better look I realized this corner needed a bigger gesture: why not fill the space with some shelves and paint the mantle and the shelves in one color to make some kind of statement in the space. With some simple dressing board and thin wooden slabs I screw 5 shelves to the wall. The thin wooden slabs support the shelves, I didn’t screw them together, as the shelves are firmly in place, especially when there’s a bit of weight on them. Even when the five shelves were in place without paint, it already looked so much more in tune with the space:
See: the gesture is bigger, the shelves go up to the ceiling, there’s no small trellis that fills the corner next to the mantle. I’m already pretty pleased with this simple DIY solution.
But then: what color should I paint this area? I asked my community on Instagram and really all colors of the rainbow were suggested: Royal Blue, Lilac, Yellow, Pink, Peach, Olive Green, Grey, Petrol Blue, Mint Green, Mustard yellow, Burgundy, Raspberry Red, Terracotta Orange… My ideas were either a beautiful Matcha Green that I saw Susanne use in her gorgeous home, or something bright and yellow. And that’s where Lick Color Consultant Charlotte Cropper came to the rescue. During a Color Consultation via WhatsApp, we discussed different options. I showed her the space with plants on the right, the shelves on the left and how the light flows in. I mentioned that I didn’t want to add “another color” to our living room that is already quite colorful and busy. Also: I wanted to keep our living room as bright as possible because the light is so nice here. Charlotte’s suggestion was: a grey-ish light green. Either Green 01 or Green 09 from Lick. I ordered samples straight away and the choice was easy: Lick Green 01 was a clear winner. Their samples come in removable stickers that you can easily apply and re-apply, and they show the actual color of the paint very accurately. Then the fun part could start, or well, first the more boring but necessary part: filling all the holes and taping all the edges. Then I applied two layers of paint. After the first layer I was a little disappointed: was this too pastel-y, too light? But my opinion changed after the second coat: it looks actually pretty nice!
We decided to also replace the ugly plastic scrap boards that hide the fireplace stove with a wooden board that I painted in the same matt green 01. You can already see that in the previous blogpost about the Azalea Xmas Magic here. It looks so much better now and just like Charlotte suggested: the green of the foliage contrasts nicely with the light green walls and shelves and make the entire sofa area of the living room more intimate. Overall, I’m happy with the result! Depending on the light and time of the day, the green is more yellow, or more minty or more grey.
Of course I couldn’t resist filling the shelves with my watering can collection. I thought I’d have enough shelves to show them all, but as you can see, I could use a few more shelves 😉
Green 01 matt wall paint kindly provided by Lick.
