Remember last week when I was struggling with wanting to add color to my boring hallway? Well, I did! And my budget was $0. Lucky I have a lot of paint in my closet and supplies left over from other projects. I used what I had on hand.
And I love it! I want to hug it and kiss it. I want to pull up a chair in the middle of the hallway and just stare. BUT. . . .
(Yep. There is a but. A big but. J Lo big. We will get to that later.)
Here she is!!!!
This picture frame was my great grandma’s. Don’t freak out. It wasn’t some priceless heirloom. It was plastic. Ha! Kinda funny huh?
This photo makes me happy :) How can you look at sunshine and NOT be happy.
Are you dying yet???!?!!? I love the yellow, off white, and peacock blue together! And that stencil?? AMAZING! I got of from one of my favorite sponsor’s ever, Cutting Edge Stencils. It is called Alessa Scroll. I will get into the whole stenciling experience later. I learned a few more things this time around.
I was only going to glaze the corbel (The shelf thing the topiary is on) but you know me. . . I start glazing and can’t seem to stop!
Now for the low down on stenciling this time around. I opened the paint and it was super thin. Almost watery. I also had a really nasty cheap roller from a certain store that will rename nameless ( it rhymes with Call Bart). It was like one of those foam hair curlers you use to have to sleep in as a kid. Yeah. Anyway, cheap roller plus thin paint make for one hot mess. I learned you can’t skimp on the roller. I went over my budget of ZERO by about $5.00 to go get a nice roller.
But I still had thin paint. I was racking my brain about what to do when it hit me. I had won a box of Deco Art paints and mediums awhile back and I knew I had seen a thickening medium in there. Sure enough! It totally saved the day. 
(source)
I also loved that the Alessa Scroll stencil design was more forgiving that the damask I had used for my bedroom. It was still a pattern but it came off more random. I was “off” in some spots but didn’t stress too much because even I couldn’t tell. If you need anymore stenciling tips you can visit the Cutting Edge site. They will also have how to videos soon :)
Alright, now for the BUT.
I love it. I really do. The problem is that it does not mesh with the rest of the decor upstairs. At all. My plan A was to stencil tone on tone. Heirloom White over white. That way there was a pattern but that it was still neutral.
But I got a free sample quart of Peacock Blue from Glidden and lost all rational thought!!! I LOVE LOVE LOVE color. And in my defense I had lived with a beige hall for 4 years. It is like being on a diet for a long time and someone waving a chocolate bar in front of you. You will eat it. You will eat it ALL.Even if you know it is not good for you.
So while the hallway is fabulous and colorful, it is going to have to change. Don’t worry though. I will re-do the design somewhere else. It just can’t be in the hallway that connects to all the rooms upstairs. That has to be more neutral. And I already have a plan. . .
Oh yeah, and that corbel? I made it! It cost me $0 since I used scrap wood. I have a tutorial that I will be sharing later.
So have you ever gone against what you knew was the right decorating choice because of temptation? Or have you ever had a design dilemma???
First, it looks amazing! I love that you framed a flower. What a fun idea. Second… yes I have quite a few design dilemmas in my house. First is my entry way. It’s a gray color that I actually kind of like, but that hall leads up the stairs and into my super dark hallway with no windows which makes medium gray look positively depressing. So if I paint one… do I have to paint the other? Where do I change colors? you get the idea. love the blue though!
I am in LOVE! It’s absolutely stunning!
I am so glad you did it! You’ve got my mind twirling with possibilities for my hallway….
:)
xoxo
it looks beautiful. the colors are perfect together! i wish i had the patience to stencil.
I love it! Hello, new to you blog and I’ll be back to snoop around a bit for some great ideas. Thanks for all the inspiration.
Lesa
I can’t begin to tell you how much I LOVE those colors! The stencil is perfect. I’m in love!!
As always, AH-MAZ-ING! Love it all!
WOW..nice job! I never thought of doing anything that exciting to my hallway! I really love the colors you picked and the stencil blows my mind! Your blog is so fun and i hope to copy some of your ideas when ever I get some time:)
I love the colors, but from what I can see of the other rooms in the pictures, you’re right–it just doesn’t mesh. That stencil if GREAT, though, so I think you should just use it again, but with a more subdued color.
Oh, no you DIDN’T! :) It looks WONDERFUL!!! I would have liked the tone-on-tone too, but I am totally loving that blue. And your yellow accents really tie it together with your entryway. I am so impressed that 1. you stenciled that whole thing, and 2. you did it without your DH putting the ki-bash on it, lol! I would have had to do it under the cover of darkness to avoid the “raised eyebrows,” ha ha.
I absolutely love this!!! It is great!!! You are awesome! I love your style! I love the blue in the hallway- too bad it isn’t staying long :(
I have a question… I have a plastic frame like that oval one you painted and I have been wanting to spray paint it and glaze it like that, but I didn’t know if the glaze worked with the plastic?? So now that I have seen you do it- I got the bug back and totally wanna do it too! If you get a second, would you mind emailing me and letting me know what products you used to do it??? Thanks a million!
xoxo, Ashley J @ mommybydaycrafterbynight.blogspot.com
Oh my goodness it is gorgeous! I especially love that corbel, I can’t believe you made it!
I love it Stacy! You’re so amazing. I don’t think you necessarily need to change it. I’m definitely the farthest thing from a design expert but I think it’s fine to have different things in different spaces. I seriously love it!
Um…wow! Love it! That peacock blue is popping up allover blog world!! …and it’s mesmerizing!! Can’t wait to find the perfect place for it in my house….ooooo…I thin I just had an idea!
Your hallway is a masterpiece! I love it! The color you chose is amazing. Great job!
Angela
Don’t change it, I LOVE IT!!!
Gorgeous! Gorgeous! Your stenciled wall is amazing!
Jo-Anna
Very beautiful! I love the colors and patterns. It says “Happy”. thanks for sharing, your hard work paid off.
With a gorgeous peacock blue, who cares about neutrals?! It looks amazing!
It looks great!
The hallway is beautiful! I am especially in love with the yellow accents. I am redoing a bedroom right now and I bought a can o yellow paint to paint the bed, end table, bookends, and anything else that I can that will be going into the room. The walls are a gray with a slight green cast. Thank you for being brave and going for it!
Oh, I love it!! I think that you should change the rest of the house to match the hallway. When I bought my house last year I thought that I should decorate according to how the house spoke to me. And, with the warm gold exterior and Italian Cypress trees, it told me “Tuscan”. Although I think that it was the right choice for the house I am bored to tears in it. My splashes of color include an orange accent wall in the kitchen and a green accent wall in the bedroom. Oh, how I wish for hot pink or even peacock blue somewhere!
Oh. My. Word. I am in LOVE! Great work!! Definitely worth the wait! ;)
This is stunning! I am a new follower and blogger…I’m so happy to have found your site :-)
Don’t change it!!! It’s so pretty. I love the color combination of the peacock blue and yellow!
I love that you made a pass-through space (hallway) really special!
Love your hallway makeover!
I think it looks awesome, please don’t change it, even if it doesn’t quite mesh with everything else. Let it be that breath of fresh air from room to room upstairs. Let it be that place that always makes you smile when you see it. Don’t change it!!
PS – I loved your Studio 5 piece from July, your BHG picture, and the shout out from Minwax. You are so awesome and I’m glad you’re getting some recognition from it all!!
I think it looks fantastic!!! I love the blue and yellow together!!!
Tiffani
thoughtsfromtiffani.blogspot.com
Hi, Stacy! Saw your corbel on Creating My Way To Success. it is a-mazing – what a fabulous tutorial! Congrats on Better Homes – how cool is that?!
I think it is gorgeous Stacy!! But, I completely understand your problem. It’ll be so sad to paint over all that hard work. :(
And YES, to your question. I’ve made decorating decisions MANY times that in my heart I knew wouldn’t work but I kept telling myself that it would work because I loved it. Well, loving it by itself certainly doesn’t make it work with everything else you love too. :)
That’s the hardest part about blogging and reading blogs!!! There are SOOO many styles I love. Sooo many trends I love. But I have to keep telling myself I can’t try them all.
LOVE THE HALLWAY REVEAL. GREAT JOB, GREAT COLORS. thanks for your help too. jen
As my son would say, “Wait, what?”
I love it. It’s fabulous. Why change it? Do you live in one of those communities where you can’t do anything without permission? ” No red curtains? No lawn ornaments? ” kind of community? Of course, I don’t really know what your house looks like, but couldn’t you live with this for a while, just to enjoy it? You did a beautiful job.
What if you put a glaze over it to mute it, but let the stenciling show through?
Thanks for the tip on the thickener. I may need that some day.
Wow, that is lovely, much better than I could ever do :)
LOVE THIS. Love the colors..love the stencil. It’s beautiful.:)
LOVE it! Those colors are all beautiful together.
Mary Engelbreit would be so proud of you for adding all the color and pattern to your home! I love it, don’t change it for awhile. You just might like it!
Wow! I love the blue and yellow together! It turned out great! You have been a busy girl and it has paid off! Great job Stacy!!
Love the wallpaper, the color combos….everything! Following your blog now.I would love for you to show this off at my Wickedly Crafty Saturdays! Linky is still up & running. http://wiccanmakesometoo.blogspot.com/2011/08/wickedly-crafty-saturdays-81311.html
I’m so in love with this beautiful hallway. The blue & yellow are so captivating. And I love how resourceful you’ve been with the tight budget issue. YOU ROCK!
Warmly, Michelle
It looks gorgeous!
Stacy,
I had no idea that you have been up to so many amazing things lately. I have been memorized for almost an hour and a half reading your blog. I just wanted to write you a quick note to let you know how awesome I think this is and also how proud I am that you are doing what you love even with all the craziness that being a mother can be. Anyways I can’t wait to read more. Thanks for your inspiration.
Kami Hindes