Spruce Up Your Home for the Holidays
With Paint and Color

The holiday season is here, bringing with it plenty of houseguests, parties and family photos. But before you bring out the tree or the menorah, think about first beautifying your walls with the latest color and decorative painting trends.

According to Debbie Zimmer, a color and decorating expert from The Rohm and Haas Paint Quality Institute, painting is an ideal way to give holiday decorating a fresh new twist.

“Painting is the number one do-it-yourself project because it’s fast, easy and relatively low cost,” says Zimmer. “That means that even with your busy holiday schedule, you can still fit in a painting project or two.”

The holidays are the perfect time to repaint rooms you’ve been meaning to freshen up all year. But even if you were not planning to paint, consider giving your home a holiday makeover.

Painting Projects, Great and Small
Before selecting a holiday painting project, Zimmer recommends that you think about how you prefer to decorate for the holidays. Do you spread your decorations throughout every room in the house? Or do you focus your efforts on the one or two rooms where your guests tend to spend the most time? Do you have a favorite spot to take a family photo for holiday greeting cards? The answers to these questions will help you think about how you can best use paint to help you set the mood for your holiday.

If you like to spread holiday cheer to every room in the house, consider using stamps and stencils as a quick and easy way to temporarily decorate the walls.

“This technique takes very little time to do, so you will be able to accomplish a great holiday look in many rooms,” Zimmer says.

Your local paint store, home center or craft store will have a wide selection of holiday motifs such as holly or other garland designs, wreaths and berries. When the holidays are over, you can simply paint over the designs and return your walls to their original state. (Be sure to have on hand plenty of paint that matches your original wall color. Redoing the entire wall will ensure uniformity.)

If one room in your house is “holiday central,” you may want to set a festive mood by choosing a unique color palette that works with window treatments, carpeting or other fixtures in the room.

“You may want to look to your favorite holiday heirlooms or even your china for inspiration in choosing colors,” Zimmer says.

If you are crunched for time, one of the fastest ways to decorate for the holidays is to focus on the area where you traditionally pose for a family portrait. This may be in a small area such as by the fireplace or front door. Depending on how much time you have, Zimmer says, you can use just stamps and stencils, or repaint the whole small area in a seasonal color palette to give it a festive new look. Best of all – you can show off your handiwork to all who receive your card!

Beyond Red and Green
When choosing paint colors, Zimmer says, think beyond the
traditional colors of the season.

“ Any color palette is appropriate for the holidays as long as it fits in with your taste and lifestyle,” Zimmer says.

Examine your own personal preferences and see how you can add a fresh twist for the holidays. For example, if you have stark white walls, consider adding soft pastel accents to create a serene environment that evokes thoughts of winter snow and ice. If your existing scheme is bolder and more modern, try integrating metallic tones, such as copper or bronze, for a contemporary and sparkling holiday look. You may also try one of the new decorative painting techniques such as sheen striping or color blocking. Visit http://www.paintquality.com/diy/
content/design_6.htm for step-by-step instructions.

For more decorating inspiration, visit The Rohm and Haas Paint Quality Institute online at www.paintquality.com You will find photos, tips and newsletters that will give you plenty of great ideas.