Cindy from Miami contacted me to help her choose colours for her kitchen cabinets in her weekend home in the Florida Keys (I am virtually in Florida a lot, and it is a colourful place!). Their beach house overlooks John Pennekamp State Park which contains the only living coral reef park in North America. I thought the exterior was so pretty I asked if I could share the colour with you and here it is along with the views from her weekend home.
Here it is without the balconies in the setting sun.
Interior Design by James RadinCindy chose Benjamin Moore ‘White Dove’ for the entire interior (below) and this was her inspiration photo. However the Carrara is much whiter and grayer than the creamy cabinets pictured above. The reason why it works in this case is because the white is repeated in the subway tile and the cabinet colour extends into the walls and ceilings. If the backsplash was cream as well the Carrara would look totally out of place. Personally, I think even ‘Cloud White’ is too creamy for Carrara countertops.
Love this floor she chose, very beachy and timeless in my opinion.
Such a calm and serene place to get away for the weekend!
687 Annapolis Green by Benjamin Moore (Photos by Cindy)Now that exterior season is officially here, I have a few more exteriors from last year that I’ll post as well to help you choose your colours! If you are painting your house this year, make sure you read this post to get the scoop on testing your colours accurately and you can always contact me for an on-line consultation if you get stuck.
If you are painting your exterior this year, which colour will you choose?
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What a lovely soft weathered green – perfect for a beach house. I'd love to be looking at that view too! Gorgeous.
Pretty color but don't you think it looks too washed out in full sun?
Soft and serene, I can picture great outdoor spaces with fab furniture and coordinating fabrics to go with the Annapolis Green.
Come over (all of your blog friends) and enter my very Fashionable Giveaway starting on Friday!
xoxo
Karena
Art by Karena
Maria– What a special place. You will have to show the "after".
Loretta
What a peaceful place and that green is sooo gorgeous..so soft and restful.
I used Annapolis Green in the bedroom of my current house, as well as in the apartment I previously lived in. It is beautiful and restful and looks great as an exterior color, as well. Thanks for sharing!
beautiful color, have you ever used it for an interior? you know how some colors work on the exterior, but bring them in and they look wrong?
I love these photos of the beach house and of Florida. We lived in Vero Beach for a year and it was very much like living 'on vacation'. :o) The flora and fauna are so dramatic there!
I've always wanted to decorate 'cottage' style but it didn't seem to make sense out here. (Although a neighbor is doing it and had no qualms about it. LoL!)
The color on the exterior is just perfect in my opinion. We stayed in a gorgeous beach home in Galveston, compliments of some friends. It was stunning on the inside (looked like a magazine. You would have ADORED it! Fresh colors..mod furnishings… immaculately decorated but designed with guests in mind.)and it looked very similar on the outside to your photo. We have some fabulous beach houses in Galveston.
(I say we..because Galveston sort of 'belongs' to anyone within driving distance.) Your post was like a mini-vacation, Maria..or should I say Cindy's photos? But still, thanks so much for sharing them. Great pick on the color!
xo
Donna
PS. I love that floor too!
Maria, I just had to mention something while I'm at it. Your post titles are just amazing! Too bad I'm only posting weekly. I don't get to work on that. I haven't figured out a solution for a weekly format.
But your post titles are a work of art! I KNOW you must put a lot of thought into them. They sparkle and pop!
{{hugs}}
Donna :o)
Absolutely lovely….and what fun it must have been…thank you for the tips!….smiles.
Jennifer J in Hawaii has left a new comment on your post "Carrara Marble for your Kitchen; Yay or Nay?":
A few notes from someone who has 3 little kids and who cooks a LOT who has carrara:
1. Some notes about ETCHING/STAINING: I have polished since the slabs here only came polished and I figured I'd save the $1000 that it'd cost to hone them until after I'd done some years of damage and possibly had to sell the house. YES they etch very easily as well as scratch. I don't seem to notice the discoloration as much as the etching, so I agree that if you hone it that would help a TON. I cut a lot of pineapple and the juice that runs off the cutting board etches the carrara in about 20 minutes if I haven't caught it. Same with anything else acidic (tomato sauce, OJ, etc.) You can't see it though unless you look at it on an angle, and with the pattern of the grey most people don't notice it anyway. I also mostly just use one area for food prep and the opposite side looks great and doesn't see much wear and tear.
2. Some notes about COLOUR Matching: take Maria's advice!!!! Hold a few paint samples (large if possible) up to the actual slab you'll be using. Anything Creamy looks BAD with carrara. It looks dirty next to it. Maybe something creamy would work with Calacatta depending on the slab.
3. If you want to see Calacatta in action, go to any Williams-Sonoma store. They use it a lot on their countertops. That actually dissuaded me from the Calacatta because there is so much milky white and not enough other color that I could CLEARLY see all the scratches and marks all over it. The carrara hides these much better!!!!
4. Carrara pairs really well with ABSOLUTE BLACK granite and also some SOAPSTONES. So I ended up just putting Carrara on the big center island and the ABlack on the areas around the stovetop and perimeter. That way the heavy duty areas could take a beating on the granite while the showpiece island could look beautiful.
Even my husband is SO happy we have it. It makes me so happy to see it when I look at my kitchen. We are both Type-A perfectionists and the etching isn't too bad for us!
Enjoy!
ps. I thought I'd include this comment on this post as it applies to my comments on the creamy cabinets
beautiful floor!
amazing! what manufacturer is it?