Kat Robbins Interiors Loves "Green" Paints

    
If some TV show knocked on my door with a sustainable design challenge and allowed me to choose one product to use to transform a space, it would be paint. No contest.

But the sustainable-ness of paint goes way beyond no VOCs. It is the most versatile tool in your repertoire for low cost, high impact change. Here are some great ways to use paint to update and improve your space without hiring a professional.

First and most obviously:

---Walls: A fresh coat in a new color can feel transformative. Take a look at design magazines, retail catalogs and paint store color forecasts for trends that will bring your room up to date. An accent wall that pulls color from a bold accessory, pillow or piece of art will draw attention and add interest.

Next, get on all fours:

--Floors: Tired, scratched and damaged hardwood floors? No worries. Clever use of durable, semi-gloss paint can bring new life and color to your floor. All kinds of patterns can be employed to create the look you want. Wide stripes can trick the eye to make a space look bigger, a painted tromp l’oeil rug suggests an intimate seating area or start some drama with large checkerboard squares. Be sure to clean floors thoroughly, sand and prime before painting. Then, go crazy with your design. You won’t have the expense of replacing floors or the environmental impact either.

Start sanding:

--Furniture: This is an area where you will need to be a little bit handy. But once you do some basic prep, you can turn flea market finds into super cool stuff you’ll never get tired of. And if you do, you can always repaint it. An outdated double dresser from your childhood bedroom can end up as a high drama sideboard in your dining room. Reusing furniture is a great sustainable practice.

Be sure to sand all surfaces and remove hardware. Remove drawers. Wipe your whole piece down with tack cloth. Prime with the most adhesive primer you can get your hands on that is still low VOC. Some ideas for high style looks: very glossy black or white paint, metallics, drawers a different color from frame, modern hardware, stripes, hand painted accents (birds, leaves, etc.) Be sure to allow several days for paint to cure before replacing drawers.

There are now several green and sustainable paints and finishes available on the market. Even traditional paint companies are making "green" paints.  Below is just a list of a few green products. Visit Superior Woodcraft’s Blog for links to many more green finishes and other resources. Loof for the resource links on the left side of the blog.

Links:

Mythic Paint
Milk Paint
American Clay
Vermont Natural Coatings
Sherwin Williams
Benjamin Moore
Valspar

This article was submitted by Kathryn Robbins of Kat Robbins Interiors.

Kat Robbins Interiors
610-291-4220
Wayne, PA 19087

Source:
Superior Woodcraft, Inc.
Superior Woodcraft Blog