National Painting Week: The Office Reveal (+ a Giveaway)

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I did it. I created an accent wall that I love that doesn’t feel tacky or cliche, but that still packs a punch. In this case the key was choosing two muted hues as well as embracing my love of geometry. But let’s back up for a minute and check out the before photos of my home office.

 

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The bare basics and oh so boring. A small Parsons style desk, office chair, filing cabinets to hide supplies, and artwork that has yet to find a home. Of course no room would be complete without a wayward throw rug, yes? As I mentioned in my last post, the walls had been painted a greyish white and that’s about all I’d done in this space since moving into my house last September.

 

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Before charting out the diagonal accent wall I’d settled upon, I gathered a length of rope and a few thumbtacks. The first step was maneuvering myself up to the tippy-top of my ladder to reach the high ceiling, where I tacked the rope in the upper corner. (No small feat for this 5’2″ girl.) I drew it taut as I pulled down to the opposing corner and tacked a few places along the way for reinforcement, then followed the line it created with painter’s tape. My (mad) method ensured a straight line, which is oh so important if you’re the OCD type like me who might obsess over any imperfections later on.

 

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It took two coats of SW 7110 Cosmetic Blush in my favorite Sherwin-Williams combo, the Emerald line in a satin finish. I’ve used this tag team on my last four painting projects and love it. Once the second coat was on I removed the tape by pulling away at an angle for a super crisp line. (A pro tip is to always remove painter’s tape while the paint is still slightly wet.) The low VOCs made the smell of paint non-existent, so with a small crack of the window I was able to start working in my office almost immediately.

 

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If you noticed, I turned my plan for a diagonal accent wall into more of an accent corner! I didn’t plan on it beforehand, but once I started taping things off it just felt right. So I went with it. The end result feels a bit like a pink beam of light shining on my workspace, which has been an especially welcome presence on overcast days.

 

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I relocated my desk to the newly painted wall and kept things simple with a brass lamp and fresh flowers. (Trust me, that desk will be cluttered in no time.) The project as a whole took just around two hours spread over two days. I have a few more pieces of furniture to add before the office is 100% complete, but this refresh is perfect for the immediate future!

 

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For the past three years I’ve teamed up with Sherwin-Williams to mark National Painting Week. Together we’ve tackled the front door and hall bath at my old home, and now my office. Each project wasn’t huge as a whole, but made such a positive change in my space.

Visit the National Painting Week site and see what other bloggers are doing to update and celebrate! Leave a comment below sharing if you have plans to switch up an area in your home for National Painting Week for a chance to win $100 from Sherwin-Williams. Giveaway ends May 17th at midnight EST.

I received product and compensation from Sherwin-Williams in return for this post. Thank you for supporting the brands that support Design Crush!

48 Comments
  • Susie

    May 11, 2015 at 2:12 am Reply

    Now that I know that it’s National Painting Week, I’ll have to get on my redecoration of my living room!

  • Colleen Boudreau

    May 11, 2015 at 3:39 am Reply

    I plan on re-painting my bathroom.

  • courtney

    May 11, 2015 at 8:02 am Reply

    We are in the process of repainting our whole house!

  • dianne a.

    May 11, 2015 at 8:31 am Reply

    I am in the planning stage of choosing paint colors to get the dark colors out of my home. Your ray of light is going into my office, too. What a great idea.

  • Jacky

    May 11, 2015 at 9:14 am Reply

    Oh my gosh, I love how that corner turned out!

  • Mami2jcn

    May 11, 2015 at 9:34 am Reply

    I’d like to paint my daughter’s room.

  • Amy

    May 11, 2015 at 10:27 am Reply

    We are planning to do an accent wall in our office with some leftover teal/turquoise paint. But this looks so much more fresh… you’re making me reconsider!

  • Jordan Troublefield

    May 11, 2015 at 11:03 am Reply

    Even with a subtle color palette your project made a huge impact! LOVE!

    I plan on painting the window panes on my back porch. Trying to gussy up the outdoor living space for summer time!

  • Laura

    May 11, 2015 at 1:00 pm Reply

    I would love to add a cool blue or mint green accent to the arched doorways in my home..SW Belize is dreamy!

  • Kate

    May 11, 2015 at 1:10 pm Reply

    We are slowly redoing almost the entire house! Painting the bathroom and dining room are next on the list…

  • Cindy

    May 11, 2015 at 6:53 pm Reply

    For a summer project, I would like to spruce up the walls in my home! Lovely paint idea that you have there-never seen anything like that!

  • Ellen Allen

    May 11, 2015 at 7:09 pm Reply

    we had to gut our whole house so we have to paint every room in our house 🙁

  • emilee

    May 11, 2015 at 7:37 pm Reply

    Since summer break is starting, I’ve promised the children we would do some work in their bedrooms. My oldest is over her pink ceiling — that will be a chore! And I think it’s the furniture in the youngest’s room that need attention.

  • Lea Anna

    May 11, 2015 at 7:55 pm Reply

    I have some furniture I’d like to change up with paint. Great job in your room, the accent it the prefect touch without being over the top!

  • Kelly D

    May 11, 2015 at 8:21 pm Reply

    I have plans to switch up our computer room. We are putting down hard wood floors and will paint it, and we will eventually get new furniture.

  • Anna V

    May 11, 2015 at 8:56 pm Reply

    Such a great idea! I love the colors you chose. Thanks for the inspiration. We are moving into a new rental and I plan on using paint to add our taste to it. I think I may do something very similar!

  • Leilani

    May 11, 2015 at 11:41 pm Reply

    I’d love to repaint my living room. Thanks for the giveaway!

  • Anne Weber-Falk

    May 12, 2015 at 8:33 am Reply

    We are moving in the very near future and I have plans to switch up quite a few areas in the new place. I’m kind of excited and very inspired by all the things I see out there.

  • Susan

    May 12, 2015 at 9:24 am Reply

    My daughter is moving to a new place in DC and I’m sure we’ll have to do some painting–love Sherwin Williams paint!

  • Kristen

    May 12, 2015 at 8:14 pm Reply

    Yes…I think I’m finally ready for some color on my bedroom walls.

  • Neiddy

    May 13, 2015 at 1:51 am Reply

    I’d like to paint my master bedroom

  • Cynthia B

    May 13, 2015 at 12:26 pm Reply

    This turned out great! Subtle, yet it shouts out an invite to come sit in this corner!

  • Elise

    May 13, 2015 at 12:26 pm Reply

    My husband and I just bought our first house…so I’m definitely planning on switching up a LOT in this house. I like white walls and the previous owner liked ALL COLOR.

  • Tera

    May 13, 2015 at 12:36 pm Reply

    We are in the process of redoing our entire (newly purchased) first home. Currently we are working on the master bathroom and close but every room in the house is getting a makeover.

  • Tamara

    May 13, 2015 at 12:45 pm Reply

    Been looking to repaint my home office. These pictures are inspiring! And love Sherwin-Williams colors!

  • Jen

    May 13, 2015 at 1:58 pm Reply

    I have big plans to paint the ceiling of our front porch the perfect shade of Taint Blue (as we live in Savannah and that’s what you do down here).

  • Leslie

    May 13, 2015 at 2:15 pm Reply

    I love the Beaver Falls Sherwin William’s store! They know me by name and have helped me with everything from painting trees down my hallway to wallpapering my daughters play room. I’m ready to bring on the next project with some help from Sherwin Williams!

  • Trisha

    May 13, 2015 at 3:11 pm Reply

    We have a large amount of knotty pine paneling in our living room that I am going to paint a soft white. I keep putting it off because it is a big paint job but it will totally change the feel of our whole downstairs!

  • Megan C.

    May 13, 2015 at 4:56 pm Reply

    I want to paint my attic bedroom (a soothing blue) so I can finally move in to it!

  • Ashley Rhoads

    May 13, 2015 at 5:26 pm Reply

    We’re renovating our second floor to relocate our two kids’ rooms. A horse theme for my daughter and a space theme for my son. Should be pretty cool and require plenty of paint!

  • David

    May 13, 2015 at 5:28 pm Reply

    We have an extra bedroom in our home that we are going to convert into a playroom for our kids. Painting is at the top of the list.

  • Christina Z

    May 13, 2015 at 7:16 pm Reply

    I want to paint my dining room and bathrooms.

  • Sarina

    May 13, 2015 at 10:40 pm Reply

    Just adore the Cosmetic Blush colour with the grey – pink and grey my all time favourite combination

  • Opal Baker

    May 14, 2015 at 9:14 am Reply

    After 10 years,my dining room has become boring.I like several ideas about painting walls that would liven it up.

  • Ron

    May 14, 2015 at 9:29 am Reply

    I’m painting my media room for National Painting Week 🙂

  • brooke @ claremont road

    May 14, 2015 at 10:31 am Reply

    I’ve been dying to paint my home office for a while now. Right now it’s a sad office/guest room that has never had any attention paid to it!

  • Aaron Bolzle

    May 14, 2015 at 11:50 am Reply

    My living room is lime green… and not the good kind. The trim is faux dark mahogany. The Art Deco wall sconces are painted gold. It’s been like this since I moved in over four years ago. It is time I fix this. Gold sconces!!!

  • Ashley C

    May 14, 2015 at 9:57 pm Reply

    We’re planning to paint our half bathroom soon, I can’t wait!

    demureprincess7(at)gmail(dot)com

  • Laura J

    May 15, 2015 at 4:46 pm Reply

    I love what you did! That is so pretty! I would love to repaint my bathroom! I want to use two different colors somehow….so I have been looking for ideas!

  • Stacy

    May 15, 2015 at 6:01 pm Reply

    This is SO pretty! I love the soft, subtle shade of pink, and the angle from the corner is really cool. I just painted our office all white, to cover up a ugly shade of brown. We’re renting, so sticking with basic white is good enough for me!

  • Alison

    May 15, 2015 at 10:14 pm Reply

    We’re moving into a new apartment at the end of the month and have permission to paint! I can’t wait to get rid of the drab beige for something more serene and modern.

  • Denise

    May 16, 2015 at 12:34 am Reply

    Our kitchen needs to be painted badly!

  • Nicki J.

    May 16, 2015 at 1:11 am Reply

    I would love to paint our bathroom a fun color

  • carlotta

    May 16, 2015 at 7:29 am Reply

    I am going to paint my entryway and do a stencil.

  • Susan Christy

    May 17, 2015 at 11:50 pm Reply

    Finally – after 3 years in my house – I’m going to paint my living room!

  • painting my house

    May 26, 2015 at 4:01 pm Reply

    the diagonal accent really brings out some character in the room. looks great

  • Lilly G

    April 16, 2018 at 12:31 pm Reply

    What color gray did you use on the walls and what color is the trim? Very lovely.

    • Kelly

      April 16, 2018 at 1:04 pm Reply

      The grey was a custom color match and the trim what was already painted the particular white when I moved in. Sorry to not be of much help!

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