Light Green Living Room
Pale green walls are a classic choice for a cottage room. They can be nostalgic, edgy or everything in between. Paired with white, as in this airy room designed by Kim Niesz of Niesz Vintage Home, they are both fresh and charming.
Kim's room is built on the base of the pretty pale green wall color, in this case, "Sea Drops," by Glidden. With white and the additions of pink and yellow, it is a sweet combination reminiscent of 1930's quilts.
What Kim does brilliantly here is give this classic updated flair by pairing it with a modern blue and brown color scheme and adding unusual accessories and contemporary prints such as this crystal pendant lamp and the graphic blue and white curtains.
Overall, Kim has put together a room that is fresh yet welcoming, cozy yet stylish. When I talked to her about how she made her color choices, this is what she had to say:
What, if anything, inspired you to choose green for the room?
I have always considered green like a neutral. Love it. It seems to be the one color that creeps into every room in the house.
Did you consider any other colors before choosing this one?
Last year, before the housing market tanked, we were looking to sell this house, so I wanted to make the color scheme as neutral as possible. I choose a basic tan for the living and dining room. It was even called "Practical Tan." Well, after living with that color for two months, I was ready to throw myself under a bus. It was so depressing. I like tan walls in other homes, but I just couldn't live with it. It just seemed so drab. I needed something different. I wanted a fresh, clear green...nothing muted. I knew I would be using an ocean blue with it, so Sea Drops sounded like a good choice. At first, my husband thought it might be a little too pastel, but I really liked it. I think it allows the other colors to stand out. I love how the bright yellow of the vintage pillow adds a pop against the cool green.
Once you knew you were going to choose green, how did you pick this particular paint color?
I brought home many, many paint chips. I usually buy small pints or samples of several colors to see what they'll look like at different times of day, but I don't think I did that with this one. We painted the room, I liked it, and I was done. Of course, after the depressing tan, I think I would have welcomed just about any color!
All of your decor in here is so charming. Where did you find everything?
The couch and chair are from the Jaclyn Smith Home collection at Furniture Fair. The coffee table was a sale item from Value City furniture 15 yrs ago! It has been dark green, red, and now cottage white (how's that for stretching a dollar)? The crystal pendant is a recent find from the mall. Pillows are vintage fabrics from my collection paired with a green fabric by Waverly ($1.00/yard on clearance). The armoire is from my Grandma's attic. The windows are from an antique store in Brown county many years ago. The yo-yo quilt was a gift from my mother-in-law. And the best part, the drapes: I made them myself using the most wonderful linen fabric. It's a lovely ocean blue damask print linen by Chris Stone. I found it at Hobby Lobby on sale. Still expensive, but worth it.
There you have it. A charming, updated cottage classic. I hope you love it as much as I do!
About The Designer
Kimberly Niesz is a vintage fabric collector and dealer who creates a comfortable space in her tiny home by incorporating pieces of the past in new ways. Her business, Niesz Vintage Fabric specializes in unused vintage fabrics (barkcloth, chintz, and quilting cottons) from the 1930's-1960's, but also carries vintage linens, feedsacks, trims, buttons, and curtains. You can find her at her shop, Niesz Vintage Fabric or at her blog, Niesz Vintage Home.
Photos in this article are Copyright ©2008 Kimberly Niesz and are used by permission.
Comments (20)
This is a beautiful room! This green is very similar to the color I used in my daughter's room, only hers is a little more pale. I think it's such a soothing color. I've never seen her blog, so I'll have to check it out.
I really enjoyed all your comments tonight. I was beginning to think I was the only AI fan!
Looking forward to your "yellow" theme!
Posted by Mrs. B | April 26, 2008 12:00 AM
Posted on April 26, 2008 00:00
What a beautiful room. How are things going with your house Angela?
Posted by Jodie | April 26, 2008 2:13 AM
Posted on April 26, 2008 02:13
Oh Angela! Thank you so much for your kind words!
The article is so nice, I think it will make a great series. Thank you for including me and my little home. :)
I can't wait for the Yellow themed week.
Kimberly :)
Posted by Niesz Vintage Home | April 26, 2008 5:28 AM
Posted on April 26, 2008 05:28
I've been visiting Kimberly's blog for sometime now and have always loved her style! Great series!
Manuela
Posted by The feathered Nest | April 26, 2008 6:13 AM
Posted on April 26, 2008 06:13
I love green. And I love the shade she used. Thanks for this beautiful inspirational post.
I want to paint my kitchen and I go back and forth between a green like that and a french provence-ish blue. I'll never decide.
Posted by Emily | April 26, 2008 6:33 AM
Posted on April 26, 2008 06:33
My daughter wants to paint her room green and I was unsure about it. Thank you so much for this post! It changed my mind and now I'm excited to paint it green!
Posted by Cindy ~ My Romantic Home | April 26, 2008 6:59 AM
Posted on April 26, 2008 06:59
My daughter wants to paint her room green and I was unsure about it. Thank you so much for this post! It changed my mind and now I'm excited to paint it green!
Posted by Cindy ~ My Romantic Home | April 26, 2008 7:00 AM
Posted on April 26, 2008 07:00
Hee hee, it's kind of funny you posted this article - we painted our livingroom light green about 2 years ago and we ended up not liking it so well because it's feeling too bland. I think it works for more subdued decorating, but with all the monster art in our livingroom, we're going to need to punch it up a lot! I think I'm giving up on any semblance of respectability and just going to start getting even more goofy with out decorating.
Posted by Renee | April 26, 2008 8:33 AM
Posted on April 26, 2008 08:33
I love the green!!!!! I painted my living room green this past year. Grasslands by Kelly Moore. I cried when it was done because it was so beautiful. I'm going to get a swatch of this shade of green for one of my bedrooms. I agree, a green wall makes everything look great.
Posted by Anonymous | April 26, 2008 12:34 PM
Posted on April 26, 2008 12:34
I love the green!!!!! I painted my living room green this past year. Grasslands by Kelly Moore. I cried when it was done because it was so beautiful. I'm going to get a swatch of this shade of green for one of my bedrooms. I agree, a green wall makes everything look great.
Posted by Miss Jean | April 26, 2008 12:35 PM
Posted on April 26, 2008 12:35
I'm just about to start painting my living room. It will be a color green about the third one down on your chart. I have a salmon couch and oak woodwork. I'll have an Victorian style area rug. I can't wait to see the change!!
Posted by Jane Marie | April 26, 2008 1:49 PM
Posted on April 26, 2008 13:49
What a beautiful color!! I love that green!
Posted by Katie | April 26, 2008 4:28 PM
Posted on April 26, 2008 16:28
What fun, I love reading Kimberly's blog and what a nice interview! xo, suzy
Posted by suzy | April 26, 2008 7:54 PM
Posted on April 26, 2008 19:54
Love Kim's cottage home & this green is just perfect for her space. I love it all, esp. those damask drapes. I'd love to have some of those myself.
Congrats Kim!
Rhoda
Posted by Rhoda | April 27, 2008 2:37 PM
Posted on April 27, 2008 14:37
Angela,
I love the the room and write up. The green is so much more inviting than the tan was and fits the style of the room perfectly.
I'll look forward to seeing more inspiration rooms as you continue this new series. Well done!
~Kate
Posted by Kate | April 28, 2008 1:41 PM
Posted on April 28, 2008 13:41
She has done a lovely job! Thanks for featuring her!
Posted by melissa @ the inspired room | May 3, 2008 8:09 AM
Posted on May 3, 2008 08:09
Ooooh...please, just mail the color samples to me! It is so difficult to get the color right with green, for me anyway. The lighting and reflection off other colors in the room make my greens look rather sickly or too minty or blue. Sigh. These pages you are sharing are so lovely. Thanks. :O)
Posted by Kim | May 7, 2008 7:29 PM
Posted on May 7, 2008 19:29
so beautiful! i love green, thanks so much for sharing!! :)
Posted by Ashley | May 24, 2008 5:25 PM
Posted on May 24, 2008 17:25
Wow, what a beautiful room! I agree, the green is so much better than the tan. The before and after pictures reaffirm my living room colour choice of light golden yellow instead of tan.
Posted by Jo | May 25, 2008 4:18 PM
Posted on May 25, 2008 16:18
It is so much prettier in the green version. I love that color green against all the white.
Posted by Elisabeth | May 25, 2008 7:52 PM
Posted on May 25, 2008 19:52