I want to brighten up my apartment
by
Susan
+10
Ok...the issues: smallish apartment, plentiful windows but VERY shady. Walls and ceilings are painted that typical dingy beige color but this paint is older and seriously dingy. Yuck! To make matters worse, the carpet is almost the same dingy color. I seriously need to brighten things up but need to remain rather neutral. I thought of leaving ceiling color and going with a much lighter tone of beige?? Main LR color is plaid sofa in deep jewel tones. Help me. This dingy (ness) is depressing.
Related Discussions
Suggested Project Book
When I was renting I used liquid clothing starch to adhere beautifully patterned sheets to my walls - all you need is the starch, a sheet, a squeegee and a second set of hands, and it strips off without leaving a mark all in one piece - no horrible wallpaper stripping - just wash the starch off and done!
Paint ceiling 'ceiling white', Walls a satin finish buttery cream or a cream with hint of pink(makes things glow), I hate wall mirrors but a grouping of mirrors is a nice soution to reflection of light. Floors, either professionally clean carpet or remove/replace with either a really light or a darker neutral so your 'things' stand up off the foor. Use some accent throws, etc that match wall color, that will make room look bigger and coordinated. Stay away from too much texture/patterns as they visually shrink the space.
Love the suggestions so far. I prefer warm white paint over beige for a brighter look. Btw, a picture would help to get our creative juices flowing! Here's a similar conversation that you might find helpful as well! https://www.hometalk.com/diy/living-room/q-does-anyone-have-any-suggestions-about-how-i-could-brighten-up-this-ro-21933271
How could I brighten up this room?
https://www.pinterest.com/explore/brighten-room/
What about a greige (gray-beige)? It sounds dingy but actual brightens up a room a lot.
We have had a similar problem. The one thing that made the biggest difference to a shady room was painting the ceiling white. It was light blue previously. Depending on how neutral you want to be there is a Behr paint from Home Depot called Milkshake which is a soft white color that is warm and changes color depth with changing light. it can look soft white then as the light shifts it adds a slightly warmer tone that has a soft glow. Also the type of lighting you use will make a big difference in your room. Using the starch method to put fabric on your walls is a nice idea but beware that unless your walls are smooth when removing it , it could leave fibers attached to any rough surface. Recommend you take a look at the blog The Homes I have Made. Megan has a lot of ideas on temporary solutions and what you can do with walls.
Good luck!
If you want anything to look larger and cleaner paint it white.