I know that you get what you pay for, when it comes to decorating - and if you buy your housepaint in a discount store at rock bottom prices, it may not have the coverage of a better quality paint. And the range of colours may not be quite what you want. Our go-to mid-range paints for years have been Homebase [well, a huge bucket of blue, bought in a sale which we used in Leicester and here] and Wilko [sage green in the lounge, grey in the Futility Room, twine beige in the atrium, deep blue in the kitchen...] and we have been very happy with the results.
But posh paints, that's a different matter. In Dorset, Farrow and Ball were situated close by on the Ferndown Industrial Estate. Labels saying Stiffkey Blue, Elephant Breath, String and other hi-faluting names were stuck on the elegant cans. This week I was with Bob as he bought some varnish. I picked up the guide to Morris&Co paints. The guide has no prices in it - although, somewhat bizarrely it has a nice recipe for squash and feta salad, and a guide to making candles in their empty glass tester pots! Inky Fingers, Fired Biscuit, Ernest White...£45 a canIn a bucket by the door were sample rolls of Morris wallpaper labelled FREE. I don't need telling twice! I got a an 8' length of "Snakeshead' pattern, and 6' of "Marigold". I checked online. Full rolls cost between £118 and £139. So my bits were together equivalent to £55 ! Bob pointed out there was not enough to do even a feature wall. I said they would wrap some very classy presents, or make elegant dust jackets for books. Then my National Trust magazine arrived.
I flicked through the pages after lunch "I've entered the free online competition in the National Trust magazine" I told Bob. "What do you win?" he asked. "Well first, you get an hour's consultation with a Little Greene man..." "What ?!?" he expostulated. I explained that it was the paint manufacturers and you were given advice, then got money off the L G products.
Bob was greatly relieved, he thought I'd said 'little green man'. I know the National Trust prides itself on its inclusivity. But this would be carrying things a bit far. Mind you, the paint colours would probably be "out of this world"
I remember staying in a national trust holiday cottage at Battle Abbey some years ago. The walls were painted with Little Greene paint, and there was a definite difference in the way the light and paint colours interreacted. If I had the money (and that type of house!) I would consider it...maybe. But Homebase does the job for us and our semi nicely!
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DeleteLittle Greene paint has definitely gained in popularity recently and we have succumbed a couple of times to get the shades we wanted. They have a variety of whites but for white gloss we stick to good old Dulux! Catriona
ReplyDeleteDulux and Crown are the tried and trusted brands I remember from my childhood (before the Posh stuff, and before B&Q arrived on the scene)
DeleteThat was a result with the freebie! I hope you get to make first (prize) contact with the Little Greene man! Kx
ReplyDeleteThat would be fun!👽
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