Posted on

Color and Design in the Time of Covid

Like many people at the beginning of the pandemic, ACC co-founder Susan Mintz sought out additional outlets for her creativity. (In-home color consultations were definitely a no-go.) Luckily, she rediscovered the world of chalk paint, milk paint, furniture transfers and quality stencils. She had some experience painting furniture – the ugly kitchen cabinets and a beat dining table in her trailer in Malibu had needed immediate attention. But the decorative transfers and stencils she found serendipitously online inspired her to take her color love to another level. She flexed her creative muscle by painting and decorating old dressers to flip. Her furniture rehabs are rarely on the market for more than a few days, and she is constantly on the prowl for more interesting pieces to redeem with color for a second life. Want to give it a try? Below is some info to get you started. She has used and recommends all of the following.  

Painted with cualk paint and Iron Orchid Designs decals.


Here’s where you can find furniture pieces to paint:

your house, your parent’s house; garage/yard sales; Facebook Marketplace

Here’s paint to try:

Amyhowardhome.com; dixiebellepaint.com; www.milkpaint.com (and other online retailers of Sweet Pickins Milk Paint); Annie Sloan; DIY paint aka Debisdesigndiary (online retailers)

Painted with Sweet Pickins Milk Paint, blue bird & demin. Using milk paint can create great crakles and chipping.

Here are transfer brands to try,

available at a variety of online retailers: Iron Orchid Designs (most beautiful); Re-Design by Prima; Hocus Pocus 

  • Before
  • After
  • Before
  • In progress
  • After


Stencils

Cuttingedgestencils.com; royaldesignstudio.com
There are hundreds of tutorials on Youtube. Find inspiration for pieces on Pinterest, too.Have fun!

  • Before
  • After
Rolling four colors on one stencils.
Posted on

Back To The Office?

Everyone paints their homes, not everyone can choose the perfect paint color.

With vaccinations widely available and social life opening up, millions of Americans are reassessing leaving their home offices to return to their work spaces. The Washington Post reports there is growing evidence that a lot of people are “reassessing what they want to do and how they want to work.” Thousands of jobs remain work-from-home and will remain so even as businesses reopen their office space. Many have found they Iike working from home and don’t want to return to the office. 

America’s Color Consultants (ACC) is a business opportunity particularly suited for those creative/artistic types who have found that working from home has proven to be desirable, and for those whom the pandemic has taught that life is short.  ACC consultants own their own business, and thus own their time – working part-time, full-time, even overtime if they want.  They meet a wide variety of people and provide a valuable, efficient service all the while exercising their creative muscles. And they operate their business from a home-based office.

There will be those who will happily return to their pre-pandemic work environs, but for those who seek something different, there are numerous opportunities for individuals to use their unique talents to both earn a living and satisfy their soul.

Posted on

Goodbye to All White Kitchens

Say goodbye to the all-white pristine kitchen. Calming colors from serene blues to warm neutral greens are the upcoming color trends for 2021. Combining warm hues with bright pops of color is on the rise for 2021. After a year of being stuck at home, many people are choosing to update their living space to create a warmer and more sanguine environment. A cool grey paint in the kitchen matched with vibrant yellow accent furniture pieces elicits a vibe of positivity and warmth.

As color in the kitchen becomes more common, there may be an increase in popularity among homeowners with painting their cabinets green. Green is a combination between blue and yellow on the color spectrum and can work well with both cool and warm color palettes. Adding green accents in a grey painted kitchen can help bring the room to life and make it more vibrant. With industrial interior styles on the rise, green and other vibrant colors mix well with metal and wood elements. The days of having all white kitchens are behind us, as color makes its way back into the kitchen!