New Paint: Benjamin Moore's Opal

The first phase of my bedroom makeover is finished: We painted the walls and ceiling! The room looks lighter, brighter, warmer, and so happy. And I'm pretty sure I'm not just saying that because I'm accidentally high on paint fumes. I love this color. The walls are painted a pink-tinged off-white called Opal by Benjamin Moore. Opal isn't too pink, too yellow, or too fleshy. It's just right--or, as my mother would say, "It's baby bear's porridge." It's gentle, but it has personality because it's practically luminous. It reflects light so beautifully, it almost looks like it's glowing. But getting to this point was rough.

Stella approves. And this picture was styled so hastily, I didn't even put a real photo in the frame.
Jen's Guide to How NOT To Paint a Bedroom: December 26: Buy paint and get a kidney stone. December 27: Agony. December 28: Agony.
December 29. Vicodin and Valium! December 30: Good riddance, kidney stone. December 31: Happy New Year! January 1: Move the bed into the living room the only other room in your home. Congratulations, your entire home is chaos now! Enjoy turning the TV on from bed without a remote control for the next week. Enjoy nothing else ever. January 2: Prime the ceiling. Say, "Oops, I bought oil based primer!" Get high off of oil-based paint fumes. Not in a deviant teenager way, but in an accidental, scary nerve damagey way. Freak out when you realize you can't stand upright without swaying. Open the windows. Now you're cold, too! Scrub paint out of your pores for two hours.
January 3: Prime the walls. Consider bathing in mineral spirits. Remember that your gametes are forever. Decide against damaging your future children's chance of getting into the gifted program. Walk around covered in paint. January 4: Begin painting the ceiling. Run out of paint about 4 minutes later. The Benjamin Moore store won't reopen until Monday. Begin painting the walls even though "they" say to paint the ceiling first. January 5: Paint the walls. Hey, that's pretty! January 6: Watch Keith paint the ceiling. Hey, handsome. January 7: Watch Keith paint the ceiling more.
January 8: FINISHED! HAPPY DANCE! LET'S GO BUY LAMP SHADES!
It was pretty miserable for a few days, but it was so worth it. The most surprising thing was the drastic effect of the new ceiling paint. Before, my ceiling was The Place Where Light Went To Die. And it looked low. You could be nice and call it "Cozy like a Hobbit house," but that would be a lie. My bedroom was dark and somber, and it was because I had a dark greenish-beige ceiling. I never realized how dark it was, though, until I saw how the original paint looked against white primer. It was practically BROWN! No longer.

Different lighting. Slightly brighter. BTW, that lampshade is on approval. That's why it's wrapped in plastic like Laura Palmer.
After I primed, Keith painted the ceiling with White Blush by Benjamin Moore. Now my ceilings reflect light and look at least a foot higher. White Blush is lighter and less pink than Opal, but they're both warm, and they coordinate perfectly. If you found this post because you Googled the Opal color, consider using White Blush for your ceiling or trim. Or am I the only one who Googles paint colors before I try them? Is that weird?
You're probably thinking, "I bet her husband is going to kill her for painting their bedroom pink!" I know, right? But get this: I brought home a few paint samples, including Opal, and slapped them up on the walls about six months ago. Keith's favorite color was even pinker. My theory is that he just likes MORE. More crystals on our chandelier (that was his idea), more saturated color on the walls, etc. It must be a Texan thing. But he seems happy with the paint.
There's still a lot to do: I need to finish reupholstering the side chair, reupholster the headboard, and order new lampshades (the ones in the pictures are wrapped in plastic because they are on approval from Lumen). I have my work cut out for me, but it should be a lot easier th an painting... and easier to take with me when I move. Stay tuned!