The next chapter of my Coronavirus / Covid-19 pandemic quarantine home improvements project (wow, that’s a mouthful) was painting and redecorating my 3-season front porch.
This porch is one of my fave rooms in the house but it was beyond dirty. I think because it’s so wet in my area and the room isn’t totally air-tight that it gets really dirty and moldy. I was at the paint store and this guy said to just wash the walls with bleach and it would kill the mold. Aside from the stinky smell, he was correct. I barely had to wipe down the walls… The bleach just annihilated everything and left beautiful walls that barely looked like they needed painting. But I forged again… Besides, I wanted a slight color change.
Here’s the before. Not too bad, just a bit shabby.
One side bleached the other moldy.
Look at that beautiful fresh painted floor.
PPE more for the bleach than covid-19.
For the walls and trim I went with Benjamin Moore Exterior, White Dove (OC-18), Semi-Gloss. The floor is Benjamin Moore, Floor & Patio Latex, Light Gray and then there’s the ceiling, which I did in Benjamin Moore, Icy Blue (2057-70), Flat. And here’s why…
The existing ceiling was painted a light blue and I always wondered what that was all about. Was is supposed to evoke sky? Well, I did some research and here’s what I found: It’s called Haint Blue and it’s a tradition of painted porch ceilings blue in the South - originally created from crushed indigo plants.
From Wikipedia:
Originally, haint blue was thought by the Gullah people to ward haints, or ghosts, away from the home. The tactic was intended either to mimic the appearance of the sky, tricking the ghost into passing through, or to mimic the appearance of water, which ghosts traditionally could not cross. But while the enslaved Africans of the Low country and their descendants believed in the protective power of haint blue, the cultivation of indigo to produce the dye energized the 18th-century transatlantic trade, thereby increasing the enslavement of Africans.
As Gullah culture mingled with white southern culture, the custom became more widely practiced. The use of haint blue has lost some of its superstitious significance, but modern proponents also cite the color as a spider and wasp-deterrent. However, the color has not actually been scientifically shown to stave off bugs.
Once the painting was done, it was time to sass up the decor… I kept what I had but took out some of the wicker chairs to highlight the 2 vintage Eames chairs I have. They also compliment the orange Jonathan Adler chair. And then I brought out the 2 Lilly Pulitzer for Target lounge chairs. And doncha love that orange pouf from CB2?
And in my little dining area, I put my Bea Åkerlund (Lady Gaga and Madonna's Stylist ) for IKEA crown bowl as my centerpiece surround by fun thrift store floral art.
And the after image… Can you feel the HAINT?
