After a stay at one of our spaces we’re always flattered to get questions about the design from our guests. Finding design inspiration is one of our favorite aspects of travel, so it means a lot that many of you have found that sort of inspiration during a stay with us. One of the most frequent design questions we hear is “What color paint is that?”.
Color theory is a wild thing—there have been so many times that we’ve grabbed some paint samples and then brought them home or painted a larger swatch to realize the color has completely transformed. The amount of natural light and surrounding colors have a huge impact on the way the color comes across, and so does the scale of the space you’re working with.
We’ll share the paint colors we used at JTH Tucson at the end of this post, but first we want to share some general thoughts on how to select a paint color for your space (as the same exact colors we’ve used here could look completely different in your home).
The right white
We love the bright airiness of white interiors, but always gravitate towards a warm white to keep the space feeling inviting. We prefer matte and eggshell finishes, but usually choose a satin finish for practicality in spaces like kitchens and bathrooms (glossier paints wipe clean easier). At JTH Tucson we used Dunn Edwards Birch White for the interior walls.
Playing with color
While many of our interior walls are white, we love pulling warm earthy tones found in our surrounding natural landscape into our spaces. We especially like to use color to accent an interesting feature (like this kiva fireplace in our Yucca Suite), or in a space that doesn’t get enough natural light for white to look bright (like our souvenir shop). While it may seem counter intuitive, using a light color in a space devoid of light isn’t necessarily going to brighten it, and could just leave it looking muddy. Sometimes it’s best to lean into the natural qualities of a space.
Adding texture
On flat walls, we’ve been experimenting with some fun techniques to add texture and depth. We used lime wash on our recent Creosote Suite renovation in both ‘Mission’ and ‘Treasure’ from Portola Paints which added movement to the finish. We also love how a limewash can help make a space feel a little more lived in. One thing to be aware of is that lime wash needs to be brushed on (not rolled), so is more labor intensive and time consuming than a typical paint.
Lighting
Lighting is everything. Those of you who have read our book ‘At Home in Joshua Tree’ may remember that we steer clear of daylight and bright white bulbs as they offer a cooler glow than we prefer. We love natural light, and in an ideal world we would all live in homes where the sun shone in through large bright south facing windows (a little sunshine is so good for us all). But since that’s not always practical or possible, we recommend using warm white and soft white light bulbs for the most natural look. Remember that the light in a space will make paint colors change dramatically, so be sure to swatch colors prior to painting on all walls of your room, and then check them throughout the day as light changes.
Tucson Paint Colors
(all by Dunn Edwards)
We typically splurge for the highest quality paints for commercial type settings in particular (for the Dunn Edwards brand this is their Aristoshield paint), and recommend doing so if and when you can for the longest lasting finishes.
- Interior white: Birch White
- Exterior white: White Sand
- Warm tan in Agave, Saguaro & Kitchen fireplace: Warm Hearth
- Yucca room fireplace: Laredo Road
- Cholla room walls: Adobe South
- Souvenir Shop & Creosote cabinets: Treasure Chest
- Exterior surrounding walls: Seasonal Beige
