The Green Door

The Green Door

As a result of Andy’s home modifications, it turns out the front door of our house had to also be replaced. It wasn’t in the original plan, but because of the special hinges we had to install so it could open wide enough for Andy’s wheelchair, the integrity of the door fell apart! This is when I learned just how expensive exterior doors could be and how many different styles there are, it was overwhelming to say the least. So now I had to decide on a new front door.

Then I remembered the front door of Posh Cottage. I love that door and thought if it is good enough for the Airbnb then it is good enough for the main house! It was an easy choice, but then the question was… what color to paint it? Here too after some deliberation it only made sense to paint it the same beautiful green. Of course, as beautiful as the green is, it looked hideous with the pecan tan and brown color of the house itself!

So, I quickly determined that the house also had to be painted! This project was not in the plans for this year, but living with that horrible color combination for any length of time felt like torture! It went against all my visual sensibilities. It had to be painted.

I did my due diligence and rounded up three estimates for the job. The leading bid was by my friends Kate and Laurence. They are currently painting the house. When I was figuring out the colors to paint the Airbnb I also thought about the main house and used its future self as my guide to paint the Cottage. By this I mean that when I was deciding on the colors for the Airbnb, our main house was my guide. I took into consideration the hues of the stone façade and the color of the grout between the stones to determine the warm white and black that is now visible on both structures.

To identify the perfect shade of green, I took multiple color swatches and weaved them into the fences that surrounded the property and looked at them at different times of day, as the light changed through the day. By doing this I could observe both the paint swatch and the color of the landscape beyond and how the two related to each other. The green that is now on both front doors is the green of morning light just after the sun has risen over the Grand Mesa. It is a magical light full of warmth, joy and the limitless possibilities. I see it each day as I sit on our back patio and enjoy my morning cup of coffee. It is present in the blades of grass and the leaves of the trees and potted plants, and the morning light shines through them. It is a visual representation of a new day and makes me smile every time!