The Votes are In!
As previously mentioned, the painters had put our two khaki samples up on opposite ends of the house. (Well, at least on opposite sides of the bay window.) After many trips through the yard, looking from one khaki to the other, Matt and I went through their pile of stuff in the garage and found the sample jars. Then, we proceeded to paint more splotches, closer together, on the front of the house. Not satisfied with how different the colors looked from the front of the house (which is North facing, and never sees direct sun) to the back (in the sun most of the day), we then painted more clumpy sections on the side of the house.
Then, we called my mom and dad, my younger sister and her husband, my brother, Matt's sisters and their families, and my best friend. We bribed everyone with grilled hamburgers and hot dogs - to come over and vote on which paint color we should go with. (I even invited the nice man working at Sherwin Williams to come over to eat, and of course, give us his professional opinion.) I made everyone examine all three ‘painted' sides of the house before committing to their favorite (and before I gave them any food).
And.... Everyone liked Matt's color better. The actual votes, not counting me and Matt:
Matt's "Universal Khaki" = 7 (Eight if you count the painter - who also prefers Matt's color.)
My "Relaxed Khaki" = 1 (Matt's oldest sister agreed with me. Perhaps it is a birth order thing, and oldest children are blessed with superior color selection ability.)
Today, the painters came back to apply our white samples and put a second coat on the two pieces they had painted last week. Well, first of all, while painting globs all around the house, I went ahead and hit those two squares with a second coat myself. So what they applied today was actually a third coat. But because I had moved their sample jars around (oops) they switched the two colors, and put my color over the top of Matt's sample, and vice versa. (Yes, they really are that close to each other.)
Funny thing is.... I REALLY like how my color looks over the top of Matt's. So, then to see that in a different light - I fished my paint brush out of the trash, and painted my color over the top of the bottommost board of Matt's color on the front. (See photo below.) Then I called the painter and proposed a most ridiculous plan.
Beginning tomorrow, our house will slowly be transfixed into a "Universal Khaki" palace. And, if we love it; we'll give the okay for the painter to buy more of that same paint for the second coat. But, if we have any hesitation, if we think it looks too dark or too brown, then we'll have the painter put my color over the top. At which point, we're going to live with our "Relaxed Khaki" over "Universal Khaki," like it or not. (I say that now...)
