Wednesday, January 17, 2007

Engineered Heart Pine and Devine Paint

The shear pace of work both at the house and at the other job that pays for the house has led me forego posting over the last couple of weeks. But, a lot has been happening and therefore there is much to catch up on!! First, we made notable product shifts and are very happy with both. We first planned on using wide plank heart pine flooring throughout the house. It was one of the first things we located, back when we were in the early planning stages (which seems so very long ago). Then we committed ourselves to the radiant heat, knowing that wide plank wood floors + radiant heat = lots of shrinking, swelling and other floor movement generally not recommended. But, we didn’t care. Rustic houses are not by nature perfect. We would embrace the imperfections. But then, our distributor didn’t have wide plank, only 4 inch, and we had estimates on finishing the floor, and we were not looking forward to the time the floor needed to acclimate nor the price of finishing. So in less than fifteen minutes of internet research, we found a company in Charlotte that makes reclaimed heart pine engineered flooring (engineered flooring being the recommended type for radiant heat) in a 7 ½ inch width. We had samples sent over Fed – Ex and the next day ordered the entire floor off auction and Matt drove down and picked it up. Not bad, and we figure it has saved us a couple hundred dollars overall not to mention the month of acclimatization and finish time.

The other product shift was paint. We were going with Benjamin Moore, always reliable, lots of colors, etc. But when I went in for some paint chips I found Devine Paint. And is it ever divine!! I asked the guys at the paint shop about it and it is what they are all using in their own homes now. I picked up a couple of samples, and after testing them out I was sold! This paint is gorgeous and sooooo forgiving. It truly only requires one coat, it doesn’t show brush or roller marks and the depth is incredible. I love it! You should check it out here http://www.devinecolor.com/.

Other than that, Matt has been padding up the floor around the radiant floor tubes so that we can install the new floor and putting on our snazzy new door hardware; I have finished siding the front of the house; we have painted all of the drywall ceilings and we have painted the kitchen. Next up is installing the tongue and groove pine ceiling this weekend and more painting!

4 comments:

Poppy said...

I was excited to see a great recommendation for Devine paints. I've just ordered some samples and was really hoping that someone would mention that they'd used it. What color did you choose? What finish? Their color palette makes picking a color H A R D!! I'm also very curious about the new powder finish...it is suppose to resemble suede when it dries. Doesn't that sound beautiful??

Leslie said...

I found it! Well, that is, YOU found it - the engineered reclaimed heart-pine floors, I mean. I've been looking at several vendors that carry it but I don't like how any of them look, but yours is exactly what I've been looking for. If you don't mind, would you email me at tanama44/aol/com and let me know the name of the place where you got yours?

Oh and your link to Devine paints made me check once again, JUST in case, and finally they have a reseller in our area - woot! I've heard such wonderful things about their paints.

J.Rocky said...

I would also love to know where you purchased your engineered floors. I love them, along with your cabinets. If you don't mind sharing, I would love an email with where you purchased both your floors and cabinets. My address is jmm6489@yahoo.com
Thank you so much for sharing your experience. We've been thinking of trying the concrete counters also. It makes me think we should give it a try.

Anonymous said...

I am a Certified DevineCustom Colorist for Devine Paint in the Atlanta area. I am also an interior painter. I have used Devine in every room and it's truly the best paint I've EVER used regarding quality and finish. It DOES not show brush or roller marks, scrubs well, and the finishes are beautiful!! Thanks for suggesting this Paint.
p.s. It's actually quite easy to choose a color if you understand how the palette works!!! If you'd like to contact me: djanderson7@yahoo.com