sophisticatted's Profile

I believe that all of the sharing will lead to a homogenization of ideas. Boring.

Www.able data.com can offer you access to products designed for those with disabilities (including issues that the elderly face) and someone above has already mentioned universal design which benefits everyone and will become more prevalent, thanks to ADA building code requirements.

I have read Maxwell's Cure book, and in it he writes more about the homes of his more successful students. Basically, they are environments that supports the dwellers goals and lifestyle.

As a teacher of the blind and visually impaired, I can tell you that today's classrooms are too visually cluttered, especially considering the number of special needs children mainstreamed into the regular room. When one teacher modified the environment and materials per my suggestions for a child with cortical visual impairment, she noticed that our student, plus her autistic students were much, much more successful. Both are conditions that are neurologically based and making things easier to process from a sensory standpoint (not just vision) makes a huge impact.

I recently purchased paint cards from Citron, Ellen Kennon, and Donald Kaufman Color, and I want to add my experience and opinions.

First of all, I became interested in full spectrum paint in 2005 when I first heard about Devine Color (which ISN'T a full spectrum paint but was often attributed as such at the time). I researched the paint and the companies. At the time Donald Kaufman didn't have views of his paint on his website, except for a few pictures. His color names are numbers, so they are not exactly evocative. Citron paint had an incomplete daub sheet on their website which I printed out. Ellen Kennon had pictures of her paint in rooms and many other websites also had pictures of rooms people painted in Ellen Kennon paints.

Paint chips from these companies were not cheap at the time, my financial resources were limited, and my new home was already very nicely painted by the previous owner. So I put it off. Several months ago I received a complimentary paint brochure from Farrow & Ball and I was SO delighted with it, I decided to take the plunge and order a fan deck from a full spectrum paint company. I chose Citron paints.

This is what their website says: "Pick a color, any color! Our fan decks are 5"x3" samples of ALL of our luscious paint colors conveniently fit together in one colorful book." Imagine my surprise when my fan deck did not contain 99 colors in it just like their website has! When I emailed the company about this, this is the response I received: "the fan deck contains only our active colors; we can still make those colors (and we keep them on our online daub sheet if people want to see what they look like). unfortunately, many of those colors are available only in gallons, not in quarts and paint pots."

HUH?!?! First of all, their website does not mention "active colors" and over the last five years, their online daubsheet has changed once. I noticed that some numbers had been renamed, so I assumed that that meant the color previously connected to that number had been discontinued and a new color subbed in its place.

Let the Buyers Beware! For the record here are the color numbers that were omitted in my deck: 2, 8, 11, 12, 15, 16, 17, 18, 20, 25, 27, 33, 49, 59, 61, 63, 64, 67, 71, 73, 89, 91, 94, and 97. So, I only got approximately 75% of what I thought I was paying for :( .

Since I was so bummed about this, I decided to remedy the situation for myself and I immediately purchased paint chips from the other two well-known full spectrum paint companies. I paid $100 (includes shipping) for my Citron deck, $75 shipping for my Kaufman deck, and $11 (includes shipping) for my Ellen Kennon deck (the thin strips option).

Here are my thoughts on full spectrum paint: It is noticeably different (to me) than your average paint. The colors are luminescent and stop short of being iridescent. I work with eyeballs for a living so I know that not everyone sees color the same way. (I'll spare you the technical explanation. )

Citron paint colors are bold and vibrant, a lot of the colors are very richly and darkly shaded. You notice them right away. They do seem to be influenced by the location where they are developed. When I first looked at my paint deck, it didn't scream "southwest" to me, but when I removed the colors I did not like right off the bat, and then laid them out to figure out why I did not like them, I realized that they had a "colors of the southwest" vibe going on. To be clear, that is not why I did not like them. It's just something I didn't notice at first glance that I did at second glance. I had originally mentally rejected Kaufman because I had the impression that the colors were specifically formulated to work with the NYC views, which are not the views I live with (and it turns out I was wrong on this point, anyway). If you live in that area of the country, or love the colors of that area, you would probably LOVE this full spectrum paint. Or if you like bolder more vibrant colors in you living environment.

Donald Kaufman colors are soft and quiet, in going through the deck I sensed them emotionally before I sensed them visually. The colors are very soft. Even the darker, bolder colors have a whisper-quietness about them. The non-neutral colors felt neutral in a way. The Kaufman deck had a lot of lighter, softer colors in it. It had several palettes in it and one palette is entirely devoted to shades of white. If you want a lighter, softer, space where the walls are beautiful but not necessarily the focal point, or if you live in an area that doesn't get a lot of light and you want to make the most of the light you do get, Donald Kaufman will probably please you.

Ellen Kennon colors are somewhere between the two. In the past, I had mentally rejected her colors because, from looking at website pictures, I felt that they were too muted for my tastes. It turns out that I was right about that. However, based on friends comments, my taste in color is unconventional, and I feel that Kennon paints would appeal to many people and would fit in in a lot of homes. I feel that I can best describe her colors as "museum colors". They are the colors that you notice on the walls from a distance and admire the color. When you are up close, the color becomes a backdrop and you notice what is in front of it. Her colors seem to be a fairly even mix of dark and light shades. A lot of neutrals.

One further note: When I fanned out the decks, Citron and Kaufman seemed to have the most harmonious palettes. You could probably put any two colors next to each other and they would look good together. With Ellen Kennon I noticed a few shades "stuck out" (but MOST would work well together). An attempt at cross-pollination between the various brands was a visual disaster. So if you are going to use full-spectrum paint in your home, stick with one brand for "line of sight" spaces.

If you are considering full spectrum paint, I hope that this helps shed a little light on which brand might be best for you. I really think it depends upon personality and taste and the type of space you live in and the light it receives. As for me, after all of this, I have decided to paint my bedroom a Farrow & Ball color and the other rooms in my home are TBD.

Due to multiple illnesses in my household and other issues, I have not been able to participate as much a I would have liked. Please remove me from the list. I'll catch the next one....