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Painting - Save Time & Money With Designer Paints? YES!

By
Home Stager with 2 Hounds Design + Home Staging

As you likely remember I prepared my house for sale. There were numerous upgrades we put in but the one job we did is the most time consuming as well as providing the most $ROI.

We painted the entire house...well I painted the entire house. Since we were selling I went the cheap route and colour matched a Benji colour using Behr.

What a disaster! The computers can never get the same formula even over 3 cans. Home Depot's paint manager gave me the low down:

  1. After a product (ex. latex flat emulsion base white) goes on the big box shelf the paint manufacturers update the product on an ongoing basis. Therefore you can get a can with an 'older' (last months) formula and a can of the 'new' formula. The cans will look exactly alike; the manufacturers have simply 'tweaked' the formula which will alter the colour outcome!
  2. Each manufacturer has their own 'white' base to which colour is added. So when you take a Benji or Restoration Hardware or C2 sample in to colour match you will never get the same...because they are formulated using a different white base.
  3. The colour matching done at the big boxes are not done by the eye only the computer. At least at specialty paint stores when they colour match they will take the computers 'match' and then tweak till they feel it is right. This can take a whole day of them playing around, a few hours or few minutes. If you listen to them as they do it you will find out how complex the C2 colours are to colour match!

Here is what happened when I tried to touch up some spots with a different can of paint which was purchased at the same time as the original wall colour:

BTW, I went back 3 times trying to get the colour fixed...many many cans later I actually spoke with a paint manager. I got my money back for the original paints.

I will never again colour match at a big box.

I wish I could say I'll never colour match again but C2 is to damn far away...so Abernathy's in Bowmanville will be doing my colour matching of C2 they take their time and will not release the paint till it is a match!

However, and the point to all this rambling: I used Ben Moore's Aura paint. Despite the cost of a gallon of Aura you actually use much less than you would of the big box paints.

  1. max 2 coats with Aura (just like C2)
  2. self-priming (OMG!!!)

New drywall or patched? Just paint it one coat with Aura and you are done.

I had already done 2 coats everywhere...then the touch up fiasco and then repainting in Aura. Thankfully I only had to do 1 coat and no priming any patches!

Now that is a lot of time to relax and enjoy the job!

Comments (20)

Leah J. Armstrong
House to Home ReDesigns & Real Estate Staging Vancouver B.C. - Port Moody, BC
Home Staging Port Moody B.C.

I have not had perfect success with color matching - it's not my first choice.  Attended a presentation on Aura paints - most impresseive that flat paint can be washable and used in a bathroom.  Great that any color can be mixed for Aura paint.  No odor, fast dry - gotta love it!  Painting your whole house by yourself - bet you have greater respect for the painters out there, eh?  I just redid a rental suite - and I was "done" long before the job was!  Hope you have great success on your sale.

Aug 22, 2008 02:28 PM
Michelle Minch
Moving Mountains Design Home Staging, Pasadena, CA - Los Angeles, CA
Home Staging Los Angeles and Orange County, CA

Dane: I am a big Aura paint fan (no pun intended). Benj. Moore colors go on better and last longer than many other brands. And the Aura colors are delicious. I will occassionally stray and use a Farrow and Ball color (it makes Benj. Moore look like a bargain), only because they have some colors that you just can't match in any other brand.

It really is worth it to spend a little more to get better quality and colors.

Aug 22, 2008 03:39 PM
Michelle Molinari
FEATURE THIS... Real Estate Staging & Interior Decor - Lafayette, LA
Feature This Real, Estate Staging & Curb Appeal Concepts

Ahhh..you hit a soft spot....as a former color consultant at a BM store, I adore Aura. I cannot tell you how wary people are of this paint, because it seems impossible and ridiculously priced. No matter how you slice it, however, their is no way you can lose. For 1 brdm, you traditionally need 1 G. primer +2 G. of paint.  Even a Walmart, that equals more than $54.00, which is what AURA costs per gallon.

Same room + AURA paint = 1 g. at $54.00. No priming, usually no re-coat (reds and clear yellows will remain the bane of the industry, and are the exceptions. But all colors are guaranteed in two coats, which is fantastic, since some reds, even in premium paints, have required 4 and 5 coats!). In one hour, you have a premium, highly washable finish... up and complete, and in one hour after that you are hanging artwork.

So choosing AURA saves 2/3rds on your time, and about 30% off you paint bill for ONE ROOM. Imagine a whole house of savings! If a contractor says no AURA,  I tell them to hit the road. Contractors don't like AURA, because it is hard to quote thousands of dollars for a job that is complete in one day. Plus, they mark up their product, and 30% less money on paint is less paint cost they can mark up.

I use AURA every latex job I have, every time. No paint affords more VALUE, for my clients, and a great added feature is that it saves me time, which, of course,  saves me money.

I am absolutely convinced their is no better product or value, and once I run the pricing through a calculator with the price of regular premium paint and then with Aura, my paint cuatomers warily took Aura cans out the door and turn their heads at me and threateningly said, "You better be right about this paint or I'll be back!"

I've those same  customers come back, throw their arms around me and kiss my cheeks for hard-selling this paint to them on many occasions. I've had flippers go against their team's advice to take my advice instead, to have them send pics and rave reviews of their one-coat on bare-drywall successes.

But what I love is the no priming. Just this past week, we installed some new crown moulding in a bedroom.  I knocked the burrs off the wood with a foam sanding block, slapped on some Aura in the lovely, clean, slightly green-tinted BM white called Easter Lily, and an hour later we were shooting the crown up  on the ceiling with a nail gun.

It's "Le Package Totale!"

~Michelle

 

 

Aug 23, 2008 04:10 AM
Julianna Hind
eXp Realty - Tacoma, WA
REALTOR, 206-679-4768, Tacoma Federal Way, Auburn, Kent, WA

Dane, I am doing great! Thanks for thinking of me. How are you doing... I think you must be doing awesome, that was a great feature you had on Active Rain in my in-box yesterday! Congratulations!

Aug 23, 2008 05:53 AM
Toronto's 2 Hounds Design: Decorating + Staging
2 Hounds Design + Home Staging - Toronto, ON

Michelle, thanks for the details on Aura and confirming it is worth every penny and more. You are right about contractors not wanting to use it. Sad but try.

My painters will use the paint I direct them to use or they will not paint for me!

Julianna, I have got to figure out what the 'Feature' is that I'm being congratulated for the last couple of days!

I'm so glad to hear you are doing great. It would be great to see a post from you about how your experiences having straddled the 2 industries. I bet you've got some valuable insight for us stagers!

Aug 23, 2008 10:04 AM
Melissa Marro
Keller Williams First Coast Realty - The Marro Team - Orange Park, FL
Jacksonville Real Estate and Home Staging

I will have to try this paint.  I recently painted my bedroom in Harmony - Sherwin Williams premium Low-Voc paint.  I loved how it turned out.    It was much better than Duration.  Their other premium paint.

Aug 24, 2008 04:22 AM
Sassy Skelton
Staged Right Professional Home Staging Colorado Springs - Colorado Springs, CO

Now that explains a lot!  Thanks for the info.

By the way, if you ever get tired of the design/staging business the 2-hounds name sounds like a great PUB!!

 

Sassy from the UK living in Colorado!

Aug 25, 2008 01:22 PM
Anonymous
Aileen

I've used Ben Moore for years and was excited with the introduction of Aura. It's great to see new products that are becoming more eco-friendly. I work with paint contractors and privately they've told me that they can't make as much money with the Aura since one application usually suffices. My personal experience has been fabulous- I think the expense is justified since in most cases no primer is needed and you can get by with one coat. It is rich in color and has a depth to it that truly sets it apart. Maybe I should be a sales Rep for Ben Moore.

Aug 26, 2008 06:35 AM
#10
Marg Scheben
RE/MAX four seasons realty limited - Collingwood, ON
Edey - Collingwood, Ontario

That's why people like me need people like you!  I wouldn't know a mismatched colour if it were splattered across my face.  I'll NEVER paint my own house ever again; the pro's know what they are talking about and this thread shows that.

Aug 26, 2008 08:40 AM
Barbara Cluck-Miksits
BCM Home Staging LLC - Ridgewood, NJ
Home Staging - New Jersey

Dane ~ I have been using Benj. M. paint for years, it does cost more but it does the job. I recently attended a Benj. M presentation and the Aura line is very good.

Even if you use a top brand paint they always suggest when painting mix a little of each can together in your paint tray, this way the color is always constant. Because they can still be a little different hue from each other.

Your house looks beautiful! Good luck on a fast and profitable sale.

Aug 29, 2008 12:57 AM
j r
International, IT

Thanks for sharing and where can one find this Aura Paint in Ontario ??

Sep 12, 2008 05:33 AM
Kathleen Lordbock
Keller Williams Realty Professionals - Baxter, MN
Keller Williams Realty Professionals

I am a Bm fan - paint that is and the Aura can not be beat.  We always mix our cans together in a big bucket and then back in the cans so the colors are identical no matter what.

Sep 12, 2008 04:50 PM
Deborah Merriam
ecoDomestica reDesign - Edmonton, AB

Benjamin Moore only introduced the Aura line in Alberta in June, and I was so excited to finally get my hands on it after reading about it from American sources for more than a year. It really is everything the hype says: no odor, gorgeous deep rich colours, fast drying, scrubbable. (Here they suggest having a humidifier going in the room if it`s more than 25C outside, because our climate is so dry.) And as a former biochemist I`m totally geeking out about the solvent-free pigment being chemically bound by the reformulated acrylic resin...  Anyway, I`m repainting my whole home and a client`s apartment with it as a DIY job, and love working with it.

One caveat: this is not a true zero-VOC paint, it does have small amounts of solvents that are exempted from the USEPA`s VOC regulations because they don`t cause smog. I`m hearing through the grapevine that some chemically-sensitive clients are finding that the small amounts of solvent offgassing is still too much for them and causes dizziness, headaches, etc. So if you have clients who suffer from sick building syndrome, go the extra mile for them and order your paint from a true-zero-VOC specialist manufacturer like Mythic Paints or AFM SafECOat -- or use a natural product like milk paint or clay plaster instead. Natural Home magazine`s website is a great resource for learning about harder-to-find specialty products like these.

Sep 13, 2008 02:02 PM
Linda Knight
Royal LePage - Barrie, ON

I agree. Benjamin Moore is the way to go.. its the only paint I use.

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Dec 16, 2008 06:22 PM
#18
Anonymous
carrie

I'm a homeowner that is very interested in home staging.  I usually just lurk here, but wanted to tell you I recently used Aura paint.  My Ben Moore store doesnt carry it so I purchased it  on myperfectcolor.com - they matched a sherwin williams color and sent it to my home free of charge!    I had to put two coats over some green magic marker that was on the wall, though.

Dec 17, 2008 11:23 AM
#19
Craig Iden
Golden State Home Inspections - Sacramento, CA

Great Post! I must say you do have some great ideas. I thank you for sharing.

Feb 15, 2009 02:35 PM
Toronto's 2 Hounds Design: Decorating + Staging
2 Hounds Design + Home Staging - Toronto, ON

Thanks all for your great comments and additional info!

Carrie, I'm honoured you decided to peek your head out from lurking to comment, thank you. Next time you want to get marker off your wall use a 'magic eraser' no name brands or Mr. Clean the original.

 

Feb 17, 2009 06:14 AM
Ethan Joshua

This is a  helpful  article for me. This article will help me in  developing ideas for my home painting project. Thanks!

Toronto Painters

May 15, 2012 11:00 PM