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halfwaynowhere
December 29th, 2008, 01:59 PM
So I live at home with my parents, younger brother, older sister, and her husband (and their baby that's due any day now). My sister and her husband just moved back home a few months ago.
Now, over the summer, I bought new towels, in hopes of re-doing the color scheme in the bathroom. I had bought a pretty aqua blue color. Later, my mom went back and bought a few bright pink towels, knowing that I like pink. So we had the two colors for awhile, and I really liked the way they looked together. I was in the process of looking for a shower curtain that I liked, using those colors. Hadn't found one just yet, though.
So yesterday, I came home and found that our bathroom had been re-done, with a dark brown shower curtain with aqua and orange circles on it. While I can appreciate the hidden beauty of brown, I felt this color was inappropriate for a bathroom. For one, its the color of poop. Two, its just such a dark color, and putting dark colors in an already small room just makes it feel even smaller. Now, I have mild claustrophobia, and I can't bring myself to be in there, which obviously isn't healthy.
So this morning, I went out and bought a new shower curtain, using the colors I liked as well as the new colors. White with pink, orange, yellow, brown, blue, and green stripes. Very bright and happy, and that way we didn't need to get any new towels, because we already had ones that worked. I thought that it was at least a decent medium. It made the room feel more open and comfortable for me.
They hated it. My brother thought it looked too girly, with all the colors. My sister argued that there were just as many guys using the room as girls, so having girly colors isn't fair. But do guys really care what color towels they use? my brother uses the pink towels all the time! Still, I was outvoted, and reluctantly put the ugly brown thing back up, making me regret that venti frappuccino from this morning...

So, my question is- for those of you sharing your living spaces with others, how do you cope when it comes to decorating shared rooms? Do you compromise, or do just deal with whatever is in there? I guess there's more important things than color, but to me, color affects how I feel.

watersprite
December 29th, 2008, 02:06 PM
I live in a place that can get very warm, so I chose cool colors for walls. I also used colors that would be relaxing. Everyone seems to like it, except the sister-in-law who no longer sets foot in my house. Mom is FINALLY exerting her opinion about the way she wants her room arranged.
I don't like brown in a bathroom either, though. Seems like folks would ask the home owner how she wants things.

Glowy
December 29th, 2008, 02:12 PM
Yes, the unfairness of living under someone else's roof.

Until you are out on your own it is just easier to defer. Save your pretty towels and new curtain for your own place. When I was 19, and at school my mother re did my entire room- and tossed out all of my stuff. The pictures I had bought, the rugs, the phone- everything and painted my room baby blue. I was furious, but what could I do? I was at school for 9 months out of the year.

Personally, I don't think men care about the color of the towel, if is not there personal space.

halfwaynowhere
December 29th, 2008, 02:37 PM
I know that I'm living under someone else's roof. But my parents don't use that bathroom, so they don't care what it looks like in there. The walls aren't getting painted anytime soon. Earlier in the week, I was talking with my sister about painting it yellow, since my sister has yellow paint she had bought for her old house... And we were discussing the colors I had in mind for the bathroom. She had no objection at the time. Nobody told me they had any problems with the colors I wanted, at all. And now all of a sudden, everyone does.

Actually, now that I think about it, maybe painting the walls yellow would help make it more tolerable... then again, maybe brown and yellow in the bathroom might not be such a good idea...

Glowy
December 29th, 2008, 02:43 PM
I know that I'm living under someone else's roof. But my parents don't use that bathroom, so they don't care what it looks like in there. The walls aren't getting painted anytime soon. Earlier in the week, I was talking with my sister about painting it yellow, since my sister has yellow paint she had bought for her old house... And we were discussing the colors I had in mind for the bathroom. She had no objection at the time. Nobody told me they had any problems with the colors I wanted, at all. And now all of a sudden, everyone does.

Actually, now that I think about it, maybe painting the walls yellow would help make it more tolerable... then again, maybe brown and yellow in the bathroom might not be such a good idea...


If you do paint yellow, maybe you can put a broze, or gold faux finnish over it? That could break up the brown and yellow.

halfwaynowhere
December 29th, 2008, 02:47 PM
Okay, this is what the room currently looks like:
http://img.photobucket.com/albums/1003/britbrat/white.jpg

I quickly photoshopped some color on the walls to see if it made a difference.
Blue:
http://img.photobucket.com/albums/1003/britbrat/blue.jpg

Yellow:
http://img.photobucket.com/albums/1003/britbrat/yellow.jpg

I think the yellow makes it look brighter and cheerier, but still masculine enough for the guys... I'll show them these pictures later, and see if maybe we can compromise. I honestly hate that shower curtain, and those towels, but it doesn't look like I'll be getting my way anytime soon...
Our bathroom is pretty tiny, I held the camera as far back in the opposite corner as I could to get that pic, and it still doesn't show much...

Maybe while we're at it, I can convince my BIL to re-tile the floors, as that really looks terrible... guess I shouldn't push my luck...
I know that living with others involves compromises, and dealing with things you don't like. But honestly, since my sister moved back in, everything gets done her way, I get no say in anything, and I live here too, my opinion should be heard just as much as hers is, and we should be able to come to a compromise.

Glowy
December 29th, 2008, 02:56 PM
That shower curtain is not nearly as horrid as I was expecting. I like the Aqua and Coral towels. I would not keep out the brown. I think with the yellow walls, it is actually kind of beachy.

lavenderdawn
December 29th, 2008, 02:57 PM
Regular family meetings and perhaps a talking stick so you get equal time?
It seems silly at first but these little seemingly petty things can cause a toxic environment really quickly. Making time to discuss grievances can truly help, even if you don't get your way, at least you said your piece.
Good Fortune! I like the yellow...

halfwaynowhere
December 29th, 2008, 03:15 PM
Regular family meetings and perhaps a talking stick so you get equal time?
It seems silly at first but these little seemingly petty things can cause a toxic environment really quickly. Making time to discuss grievances can truly help, even if you don't get your way, at least you said your piece.
Good Fortune! I like the yellow...

You have no idea how long I've tried to make anything like that work... we seriously lack effective communication skills. I have no problem with sharing or compromising, but everyone else just gangs up on me and blocks me out.

My mom says that painting is too much work, and too time consuming, so I can't expect that to happen at all.

I give up. I just took all of my personal stuff out of there. More room for my sister's stuff. Its not worth fighting over anymore. Its not about the colors, its about me not ever having an ounce of say in what goes on anymore. Oh well, at least when I get my own place someday, I'll be able to decorate it however I like. Until then, I'm stuck with what everyone else wants, since I don't matter here.

mephistopheles
February 9th, 2009, 10:19 AM
I have a yellow bathroom. Its actually probably the same size as the one in your picture and we painted it in like an hour.... Not much "hard work" as far as painting goes *points to entryway with 20 ft ceiling* :lol:. We did blue towels and a blue shower curtain and it actually doesn't look as lame as I thought it would. I know what ya mean about siblings not agreeing, I have a 16 year old brother who still CRIES when he doesn't get his way...