paint
The wall paneling is a mixture of purchased reclaimed planks and wood pieces salvaged from the demolished barn. The vaulted ceiling uses the same reclaimed beams seen throughout the barn. The ceiling also appears to be reclaimed, but it is knotty pine that has been stained with tea, another of Mennes’ tricks with the inexpensive material. To get the look, she first painted the wood with a strong black English breakfast tea and let it dry. Then she painted the wood with vinegar in which steel wool had been soaking. The result is a natural stain that resembles aged barn wood. “It has this silvery-grayish hue to it,” Mennes says. She let the steel wool soak for an hour because she wanted a fairly light stain. The longer you soak it, the darker it gets. “You have to experiment with it,” she says.
My favorite pure white is White Dove OC-17, by Benjamin Moore. This white, shown here in this gorgeous kitchen, is crisp with no undertones. It looks great against any color.
Q