This spring and summer have been rough in the Midwest. Record rainfall and crazy winds have been even more noticeable as we are spending our first year in the country.
Not much to block the extreme weather.
And unfortunately, the insane winds took Henry’s playhouse for a ride a few months ago. I found it in about a dozen pieces one morning. I thought it was a goner.
But Ryan and his apprentice got to work and put it back in working order that night. Bless their hearts. Ryan even made sure to secure it into the ground so it wouldn’t blow away again. 
However, some of the pieces of the house were worse for wear after its flight, so I needed to clean it up. Enter paint – my favorite quick and cheap way to bring new life to anything. (Don’t hold still in my house. You may get painted.)
I decided to use this as an opportunity to try out colors I’m considering for our “real house” exterior. Ryan and I have tentatively decided to go for an aqua/green/blue. Something a little different.
So, I tried a few colors and landed on Behr MARQUEE Cascade Green. (These colors all look so similar but had completely different feels when they were on the house.)
I also decided to paint the front door black, which helps the color feel less wild. I really would like to have the energy to paint or stain the roof a gray/black, but that seems like a lot of work (I’d have to be really careful on the edges to get around.) So for now, it’s going to stay cedar.
Henry actually loves painting. LOVES. Which means I usually paint when he’s asleep or away. Because he is the messiest painter on earth. (Gets that from his momma.) It takes four days of baths to get rid of all that paint on him.
But this time, I gave the little monster a paint brush and let him do his thing. It’s his playhouse, after all. He only lasts about 15 minutes anyhow before he’s distracted by something with wheels.
To finish the full makeover (ha! I crack myself up even calling it that), I added an old wreath that was literally lying in the grass, surrounded by weeds. And then I attached this cute cow head I purchased from my friend Ashley at ItsASchmollWorld on Etsy. I actually have another identical cow in our kitchen and planned to give this one away as a gift. But Henry is obsessed with cows so it went here instead.
Henry named him “cow.” Quite an imagination, that one.
I also planted a few marigolds from another pot into a plastic cup. Nothing but class.
Full parental disclosure – Henry was NOT pleased with the change. He is typically not pleased with changes made to his “things.”
He loved painting and didn’t seem to really notice that the color was changing. But then, when he came back later and it was STILL BLUE and the door was BLACK, he made this face. So much for a cute picture of him in his playhouse, am I right?
“Put it back to red, mom. I no can’t like this.” That’s Henry-talk for “WTF mom? Leave my stuff alone.”
He got over it quickly. And just yesterday he told me his playhouse was “great.” Which is the word he uses to describe just about everything.
Winning.
I love how his playhouse turned out, but I’m still waffling on whether this will be “the color.” It is pretty much exactly what I wanted. But now I worry it will be a little too wild. It’s a big house and there’s no stone or brick to break it up. Just not sure I should get a little more muted of a color. Stay tuned.
I did also repaint the gray parts of my barn quilt and the birdhouse in the same color to get a second and third opinion. The bird had a similar reaction to Henry. And the barn quilt is still undecided.
So that’s how I pimped the playhouse.
I love the changes to Henry’s playhouse…I think Henry will come to love it too! Just wondering where you got the cow head inside the wreath? Love it and it’s so cute!
Hugs from Canada
Oh gosh! I found the link as I reread your post!! lol!
Love the color! This has got to be the coziest playhouse I’ve ever seen. Henry has quite the place with his own little wreath and flowers. So darn cute!
That is the cutest playhouse ever! Seriously.
Thank you!
I LOVE the color. I say go with it!
Still waffling, but thanks for the encouragement!
It is very cute. I love the color. It blends well with the landscape.
Thanks so much!
I really like it, but I don’t know if I would still like it on an entire house. I think you and I have the same brain when it comes to color, right? I think you are right to hem and haw about it and test it on things. The playhouse is perfect, though!
Yeah – I’m really waffling. I love the color, but on the ENTIRE HOUSE? I really planned to go dark on the siding until we decided on black windows and it’s thrown me for a loop.
I have a few more subtle samples headed my way, so we’ll see what happens.
I love it! It’s so happy. Those toddlers and their honesty!
You always know where you stand with them, don’t you?
Oh Henry!! He’s the cutest! Love the playhouse pimped. I dig the teal.
Thanks!
ha! I love Henry’s reaction! Ari was the same way about anything changing….uh, he kind of still is, in fact. But not as bad as when he was three 🙂
Silly three-year-olds.
Aww it looks so cute! I love what said about paint haha, pretty much what you say about monograming in the south. I’m glad he came around to it!
Hahahaha…… makes me laugh about monogramming. -=)
What a cute little play house! I love the color for a “real” house. If you are worried that it will be too much, it could be toned down or broken up with more white trim. I think it would be gorgeous!
Thanks, Alicia! We’ll definitely have more trim work and black windows, so I *think* it would be fine. But I’m just waffling.
Katherine’s the same way – change is hard. Ungrateful children! 😉 LOVE what you’ve done with the playhouse. I think the blue you’ve chosen is muted enough that it’s cheerful, but will probably not be overwhelming on a grown-up sized house.
When I lived in Idaho, we had a neighbor who painted their house a bright blue “to match the sky on a sunny day”. It was a BIG house and it was VERY BRIGHT blue in comparison to the muted desert landscape in Idaho. There was so much muttering in the neighborhood that they actually ended up sending out an apology letter to the neighbors, saying that they’d repaint when they had the spare funds to do so. I don’t remember them ever really toning it down. I think the fact that you have trees and green in your neck of the woods means that you can get away with more vibrant colors. Paint on, my friend!
Thanks for the encouragement – I have a few more samples on their way and then I’m just going to decide. That’s it. I really know that deep down, any of the colors I’m thinking will be fine. But it’s not something I want to repaint. Ever.
“I no can’t like this” is practically my motto. I feel him. Sometimes it’s all just too much 😉 The playhouse looks adorable! I love the new colors. And Forrest is just like Henry–it takes him a while to warm up to most of my projects, and he usually has plenty of suggestions on things I shouldn’t have done. Very helpful.
Toddlers are like bad bosses.
I really like the color! It looks really cute- maybe you just need some white trim to tone it down a bit. Could be its feeling a bit one dimensional? I especially like the color on the barn quilt! I guess you could also paint it to match what the big house will look like? Ha! Look how much help in not!
I am waffling big time – I’m usually pretty chill about paint because, duh, it’s just paint. But this is something I don’t plan to repaint so it needs to be right.
that is just the cutest! i want to come play!
Try painting the window frames black also to see if it breaks up the color just enough? Or white?
You crack me up!! I really love the color. And all the cute touches!! You are awesome!!