kitchen collaboration

I had a Classic Marital Dilemma this weekend. So classic, I had to poll a few married friends at church for counsel.

The dilemma was this: Matt kindly agreed to a kitchen/fireplace room paint color that he wasn't sure about. I convinced him that we needed something 'warmish'. Not quite yellow, or orange, or brown, but some combo thereof. We settled on a color called 'Honey pot,' bought two gallons, and Matt and his brother painstakingly prepped the area (just the kitchen; both rooms was too big a project for one weekend) and dived into the painting part.

I went downstairs Sunday morning and had a gander. Um. Not so good. I started feeling a little queasy at the thought of all the hard work the boys had put into it, and the impression I had that Matt didn't like it much, and was just doing it to please me. But I wasn't that pleased. Should I say something at that point, or not? The edges WERE still taped. And the other half of the room had yet to be painted ...

Here's what we had. (Matt's holding up a jar of peanut butter because his dad, who actually said he liked the color, compared it to PB. If you ask me, you're being overly insulting of said sandwich spread.)

When we moved in, the walls were covered with blue-and-white flowery wallpaper. They've been blindingly primer white for the past six or eight weeks, ever since Matt and Nick stripped off the paper. So in a sense, any color was welcome.

More:

It doesn't look TOO bad in the kitchen, but on the big empty walls of the adjoining room ... I just couldn't see it.

So here's what we've got now. Feel free to render your honest opinion. The new one is a bit too 'male/austere' for me, but it's an improvement. And I can't honestly think of what color would be better ... and, c'mon! Oregon dunes! The only thing that would be more perfect would perhaps be 'Starbucks mocha' or 'Cougar pride'. But that last one would've meant crimson walls, which ... ew.

It'll all come together with the darker laminate countertops (granite's too rich for our blood just yet) and hardwood floor we're planning.

If anyone's wondering, yes, I do feel twinges of guilt for spending more time pondering kitchen improvements than the plight of starving children worldwide. But, there it is.