48 October 2020 | parkcitiespeople.com
Living Well
HOW TO PICK THE RIGHT PAINT COLOR EVERY TIME
H
ow do I decide on a paint color?” That is one of the most common questions interior designers get. It’s understandable why people would be intimidated. After all, even the most beautifully curated living space will be M A R G A R E T thrown off C H A M B E R S by the wrong paint color. Walls can always be repainted, but if you want to get it right the first time, here are my suggestions. Believe it or not, but paint color should be one of the last things you choose for a room. Chances are that you already have some furniture, artwork, and fabrics picked out. If so, it makes more sense to choose a paint color that complements your furnishings, rather than the other way around. Another good starting point is to consider color psychology. Blues and greens are more restful colors, so they’re perfect for private spaces such as the bedroom. “Cozy” colors include dark grays and deep reds. If you’re worried about a room turning out too sleepy when you use colors like these, you can always wake it up by introducing contrast. Homeowners who love bold colors should know that you can energize an active space (such as the kitchen) with yellow or jewel
TOP: The ceiling in this formal living room of the new SMU Kappa Alpha Theta sorority house is aqua with a high-gloss finish. BOTTOM LEFT: In this living room, decorated in a transitional style combining traditional and contemporary elements, the gray paint fades into the background, allowing the white-painted fireplace to be the center of attention. (PHOTOS: MICHAEL HUNTER) BOTTOM RIGHT: The celadon green paint color used in one guest room is cheerful and pairs well with the room’s natural wood and African antiques. (PHOTO: NATHAN SCHRODER)
tones like emerald and sapphire. Neutral colors, like white, cream, brown, gray, and beige, are somewhere in-between passive and active, making them an appropriate choice for living spaces. For my clients, I almost always suggest painting the ceiling a color that is half-again lighter than the walls to off-set naturally occurring shadows. Once you’ve picked your color, you’ll want to decide on your paint finish. Gloss reflects light away from the paint, making the color darker. Flat paint absorbs light, making the walls look brighter. If you want your paint color to look somewhat consistent throughout the day, I suggest choosing matte paint. There are various ways to test out a paint color before you commit. My personal method is to paint a large foam core sample in the color I want to try. This piece of foam core can also be carried from room to room, allowing you to see if you’d like it better in one area or another. Because of this method, I’ve never had to repaint a house. I hope that if you keep all of these tips in mind, you’ll never have to, either. Margaret Chambers, a registered interior designer and member of the American Society of Interior Designers, leads Chambers Interiors and Associates. Her colleague Caitlin Crowley helped edit this column. Find more design advice at chambersinteriors.com/blog.
COVID-19 Pandemic Put These Aspects of Medicine in Focus READ ABOUT IT When to Act and When to Refrain: A Lifetime of Learning the Science and Art of Medicine By Dr. Marvin J. Stone $27.84, hardcover; $6.58, paperback marvinjstonemd.com
I’m a retired physician who specialized in hematology and oncology for over 40 years. Looking back over my career, I’ve had the wonderful opportunity to teach, do research, and care for patients while continuing to learn the science and art of medicine. To see your students excel, to perform an experiment that yields new scientific knowledge, and espeD R . M A R V I N cially to help some seJ . S T O N E riously ill patients recover so they can see their children and grandchildren grow up— what more could one ask? The coronavirus pandemic has caused an enormous amount of illness and death throughout the world this year. Over 150,000 persons have died in the United States and there is no end in sight. Difficulty in diagnosis and the lack of effective treatment have altered our daily routines in a major way. Three aspects of medicine have been thrown into sharper focus by the COVID-19 pandemic. Although not unique to COVID, they illustrate our inadequacy in coping with the current threat to our nation’s health.
The three areas are: Access to medical care. Universal comprehensive care for all is a RIGHT. The United States is the only industrialized nation without it. End-of-life care. Always difficult, this aspect is now even more complicated because of additional dilemmas caused by the necessary lack of contact with loved ones. Rigorously designed and implemented clinical trials to test new therapy. Such trials must be based on factual evidence – not testimonials or observational studies. It is difficult to over emphasize the importance of these three areas of medicine and the urgency to effectively deal with them. When we think about how we can improve, we must always bear in mind the three pillars of medicine: competence, caring, and compassion. These core values in medicine and science are crucial in fulfilling our goals: To cure sometimes, to relieve often, and to comfort always. My purpose in writing When to Act and When to Refrain: A Lifetime of Learning the Science and Art of Medicine is to convey to
anyone interested in a medical career the excitement and fascination intrinsic to becoming and serving as a physician. The profession of medicine involves caring, knowledge, skill, accountability, tact, empathy, and lifelong learning. It is challenging and demanding. With all this in mind, I am addressing young people considering a medical career, medical students, physicians who have completed their training (but not their education), and the general reader who has interest in and concern about the status of medical science and health care in the United States. I hope my perspective about medicine will be helpful. Dr. Marvin J. Stone, of Dallas, became the f irst chief of oncology and director of the Baylor Sammons Cancer Center in Dallas, positions he held for 32 years. This column was compiled from excerpts of his ecently published his memoir, "When to Act and When to Refrain: A Lifetime of Learning the Science and Art of Medicine," and a presentation he made for the Center for Values in Medicine, Science, and Technology at the University of Texas at Dallas. He can be reached at cindy.birne@cindybirnepr.com.