Ever test a bunch of paint, then feel confident that you’ve chosen the right color and then painted the room or piece of furniture only to discover the color is all wrong? I had a recent #PaintFail, and it sucked. I’m pretty color confident when choosing a hue. I due my due diligence buy the paint samples and do large test swatches and then break out my good paint brush once I found THE color. However, sometimes colors just feel so differently once the paint dries.

Here’s the backstory on my recent #PaintFail. In my backyard, I have a Tuff Shed, that I transformed into a Studio. It’s my little office tucked right in my backyard. Originally the front door to my cottage was painted a dark grey. You all know how much I LOVE the color grey. But after living with the color for almost two years, it just felt too dark for such a sweet door. I'm a huge believer that pretty doors should be colorful and not so-so. I gathered lots of inspiration on Pinterest and felt good painting my she shed door a shade of mint. These sweet minty doors were my inspiration.

Mint Door Inspiration

I painted two coats and wasn’t feeling the color at all. I wanted to like the color, but the mint color felt too cold against my dark grey siding. It honestly just felt all wrong. I tried to love the door color, but honestly, while it looks better than dark grey, I’m so not feeling the color, like at all. For a brief moment I was considering painting the cottage door a shade of pink, but then nixed the idea.

After seeing some lovely aqua and blue-green doors on Pinterest, I picked up a few paint swatches from Home Depot. The colors, I found just made more sense, I just knew the colors would work well with the grey exterior without forcing it. While I've decided against painting the cottage door pink; I still think it makes for a fun door color.

Green-Blue Door Inspiration

From the paint swatches, I narrowed down three colors I loved the best: Deep Ocean Teal (dark teal color) Teal Lagoon (dark teal) and Northern Green Woods (a more warm green-blue shade) I painted three larges swatches of paint on poster board. TIP: buy cheap paint brushes for the dollar tree when need to paint test swatches, they can easily be tossed after one use.

I'm pumped to repaint my cottage door, and I need your help! I taped the three large paint swatches on the door and would love your input. Top: Teal Lagoon, Middle: Northern Green Woods, and Bottom. Which color do you love the most?

My gut is telling me, Northern Green Forrest (middle swatch), is THE color, it's not too loud, feels like a cottage color and look how stunning this green-blue shade looks on an even darker home (pictured below) My husban is also on #TeamNorthernGreenForrest The runner-up is Teal Lagoon. I love it too.

I can't wait to get my cottage door painted, so I can kick-off some other exterior updates I have planned of my cottage this Summer. I'm also thinking of changing the current door hardware from black to antique gold or brass. Trust me when I say the updates are going to be so good!

What are your thoughts, what color do you love the most?

I typically share Small Home Style ideas on Monday, but since next week is a long Holiday weekend, I thought I would share today instead. For all my new readers, I started the design series Small Home Style to help fellow smaller home dwellers with design challenges. Decorating and a small home for real life can be difficult, and I'm all about style + function.

One of the questions I get often asked about is my master bathroom vanity in our small bathroom addition. We rebuilt our home four years ago, at the time was difficult finding a small, stylish bathroom vanity that would work in small space. Ideally, I wanted a vanity that had an open bottom shelf to help provide additional storage in our small bathroom. When I did find a vanity I liked, it was way over budget. All the vanities in the style I wanted were easily over a $1000+ for just the vanity. I wanted the look of Pottery Barn but with a Target Budget. Makes sense right?

Instead of buying a combination vanity + vanity top, I purchased a vanity and a quartz top separately to save money. I did a little digging around on The Home Depot website and was able to locate the exact vanity we purchased! In our bathroom we have the Home Decorator’s Avondale Vanity, we had the vanity shipped free to store and installed by our contractor. I didn’t love wood finish on the vanity, but it checked off all the boxes with the look I had in mind. I liked the open bottom shelf, that gave me additional storage to hold towels and toilet paper in baskets, and I liked that the vanity felt more like furniture than a cabinet. Plus the vanity fit perfectly in our snug bathroom.

About a year later I painted the vanity Coastal Storm, and while I love that shade of grey it just never felt quite right with the counter top. Eventually, I plan to paint the vanity Tricorn Black and add trim around the doors to create more depth. Maybe I’ll finally tackle this project on the over the long Holiday Weekend (stay tuned) also; I’m also updating the hardware for a more modern look.

Below is my bathroom when it's all perfectly lovely and styled and not between projects. On the bottom shelf, I have a pair of these woven baskets (currently on sale!) that fit perfectly underneath and stylish hold our extra towels and sheets.

Three Ideas to Customize a Bathroom Vanity

ONE: Paint, it's always the best go-to when a piece of furniture needs an update!
TWO: Swap out the hardware that comes with your vanity for something more custom
THREE: Instead of buying a matching vanity set, purchase the vanity and counter separately and splurge on a quartz or marble top or visit a stone yard and have a vanity top custom made.

As I mentioned, it can be hard to find a stylish petite bathroom vanity that doesn’t feel chintzy and generic. I’ve rounded up 15 small bathroom vanities ranging in size from 24 - 36 inches in various sizes. All the vanities in my roundup are under $500; some need vanity counter tops, and most are available in white, grey or dark walnut finishes.

15 Small Bathroom Vanities

BATHROOM VANITIES: Top Row L-R Gazette Grey Vanity // Glacier Bay // Diamonds Fresh // Kohler Tresham Grey // Second Row L-R Design House Concord // White Vanity // Augustine Vanity // Avondale Vanity // Third Row L-R Diamond Fresh // Gazette Vanity // Albright Vanity // Bottom Row L-R Ashburn Vanity // Winterfell Vanity // Haven Vanity // Teason Vanity

In need more ideas for small bathrooms? This post Small Bathroom Design Solutions is a must read. I'm seriously loving all the pretty vanities, I came across on my search so many options! My favorites are still the ones that have open bottom shelves! Having the open storage is super helpful. One con for my current vanity, the one drawer! My husband and I each share one side, most of my beauty products fit on the drawer, I use a small tray for make-up and holding perfume.

What small bathroom vanity style do you prefer? Have a small home design question? Shoot me an email at Hello@ChicLittleHouse.com