Beautiful!

Thanks paintergirl.

I should mention there will be white trim molding around the outside edges of the wood wall, and the now window, will be removed and become a wider doorway when the reno is done.
:)

Holy crap! How did you do that? Can you please post some directions? I'm so impressed and I've tried doing similar things in the past and it's been a wretched disaster.

Yeah, I figured you weren't leaving it like that!!
Can't wait to see the finished space :)

that is really lovely!!! love the creamy white and the texture. i love antique pine so really appreciate that you are retaining this original detail!

Awh shucks. Thanks for the comments. I was really nervous about actually putting the brush to the boards, so I did a few samples before.

I had a long chat with the fella at Ben Moore, who suggested I prime then paint straight up or try a deck stain. I did both and didn't like either. Neither retained any on the beauty of the pine, which was what we have wanted from the start. So, I showed my GC and he gave me some grey latex paint he had and I got to playing with different treatments.

Right outta the gate I mixed some cool water in with the paint (ratio was probably 1/3 water to the paint. Stirred it up with a wooden mixing stick, dipped the brush in, and swiped it over the whole board. Then I quickly took a rag and wiped the whole board down. It's not a fussy process in the least - love that - and you really have a lot of control over how much paint you want or don't want.

I tried to vary the boards in depth. You can see from the picture that some boards have more or less of the paint. Tried to make it look realistic to how the sun may bleach it. I wanted that grey/blue/creamish look. (I tried white paint with water, but didn't like it as much as the grey paint).

When standing in front of it, it truly looks like it's been sun bleached and there for years. I'm so tickled. Now all I need is the sand and salt air! :)

I encourage you all to try it. On a skill level, I rate it EASY.

I'll post some pics when all the other goodies arrive and the kitchen is complete. J'adore Garden Web!
-a

Here's the winning combo"

I just came across this post and your wall treatment is exactly what I want to do for a wall in my dining room! I, too, have tried using various stains and wood bleaches to no avail. Because grays come in a wide spectrum of shades (from charcoal to dove, cool or warm, hints of blues, purples, greens, etc.), can you save me some time and let me know what brand/color you used? If you don't know the paint color, can you let me know if the ending result is about the same color as the paint, or does the wood that shows through tend to darken the appearance (in which case I would need to start with a lighter color than I ultimately want). Yours is beautiful!

Wow!! What a beautiful transformation!! What a difference some watered down gray paint & your effort has made! It looks like it was always that way and stood the test of time.

montanapacnw: Thanks for your comments! I haven't checked this post in a while, so thanks for redirecting me...

Okay. The paint color. (You're so right! Greys are HARD and soooo different.) We went with Revere Pewter for our wall color in the kitchen and it looks gorgeous with the painted wall. (Just an FYI).

As far as the grey I used. I have the paint can here (my contractor handed me a paint can he had in his shop that was grey and I went with it, so I can't say I picked it myself).

Here's the details on the can:

Sherman Williams
7667 Zircon

BAC Colorant: 02 32 64 128
B1-Black: - 13 1 -
R2- Maroon: - - 1 1
Y3- Deep Gold: - 3 - 1

(Eggshell interior latex)

Hope this helps. Its actually a bluish/grey at glance. The wood underneath plays a part. Ours was light brown and dark brown in various spots.

Hint: To make it look authentic wipe some of the boards harder than others - this way it looks like some bleached out a little more than others.

Let me know how it goes. It's really so easy...
Good luck!
-a

Thanks, Amylucey! I'm off to give it a try.

Wow that is really pretty! Hey, either your len's is dirty or you have company...check out all the orbs in your picture lol.