December, 2019
Pantone Color of the Year 2020.

The Pantone Color Institute just announced their color of the year for 2020. They have chosen Classic Blue. If you close your eyes and think about it the name Classic Blue probably sparks your imagination. Blue is simple. It’s primary, unlike some of those crazy names for colors that you can’t quite picture. Continue reading for some thoughts from Pantone regarding what it means to them.

“A timeless and enduring blue hue, PANTONE 19-4052 Classic Blue is elegant in its simplicity. Suggestive of the sky at dusk, the reassuring qualities of the thought-provoking PANTONE 19-4052 Classic Blue highlight our desire for a dependable and stable foundation on which to build as we cross the threshold into a new era.

Imprinted in our psyches as a restful color, PANTONE 19-4052 Classic Blue brings a sense of peace and tranquility to the human spirit, offering refuge. Aiding concentration and bringing laser like clarity, PANTONE 19-4052 Classic Blue re-centers our thoughts. A reflective blue tone, Classic Blue fosters resilience.”

In choosing a Color of the Year, Pantone influences designs for many popular home decorating products, like paint and furniture.

As always, give us a call if you’d like to discuss using this color, or any other color, in your home. If you are not quite sure what you’d like to do, we can introduce you to a professional interior designer who can help you with color consultations and other design ideas.

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October, 2019

Pictures can often say more than words, so I try to take them when I can. As I usually do at certain times throughout the year, I have added a few images here that show a variety of projects from the past several months. Considering the outdoor, Summer/Fall theme I have included only exterior pictures in this collection.

There are many more in our photo gallery

September, 2019

I talked last month about finally getting some nice weather, which gives us hope that we can get many of our exterior projects completed before winter. However, it’s never too early to consider the interior season. We work on interior projects year-round (I think I say it every year), but during the winter months we are inside exclusively.

Beneficial to everyone, the scheduling for interior work can be much more precise, because we are not reliant on the weather. We are happy to work with you to make it most convenient. Perhaps you’d like us to do the work while you are away on vacation? Or maybe you have a second home that is not used as much in the winter, and you’d like to do some interior painting before next spring? These are situations that we encounter frequently.

We are being contacted regularly for estimates, so don’t wait. Get in touch soon.

https://pranapainting.com/contact-us

August, 2019.

We finally got some nice weather, and while working outside may not be everybody’s idea of fun, it does make us happy. The good weather has enabled us to complete some projects that were delayed and get moving on to some other projects that were delayed. The point is, everything outside was delayed for a while, going back as far as last fall, possibly further.

We still have a lot of work to do, but if you have been waiting patiently for us to get to you and your home or business, thank you. We appreciate it, and we continue to move forward with our teams working several jobs at a time. We hope for and expect several more months of comfortable and productive working conditions. We’ll see you soon.

Here are a few pictures of some recent, exterior work.

May, 2019
Interior Painting.

Moving is a common motivation for a painting project.

If you are planning to put your home on the market, painting is an important part of the home staging process. Experts suggest that effective staging can significantly improve your sales results. You want your home to look its best so that it will sell more quickly and for the desired asking price, or higher, depending on the market.

On the other hand, if you recently purchased a home, you may want to change the colors to appeal to your personal style. We had the pleasure of working with some wonderful people over the past few months. Two of our most recent interior painting projects were for couples who moved to the Lake Sunapee region within the last few years. It was time for them to update their colors. 

March, 2019

What services are most important to you? I read a recent painting industry study with an interest in comparing our services with those offered by similar companies throughout the country. The study was the result of an industry survey for the year 2018. I think the variations can probably be attributed to regional differences. I addition, the study shared some information about shopping; in this case how customers are typically finding painting companies. I think this is really a representation of shopping trends overall. I’ve shared a little more detail regarding these findings in the boxes below.

One other glaring observation is that across the country the greatest industry challenge is finding and hiring employees. Those interested in working with us at Prana Design Painting can find us at:   https://www.pranapainting.com/careers.html

Services:

When it comes to what people want, it’s clear that we provide all of the services mentioned, but I thought I noticed an oddity that stood out from our experience. We have found that one thing that clients do not want is wallpaper. Yet wallpapering services were still being provided by 50% of respondents. However, when I looked closer, I noticed that the service was labeled as “Paperhanging/removal”. It makes sense to me that most of those services are likely for the removal of wallpaper. When we do encounter wallpaper these days, it is because someone wants it removed and the walls repainted.

We find that this also holds true regarding popcorn textured ceilings. While there was a time when popcorn ceilings were very popular, that time has now passed. When a home has this type of ceiling, it is usually perceived as being dated and out of style. So, regarding both wallpaper and popcorn ceilings, we are often called upon to remove and repaint. We also do quite a bit of Cabinet Refinishing, as well as Deck/Dock Refinishing.

For more information regarding our services, please visit our website.
https://www.pranapainting.com/services.html
If you don’t see what you are looking for, please contact us directly to discuss your project.

Where people are looking:

Most often shoppers are looking on-line. In keeping with the technology being used in 2018, (now 2019) we try to keep our website and social media sites up to date. These were identified in the survey as the top two sources of information for people who were looking for painting services.
  Drilling down on social media, for those who are using these apps Facebook is by far the most popular. If this is the place where customers are looking, it makes sense that it is where contractors should focus their energy. However, social media isn’t embraced by all. The survey shows that 35% of contractors do not use social media sites.

Also, when it comes to advertising only a little over 10% of contractors use paid services such as Angie’s List and HomeAdvisor. We also do not advertise with those products.

February, 2019
A Great Resource For Design and Remodeling Ideas.

I’m pretty sure that I’ve mentioned this before, but I think it’s worth repeating. If you are not aware of this site, I want to introduce a great resource for getting ideas for your home. If you are remodeling or thinking about remodeling, I suggest that you look at Houzz.com. I’ve been an advocate for years, and you will see many of our projects posted to our Houzz site.

The following story came to my attention recently and prompted me to write this post. It also includes a video. I enjoyed the story and I hope that you do too.
https://www.houzz.com/houzz-tv/retired-houston-couple-replaces-starter-home-with-forever-home-htvvw-vt~119122231

Houzz is very much a visual service. When I just checked, I noticed that there are over 18 million photos posted. There are certain quality and resolution requirements for posting to the site. I’ve included a few of these pictures from past projects below, and you may follow the link to see more. Houzz is also specific to home/residential use, so even though I have some nice pictures of commercial projects, like a library we refinished last summer, you won’t see those projects on Houzz. It is strictly for home ideas and services.

https://www.houzz.com/pro/pranapainting/prana-design-painting

When you first visit you will be asked to register with an email address. It’s a free and simple process, and you may turn off or choose not to receive notifications if you’d like. I don’t work for Houzz, and have no affiliation with the company, I just think it’s a good place to go to learn about new design ideas and see examples of what is being done in the realm of home remodeling and design. It doesn’t replace your designer or architect (or painting contractor) but might help you choose these service providers and give you some ideas to discuss for your own home.

Check out Houzz if you’d like. It might be helpful when making those tough remodeling decisions.

call: (603)-763-9017

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January, 2019

There is no question that innovations in technology have influenced the painting industry. These developments have improved safety, efficiency and productivity across the industry. In the back-office we are better equipped with new, cloud-based, business applications, and on the client facing side we also have advanced color matching tools, safer paints and better equipment. I’m not sure any of this can be called “Artificial Intelligence”.

In the art world, Christie’s Auction House recently auctioned off a painting that was created using Artificial Intelligence (AI). The painting (if that is what it’s

called) sold for $432,500. I guess this quantifies the value of AI in the art market. But like many other items, like homes and cars, the value of a piece of original art is only limited by how much a patron will pay. Can a price that high be typical? I don’t think we have enough data to answer this yet. It might be a unique instance.

Computers are better than humans at many things, but I’m not convinced that painting is one of them. Follow the link below and take a look for yourself. However, I appreciate that despite being created with Artificial Intelligence it still requires creativity on the part of the programmer to develop the algorithm. That kind of imagination and vision is impressive. Is this a new medium for the artist and a new phase in the evolution of art? Also, in regard to the auction price, does the algorithm itself have a value? Perhaps the buyer also acquired the rights to the algorithm?

You may look at the artwork and read more about it here.

https://www.christies.com/features/A-collaboration-between-two-artists-one-human-one-a-machine-9332-1.aspx

In other recent AI news, Waymo is preparing to test fully autonomous vehicles on the streets of Silicon Valley. Some aren’t convinced that we are ready for this, but the Department of Motor Vehicles has given its approval. Most of the time I trust the computer. In my own car I welcome my adaptive cruise control as it tracks the car in front of me and maintains a safe distance. It also helps keep me in my lane and warns me not to change lanes if it sees a car in my blind spot. It doesn’t drive for me, and I still need to pay attention, but I can see how it improves safety. It’s like another set of eyes watching out for me.

It’s a natural progression from cruise control to autonomous vehicles. But I still think humans make better painters.

If you need some painting done, please give us a call.

call: (603)-763-9017

Schedule my estimate