Several people have asked, over the years, if 'The Great Orange Wall' has mellowed since its construction back in 2012. Well the simple answer is NO. Here it was yesterday morning; shining like a beacon in the early morning sun (and mist).
In Summer the wretched wall is reasonably camouflaged by Wisteria, Fig, and Lavatera, but at this time of year it's all too glaringly present.
I'm a rank amateur when it comes to building, but there's one thing I always insist on; I do several test strips before deciding on any colour of rendering, painting, plastering, etc. One has to wonder why a so-called professional would not do the same. A bad decision of this sort can stick out like a sore bloody thumb for bloody years.
I mean; just look at the bloody (edited) thing! Lumberjack's own Uluru.
43 comments:
All I can think of, if that is your land in front of it, is lots more planting of nice bushy evergreen shrubs.
fast growing ones!!!
Yes, it is the color of Uluru, how wonderful to have it in your back yard:)
We've put in a lot of stuff in front of it, but all deciduous. We're now hoping it might simply fall down; it was very badly built and is cracking all over.
I wish it was in someone else's back yard. It's not always the colour above, usually it's slightly less shocking.
It is a particularly unpleasant shade of orange - pity the sun isn't strong enough to have faded it to a more pleasant hue. As Sue says, what about planting something evergreen? Is that your planting in front of it? Other than that, I can only suggest that you nip out in the dead of night with a roller and paint of a colour your prefer..et voila ! problem solved.
To the right of the wall we have planted a row of Leylandii, but everything actually in front of it is deciduous. In summer it's almost invisible, sadly not the case in winter. We're still hoping it'll mellow.
Cro...does that eyesore belong to your absent neighbours.....the ones who trim their hedge with a tractor-mounted flail?
Or have you been cursed with some neigbours with terrible taste and a total ignorance of the feelings of others??!
Same people. My other neighbours are all charming. This one just happens to be adjacent to our orchard. The wall used to be a pleasant green hedge.
I'm not up on garden walls in your country; is that a boundary wall between you and neighbors. Why does it have a 'house building' on the left and a window in the middle? Is it a building / store which doubles as their wall? Sorry about the eyesore!
It's a recently built wall by his pool. The end bit is the pump house, and the window (I presume) is to spy on us. We also think he's built it on our land, by a foot or so. It really is an eyesore.
I learnt the hard way that tester pots are the way to go after a bad experience with a wall in my old flat turning out the perfect match to a tub of mint choc chip icecream. Eww Arilx
Some people haven't got a clue, have they Cro ? Out of every colour in the spectrum, they had to choose orange !!!! At least it's only in the Winter that you can see it which is it's only saving grace. From what part of your house do you see it ? XXXX
Picnic at Hanging Rock...
I think this especially applies to exterior rendering, which is going to be there for a very long time. At least I'm comforted by knowing that HE has to look at the same colour from his pool area.
We don't see it from our house, but from the barn it's at the end of their orchard on the right. We planted trees strategically, so that it'll be hidden from where they sit outside, but....
And guess who I'd like to see hanging there. I know I'm a bit hard on him; he used to be quite pleasant, then he had a Cancer scare and turned very weird.
There was a big debate (why?) about the colour of Mrs B. Obama's dress. Was it yellow, orange, mustard... and the winner was Marigold. Should have seen your wall as it looked very similar.
Can you paint your side of it a more pleasing color? What would your neighbor say?
It's not as bad as le château Lalande, in Saint-Sylvestre-sur-Lot. Have you seen that place? I think it's ghastly. I suppose I'm just not a lover of bright colours.
If it is on your property can't you paint it?
We have just been out driving through South Norfolk and I saw an old house painted in a colour very similar to this orange and then another a few miles on painted yellow. I had never noticed them before. I think all bright places like this tend to show up in the winter and the rest of the year you hardly notice them, a bit like you said about the wall.
'The Marigold Wall', it certainly sounds better than 'orange'.
I'm not sure if he'd be too happy about us painting it, maybe I'll plant Ivy everywhere.
I'm very surprised that they were allowed to paint it in such ghastly colours; it looked perfectly nice before.
There's a lot of Pink in East Anglia, which actually looks very good. This just doesn't go with everything else that's stone coloured.
Not really; I'd have to ask his permission.
Wow. What a crazy color choice. Was your neighbor on drugs? :)
They certainly grow plenty.
It has a Tuscan feel to it. One time I bought a can of paint which was supposed to be terra cotta but found out it was bright orange. Wanted to cry. I can't live with orange on a daily basis; I always think, what happens when I get a migraine and have to wake up to that? Went out and bought a warmer color to sponge on top and it turned out well.
Your photograph reminds me of pictures I've seen of Ayers Rock.
Best wishes.
I agree Cro - it is a bit hard on the eyes.
Just a question to you answer to Helsie's question: are you on reasonable speaking terms? Would you ask his permission? Just wondered...
My house is cream, the one on the right is pink and the one on the left is green. The man in the pink described them a Neopolitan like ice cream.
She's not pretty. Can't you spray paint your side of it?
Wot; with graffiti?
It sure is.
That was the Uluru reference. They don't like to call it Ayers Rock any more.
In Tuscany it would probably be fine, but it's far too orange for here. we're more pale stone.
I speak to his wife, who's very nice; but not to him.
Surely it gives you a lovely glow to warm your cold winter days.
I do learn a lot here. Best wishes.
If it is hard on your boundary....or even on your land...spray it with a mixture of yoghurt, soot and cow dung (filtered)....he won't see it and you will soon have an assortment of mosses, lichens and probably small ferns growing on the "formerly" orange horror!!
Alternatively, pay to have a geometer check your boundary... Don't tell the neighboursI
If it is on your land.... paint it any colour you like!
Even paint a huge landscape with pleasant green hedge and sign it...if he notices, then present him with the geometer's findings...and a bill for the land rental!!
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