Nereida Ledesma
Partner and color lead
Runs the color consults and writes every color plan. Speaks Spanish and English.
House painters in San Diego
Color first, then the paint.
Nereida Ledesma and Jimmy Salonga start every house with a color consult: sample boards on your own walls, then a written color plan. The estimate comes after you've chosen.
The swatch wall
Every color has two names
Some households say marigold, some say cempasúchil. Our wall shows both, so you can point and say it your way. Tap a color to see it in a room.
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Sample photos.
The color consult
From “something warmer” to a color plan on paper
Four steps, one visit, and no paint chosen before you've seen it on your wall.
- 01
Step 1: We walk the rooms with you
Nereida or Adamaris looks at the light, the floors, the furniture and the colors you already live with.
- 02
Step 2: You hold chips up to the wall
We bring a fan deck and a few dozen chips. You pull the ones you can't stop looking at.
- 03
Step 3: Sample boards go on your walls
We paint large boards and tape them where the color will live. You see them in marine layer, midday sun and lamplight.
- 04
Step 4: You get a color plan on paper
Each room's color, sheen and trim, written down so the estimate and the crew work from the same page.
How many colors
How many colors does a house need?
Most rooms and houses need between one and three. Here is what each choice means for the job.
| On the job | Calm: one color and white trim | Layered: body and trim | Bold: body, trim and one accent |
|---|---|---|---|
| Inside | Calm: one color and white trimOne wall color through the room, white trim and ceiling | Layered: body and trimWall color with a deeper trim or ceiling color | Bold: body, trim and one accentWall color, trim, and one accent wall or built-in |
| Outside | Calm: one color and white trimOne body color, white trim | Layered: body and trimBody and trim in two colors | Bold: body, trim and one accentBody, trim and a front door in a third |
| It suits | Calm: one color and white trimA house that should settle into its street | Layered: body and trimA house whose lines you want to show | Bold: body, trim and one accentA room or house you want to be remembered |
| What it asks of you | Calm: one color and white trimOne sample board per room | Layered: body and trimA trim color that works with the body | Bold: body, trim and one accentA color plan on paper before we paint |
What we paint
Four ways to start
Exterior repaint
Stucco, siding, trim and doors, with the prep sun and salt air ask for.
Exterior painting
Doors and accent walls
A new front door or one bold wall is the smallest change that still shows.
Color help
How pricing works
What goes into the number
We don't post prices. Every house is different, so the number comes in writing after the consult.
What decides the price
Painting is priced by the room or the wall, not by the gallon.
Surfaces, sizes and heights
Prep and repairs
Coats, sheen and paint grade
How many colors, and a deep color needing extra coats
What the estimate includes, and what it doesn't
It lists each room or wall on its own line.
Included: prep, listed repairs, primer, coats, cleanup
Not included: repairs found later, colors added later
Anything not on the page is priced before we do it
What happens at the consult
Nereida or Adamaris walks the rooms and paints sample boards.
We look at light, walls and what you already own
We write your color plan while we're there
The consult's terms are in writing before you book
Paint and who buys it
We buy it, and the estimate names the line and sheen.
Ask for the product data sheet for any paint listed
Specialty colors are noted on the estimate
If the job changes
A new color or an extra wall is priced in writing before we do it.
You approve the change first
The change is added to your estimate page
When you get the number
In writing, after the consult and before any work.
The payment schedule is on the same page
Terms, limits and exclusions of the warranty are in your written warranty
The crew
Nine of us, and you meet the ones who paint
Two partners, two lead painters, a prep and sample-board specialist and four painters. Spanish is spoken by Nereida, Nacho and Adamaris.
Jimmy Salonga
Partner, estimates and schedule
Walks every exterior, writes the estimate and keeps the crew's calendar. Speaks English.
Nacho Chaparro
Lead painter, exteriors
Stucco, siding and trim. Speaks Spanish and English.
Adamaris Negrete
Lead painter, interiors
Ceilings, cutting in and doors. Speaks Spanish and English.
Emi Ishikawa
Prep and sample boards
Paints the sample boards and runs the prep list before every job. Speaks English.
Where we paint
San Diego neighborhoods, coast to canyon
Type your ZIP code to see if we come to you. If your neighborhood isn't listed, text us and we'll tell you.
- Central San Diego: North Park, Rolando, Normal Heights, Hillcrest, Mission Hills, Golden Hill, South Park, Talmadge, Bankers Hill · Our shop is in Normal Heights.
- Coast and bay: Point Loma, Ocean Beach, Pacific Beach, La Jolla, Bay Park, Clairemont · Exterior starts wait for the marine layer to lift.
- East and north county: Spring Valley, Lakeside, Oceanside, San Marcos, Bonita
We don't take jobs in Orange, Riverside or Imperial counties.
From homes we've painted
“I came in saying “something warmer than builder beige.” Three sample boards later I'd picked a clay color I'd never have chosen from a chip. It looked right at 8 a.m. and at 8 p.m.”
Annika R.North Park
“Our house is white stucco under a marine layer most mornings. Jimmy had us look at the boards in that gray light first. The blue we chose didn't turn gray on us.”
Fadi H.Point Loma
“My mother lives with us and reads color names in Spanish. Having both names on the wall and on the color plan ended an hour of “which one?””
Hiroshi M.Mission Hills, bilingual household
Sample reviews.
Questions before you call
What is a color consult, and what does it cost?
A visit where Nereida or Adamaris looks at your light and walls, brings chips and paints sample boards. Before you book it, we tell you in writing what the consult costs and whether it counts toward your paint job.
Will the color look like the chip?
Not on its own. A chip is two inches wide and a wall is twelve feet. That is why we paint sample boards and tape them where the color will live, then look at them in morning marine layer, midday sun and lamplight.
How long does a job take?
A bedroom is often one to two days, a few rooms three to five, and a whole house exterior a week or more. The estimate gives a day range and start times, never a promised date.
What is on the written estimate?
Each room or wall, the repairs counted by number, the paint line and sheen, how many coats, how many colors, cleanup, the schedule, the payment schedule and the warranty terms. If a line is missing, ask for it.
My house was built before 1978. What changes?
Federal EPA rules (the RRP rule) cover paid work that disturbs paint in homes and child-occupied buildings built before 1978. Tell us the year when you call. On those jobs we follow the rule's work practices, and our EPA firm number is in the footer of every page.
What does San Diego weather do to an exterior job?
Paint needs a dry surface. On foggy coastal mornings we start later and tell you the day before. If rain is forecast we move the day and say so, and we don't paint over wet stucco.
Who speaks Spanish?
Nereida, Nacho and Adamaris. The swatch wall, the color plan and the estimate can all be written in Spanish, English or both.
Start here
Tell us about the room you can't decide on
A photo by text is the quickest. If you'd rather write, tell us the rooms and the colors you're torn between.
Phone(619) 555-0101
Hours
- Monday – FridayToday
- 7:00 a.m. – 5:00 p.m.
- SaturdayToday
- 8:00 a.m. – 12:00 p.m.
- SundayToday
- Closed
Saturday is for color consults, by appointment.