Choosing an interior paint color for your home can be a very difficult task. You spend a lot of time in your home, and the colors and environment you create to live in is an important aspect of your mental well-being. Here are some simple guidelines to help make the process a little easier.
Before you begin:
What is the function of the room you are painting?
Choose a color that fits the environment you are living in. Warm colors are more inviting, whereas cooler colors are more conducive to sleep. Don’t be afraid to try something more bold, but also remember that bright red isn’t the best sleeping condition for a bedroom.
Look at your already existing furniture and flooring. Unless you are planning on doing an entire home makeover, make sure to choose a color that will coordinate well with your current furniture and flooring.
Choosing a color:
How to get started:
Go to some paint and home improvement stores and pick up paint wheels and samples. Flip through some of the idea books to see if something sparks your interest. Hold the paint samples up to your wall to see if it feels like a good fit.
Still no ideas? Look at a favorite painting for inspiration or open up your closet to see which colors excite you the most.
Should I choose darker colors or lighter colors?
The answer to this question depends on a variety of factors. Using lighter colors in a smaller room can make it appear larger, whereas a dark color in a small room will make it feel closed in. If you have a low ceiling, painting the ceiling white will create an illusion of a higher ceiling. The opposite is true is you have a high ceiling. To create the appearance of a lower ceiling, paint it a few shade darker than the wall color. Also keep in mind that darker paint colors fade more quickly and require more maintenance than the lighter paints.
Choosing an entire color scheme can be a little more difficult. There are four main color schemes.
The first color scheme is complementary colors. These colors are opposite of each other on the color wheel and help bring out the richness of the other color. Examples of complementary colors are purple and yellow or red and green.
The next color scheme is related colors. These are located next to each other on the color wheel and the effect is much more subtle. An example of this color scheme would be blue and green.
The third color scheme is split complementary colors which is very bold. With this color scheme, you select one color and then use the colors on either side of its complementary color. This is a very daring look, but can look really awesome when done properly.
The final color scheme is monochromatic colors which uses the same hue, but different tones and saturations.
Some other things to remember when choosing an interior paint color:
When choosing a color scheme, be sure to look at it in different light. The color you choose in the store may look very different in the bright sun of the morning or in artificial light.
Keep in mind that the colors on paint samples in stores don’t necessarily look the same as they will on your wall. Paint a piece of poster board and put it up next to the wall to see how it looks.
Good luck painting!
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