Re-Design Blog

PAINT.........What a difference a day makes with paint color.   The power of color is seen throughout the industry, from paint, tiles and even appliances.  Painting a room has the most impact for the least amount of money than any other decorating component.  It has the capacity to breathe new life into a tired room, making your funishings look fresh and new.

Picking the right color can compliment architectural features in a room or downplay structural flaws...............but, finding the right color can be a challenge, even for designers.

You can play it safe by picking the standard "whites & beiges", or step it up and pick the color that will have the most impact for your dollars spent.

When choosing a color start by looking at the "fixed" features of your home or office, i.e...flooring, cabinets, wood tones, etc, as these would be considered more "permanent". 

Start out by looking at a paint color wheel and pick the darkest color that best compliments the room's decor.  Now, slide up  toward the lightest color and in between will be the hues to consider for your room.

Remember, look at the color in morning, afternoon and evening light.  When painting a sample of color on the wall to view, remember to never put the color in the middle of a white wall.  It will appear to be too dark next to the white toned wall.  Always put the paint sample on an end wall down to the flooring.  When viewing the color, hold up a paper to the left eye so you are only looking at the new color by itself and not in contrast to the existing color.

When considering an accent wall, choose a color that is complimentary to the exisiting walls on the color wheel.   One to two shades darker will not create enough of a contrast for an accent wall.  Therefore, you should choose a color that is at least three shades darker.

YELLOW

Yellow illuminates the colors it surrounds.  It warms rooms that receive northern light but can be too bright in a sunny room.  It's best for daytime rooms, not bedrooms.  It has a short range, which means as white is added to yellow, it disappears.  yellow highlights calls attention to features--think of bright taxicabs.

RED

Red is powerful, dramatic, motivating.  Red is also hospitable, and it stimulates the appetite, which makes it a favorite choice for dining rooms.  Some studies have indicated that a red room actually makes people feel warmer.

BLUE

Blue with its associations of sea and sky, offers serenity, which is why it is a favorite in bedrooms.  Studies have shown that people think better in blue rooms.  Perhaps that explains the popularity of the navy blue suit.  Cooler blues show this color's melanecholy  side, however.

PURPLE

Purple is royal, independent.  True purple is a mixture of equal amounts of red and blue.  Various shades of the color range from deep eggplant to delicate lavender.  As a decorating color, it goes in and out of fashion, but always looks pretty as a pastel or as an accent.

GREEN

Green is tranquil, nurturing, rejuventating.  It is a psychological primary, and because it is mixed from yellow and blue, it can appear both warm and cool.  Time seems to pass more quickly in green rooms.  Perhaps that's why waiting rooms off-stage are called "green rooms."

PINK

Pink is preceived as outgoing and active.  It's also a color that flatters skin tones.  Hot shades are invigorating, while soft, toned-down versions can be relaxed and charming.

NEUTRALS

Gray goes with all colors....it is a good neighbor.  Various tones of gray range from dark charcoal to pale oyster.

BLACK

Black is technically the absence of  color.  It enhances and brightens other colors, making for livelier decorating schemes when used as an accent.

ORANGE

Orange is energetic and sometimes overpowering when used full-force, but it has lovely softer sides as well.  Like red, orange stimulates the appetite; that's why so many fast-food restaurants use it in their decor and logo.  Because orange is so vibrant, it requires some contrasts to cool it down.

THE   COLOR  WHEEL

The color wheel is a tool decorators use to see the relationship of one color to another.  The primary colors (yellow, blue, and red) are combined in the remaining hues (orange, green, and purple).  Neighboring colors harmonize and blend into one another, just as voices do in harmony.  Complementary colors--those opposite one another on the color wheel--offer contrast and enhance one another.  Colors that are not complementary make each other less true--blue and green become teal, for example.

Real Life Decorating