Feel lost when it comes to paint color? Too many options to choose from? Use these designer tips and interior paint ideas to pick out your paint colors like a pro.
1. If you’re going for a soothing atmosphere, choose a monochromatic color scheme.
While monochromatic means colors in the same family, it doesn’t have to mean beige and more beige. These schemes can be subtle and subdued when using lighter, muted color values, or dramatic and daring if you use rich, saturated hues. A monochromatic scheme might go with a deep purple on an accent wall, and a purple base color skewed to a much lighter value on the ceiling and other walls. Shades of lavender and maroon can be worked in through fabrics, floor covering and other paint accents.
2. Use contrast colors to generate excitement and a warm social feeling.
Contrasting colors are hues that lie opposite of each other on the color wheel. Contrasting schemes are great for bustling hubs of activity like kitchens and family rooms. Interestingly enough, contrasting colors are also referred to as complimentary colors. Hey, opposites attract! It’s no wonder these contrasting colors are pleasing to the eye. Try pairing some wonderful greens with rich terracottas or oranges as in the family room, or maybe golds with deep purple.
Remember: When working with contrasting hues give one prominence–60% or more–to avoid a frenetic, edgy feel.
3. If you are going for fun and contemporary, choose a triad color scheme.
A triad color scheme uses any three colors equally spaced from each other on the color wheel. Think orange, green and purple. Use these colors in varying proportions–a dominant color, a secondary hue and an accent color for pop. These schemes are awesome in deep, sharp colors for kids’ rooms, or try it in “off” hues for a rich more traditional effect.
4. Incorporate some of your favorite colors.
What are your favorite colors? Are you stimulated by the way color is utilized in a certain interior design style, like the embrace of bold, bright colors in Mexican interior design? Does your home celebrate your geographic location? Do you live in the saturated green of the northern woods, or in the stark beauty of a desert environment with gold and red tinged hues? Ask yourself some of these questions to find a baseline to begin choosing your paint color palette.
5. Add spice with accents!
If you’re in color recovery and just starting to embrace color after a lifetime of off-white walls and ceilings, try working with deeper, sharper accent colors. Paint one or two walls in a room an accent color that’s deeper and more saturated than the rest of your color scheme. An accent works best if it’s the first wall you see when you enter the room.
6. Paint your walls and ceilings contrasting colors.
Create interest and drama by painting your walls and ceiling contrasting colors. You can help a small room feel more expansive by painting the ceiling a lighter color than the walls, or you can pull an awkwardly high ceiling down to scale by painting it a dark color.
Have a terrific time choosing paint colors for your interior design plan. Feel free to contact us with your paint or color questions.