How to Select the Right Colors for your Room
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June 7, 2020
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So, this seems like a really simple topic–color. Pick your color, move on…
Not so fast! It is actually a pretty complicated subject. You want to use colors that fit who you are, color is subjective. But, you want to create a well-designed, pleasing space, so you need to consider its effect on mood and style to get those desired results.
There is an art and a science to color and we going to explore that here.
When you are considering your color(s) for a room refer to this list to evaluate the mood each color, most commonly, evokes. Color is a powerful design tool.
Warm colors. These colors are energizing and passionate, they exude enthusiasm.
1) Yellow is the brightest and most energizing. Represents: optimism, clarity, warmth, joy, welcoming, expansive, hope, sunshine
2) Orange, from a saturated, vibrant tone to a muted, peach shade, it evokes completely different feelings. Such as: confidence, cheerful, friendly, aggressive, enthusiasm, calming, peaceful, earthy.
3) Red is the most in-your-face, overwhelming color that you do not want to employ as the dominant color in a room. Evokes a sense of excitement, urgency, passion, youthfulness, bold, strength, stimulating.
Cool Colors. This group of colors are more subdued, reminding us of night, water and nature
1) Purple. The dye for this color was very expensive, so only royals and the very rich could afford it, so it became associated with wealth and luxury. It also evokes creativity, sophistication, imagination, intelligence.
2) Blue has a huge range of shades with a large variety of responses. They include trust, peace, spiritual, strength, dependable, clean, calming, professional, relaxing
3) Green has become a new neutral in design. It is pleasant to the eye and makes people happy. Also associated with growth, health, adventurous, calming, peaceful, stability, harmonious.
Neutral Colors is the group of colors that are the basics for all decorating. You can add color with them to liven or keep with neutrals for a calming effect.
1) Gray can be moody and depressing but has many attributes setting the mood. Balance, calm, practical, timeless, conservative, professional, formal, sophisticated.
2) Black is powerful and should not be overused. Creates feelings of credibility, sleek, strength, elegance, simplicity, minimalism, modern, virtue.
3) Brown is associated with earth, wood, and stone. It sets the tone of dependability, reliability, steadfast, warm, wholesome.
4) Beige/tan can be considered a warm or cool color by taking on the characteristics of the colors around it. Stands for feelings of warmth, piety, conservative.
5) Cream/ivory, lighter than tan, reflects a very different feel from this close relative. Represents quiet, sophisticated, calmness, pureness of white, elegance, earthy, subdued, modern.
Refer to this list, combine colors with how it makes you feel. Cultural influences can also come into play here too.
Not so fast! It is actually a pretty complicated subject. You want to use colors that fit who you are, color is subjective. But, you want to create a well-designed, pleasing space, so you need to consider its effect on mood and style to get those desired results.
There is an art and a science to color and we going to explore that here.
When you are considering your color(s) for a room refer to this list to evaluate the mood each color, most commonly, evokes. Color is a powerful design tool.
Warm colors. These colors are energizing and passionate, they exude enthusiasm.
1) Yellow is the brightest and most energizing. Represents: optimism, clarity, warmth, joy, welcoming, expansive, hope, sunshine
2) Orange, from a saturated, vibrant tone to a muted, peach shade, it evokes completely different feelings. Such as: confidence, cheerful, friendly, aggressive, enthusiasm, calming, peaceful, earthy.
3) Red is the most in-your-face, overwhelming color that you do not want to employ as the dominant color in a room. Evokes a sense of excitement, urgency, passion, youthfulness, bold, strength, stimulating.
Cool Colors. This group of colors are more subdued, reminding us of night, water and nature
1) Purple. The dye for this color was very expensive, so only royals and the very rich could afford it, so it became associated with wealth and luxury. It also evokes creativity, sophistication, imagination, intelligence.
2) Blue has a huge range of shades with a large variety of responses. They include trust, peace, spiritual, strength, dependable, clean, calming, professional, relaxing
3) Green has become a new neutral in design. It is pleasant to the eye and makes people happy. Also associated with growth, health, adventurous, calming, peaceful, stability, harmonious.
Neutral Colors is the group of colors that are the basics for all decorating. You can add color with them to liven or keep with neutrals for a calming effect.
1) Gray can be moody and depressing but has many attributes setting the mood. Balance, calm, practical, timeless, conservative, professional, formal, sophisticated.
2) Black is powerful and should not be overused. Creates feelings of credibility, sleek, strength, elegance, simplicity, minimalism, modern, virtue.
3) Brown is associated with earth, wood, and stone. It sets the tone of dependability, reliability, steadfast, warm, wholesome.
4) Beige/tan can be considered a warm or cool color by taking on the characteristics of the colors around it. Stands for feelings of warmth, piety, conservative.
5) Cream/ivory, lighter than tan, reflects a very different feel from this close relative. Represents quiet, sophisticated, calmness, pureness of white, elegance, earthy, subdued, modern.
Refer to this list, combine colors with how it makes you feel. Cultural influences can also come into play here too.
Take a look at these spaces. How do they make you feel?
Is that the goal for you in that space?
Is that the goal for you in that space?
Selecting harmonious color schemes
Now, you have a little idea about how color affects our moods. We want to take that knowledge, combine it with our personal favorites, add to what will fit the theme of your room and we can develop the color scheme.
Now, you have a little idea about how color affects our moods. We want to take that knowledge, combine it with our personal favorites, add to what will fit the theme of your room and we can develop the color scheme.
Basic color groups. There are 3 groups that colors fit into. A) PRIMARY COLORS are those that can not be made by mixing any colors together to make. Red, yellow, blue. B) SECONDARY COLORS are made by mixing the primary colors. Orange, purple, green. C) TERTIARY COLORS are ‘6 shades that are made by mixing primary and secondary colors. Vermillion, magenta, teal, chartreuse, violet, and amber. Everything on the color wheel are variations of this group.
Look over the color wheel above to view these groups and where they are on the wheel.
As I think you are starting to see, color is a pretty involved, powerful design factor. To use it for the best results you need to include subjective desires, psychological responses, and even cultural influences. You should limit the number of colors to 3 to 4. The color theme styles below will assist you will selecting those colors.
BASIC COLOR SCHEMES
1) MONOCHROMATIC COLOR SCHEME. This color styling is accomplished with 1 color, combining with tones, shades, and tints of that color. What exactly are these 3 derivatives of the base color? A) Tint is a lighting of the color by adding white. B) Shade is the process of adding black to the color and C) tone is the process of slightly darkening the color by adding gray. This is pretty easy to accomplish.
2) ANALOGOUS COLOR SCHEME. This style of decorating involves using colors located next to each other on the color wheel. For example: red, yellow, orange. Check out the highlighted example on the color wheel:
Look over the color wheel above to view these groups and where they are on the wheel.
As I think you are starting to see, color is a pretty involved, powerful design factor. To use it for the best results you need to include subjective desires, psychological responses, and even cultural influences. You should limit the number of colors to 3 to 4. The color theme styles below will assist you will selecting those colors.
BASIC COLOR SCHEMES
1) MONOCHROMATIC COLOR SCHEME. This color styling is accomplished with 1 color, combining with tones, shades, and tints of that color. What exactly are these 3 derivatives of the base color? A) Tint is a lighting of the color by adding white. B) Shade is the process of adding black to the color and C) tone is the process of slightly darkening the color by adding gray. This is pretty easy to accomplish.
2) ANALOGOUS COLOR SCHEME. This style of decorating involves using colors located next to each other on the color wheel. For example: red, yellow, orange. Check out the highlighted example on the color wheel:
3) COMPLEMENTARY COLOR SCHEME. This group of color choices focuses on high contrasting colors. A harmonious combination is achieved by selecting colors on opposite sides of the color wheel. The use of purple and yellow would be an example of this type of color selection. The color wheel shown here will give you an easy referral.
4) SPLIT COMPLEMENTARY COLOR SCHEME. For many of us, this is a little “safer” color option to the true complementary selection. Here, you look at the wheel and select from the colors on either side of the true opposites on the wheel to companion with the base color.
5) TRIATIC COLOR SCHEME. This is the use of 3 colors that are of equal distance on the color wheel. Most often, creating a very bold scheme. Therefore, this style is many times employed in children’s bedrooms or playrooms.
6) TETRADIC COLOR SCHEME. This is the most complicated color selection style–referred to as a rectangle scheme because of the shape it creates on the color wheel. For this to work, you need to select distinctive sets of complementary colors. One set of colors must be “cool” colors and the other set must be “warm” colors. You will, also want to incorporate a balance of patterns and solids with a balance of warm and cool colors. This is the formula for successfully using 4 colors in a room.
6) TETRADIC COLOR SCHEME. This is the most complicated color selection style–referred to as a rectangle scheme because of the shape it creates on the color wheel. For this to work, you need to select distinctive sets of complementary colors. One set of colors must be “cool” colors and the other set must be “warm” colors. You will, also want to incorporate a balance of patterns and solids with a balance of warm and cool colors. This is the formula for successfully using 4 colors in a room.
As you can see on the wheel I placed here, there are 2 options to using 4 colors effectively in a room. This second style is called the square color option. Here, you select colors that are evenly spaced across the wheel. These choices will give you 1 primary color, 1 secondary color, and 2 tetradic colors. Use one of the colors as your dominant hue and the other 3 will all be accent colors.
Now, that was actually kind of fun when you can use a color wheel. It will assist you in selecting harmonious groups and a visual of what you, personally like.
TIP: Consider your room size in your color choices. Warm colors in a small room can make it feel claustrophobic. The bright colors are too “in your face” for the space. Cool colors in a large room will leave it feeling stark and cold. So, we need a balance and consider the overall size of the space.
After you have selected your color palette, the job of how to actually use it in your room is very important. Ads you move toward this phase of your design, as nice basic usage is to apply the 60-30-10 rule. This means 60% is dedicated to one color, it is usually the neutral, “grounding” color. A complementary color is another 30% of the design and 10% is the accent color. The easiest way to incorporate an additional, 4th color, is to use a shade of color 1 or 3.
Now, that was actually kind of fun when you can use a color wheel. It will assist you in selecting harmonious groups and a visual of what you, personally like.
TIP: Consider your room size in your color choices. Warm colors in a small room can make it feel claustrophobic. The bright colors are too “in your face” for the space. Cool colors in a large room will leave it feeling stark and cold. So, we need a balance and consider the overall size of the space.
After you have selected your color palette, the job of how to actually use it in your room is very important. Ads you move toward this phase of your design, as nice basic usage is to apply the 60-30-10 rule. This means 60% is dedicated to one color, it is usually the neutral, “grounding” color. A complementary color is another 30% of the design and 10% is the accent color. The easiest way to incorporate an additional, 4th color, is to use a shade of color 1 or 3.
I hope this color information will help you develop a selection of colors for your space that you love and is effective for the overall design of the room. Let me know if I can help.
