Just like in the world of fashion, colour is very important in the world of interior design. This is because colour plays a large part in achieving the total look of a house. Imagine your house as a blank canvass that you can transform into a masterpiece by the right use of colour. You can instantly change the look of your home just by changing the colour of your walls. That is why choosing the right colour is imperative.
The general rule with colour is that light colours brighten and widen a space while dark colours tone down or make a space look smaller.
So if you have a small space, create the impression of a larger room by painting the walls with light or pastel colours. You can also use a paint that has a semi-gloss finish. This kind of paint has sheen when it dries up so it can reflect light thus making it look bigger.
If you have a very wide space and you want to make it look more cosy and intimate, then you can use dark colours to frame up the area. Dark does not have to mean black. You can use browns or darker and muted tones of red, blue, or any colour that you like. If the room is long and narrow, try painting one of the end walls a darker shade to make it appear shorter.
Certain colours can also make your home look warm or cool. In the colour wheel, warm colours are from violet red to yellow while the cool colours are from violet to yellow green. As the name suggests, warm colours bring in warmth to a space while cool colours bring in a breezy feel. Warm colours work best on bedrooms and other parts of the house where you want to bring in cosiness. Cool colours, on the other hand are suitable for areas of the house that need to be cool and calm like the kitchen or the study room. If you live is very hot areas, painting your lounge sky blue and white will give the feeling of cool airiness and will be very refreshing.
Warm colours such as yellow, red, and orange are what they call yummy colours. This is because these colours can psychologically stimulate your sense of taste. That is why using these colours in your dining area can help make food more delicious and boosts your guests’ appetite. Avoid using these colours in a child’s bedroom as they can be over stimulated at bed time.
Another thing to bear in mind with colours is that you can mix them. Meaning you can use more than one colour in an area. The trend today is to have a feature wall for each area of the house. Feature walls serve as the main attraction or focal point of a room. Creating feature walls is usually done by putting in texture, outstanding furniture, or details that stimulate the senses.
Another way to create a feature wall is by painting one part of the area with an outstanding colour. For instance, your living room is in white; you can create a feature wall by painting one side of the room in mocha or beige. But even though the feature wall is contrasting to the rest of the walls in the room, it should still blend or relate. To make sure that the feature wall would match, just choose a darker hue of your general wall. That way it would stand out but still keep the area looking harmonious.
We hope you are now inspired to get creative.
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