Basic Colors
Understanding Color Basics
Color is one of the best tools you have at your disposal to create visual
interest in your home. It's the one element that can tie everything together; it
affects the mood you set in a room, it's the creator of optical illusion, and it
elicits specific emotions.
When it comes to picking the right color scheme for your home, remember this:
It's as important to listen to your heart as it is to listen to your head
The Basics of Color Selection
If you look at a color wheel, available at most paint stores, you can see
relationships between the three primary colors (red, blue, yellow), the three
secondary colors (that result from mixing two primary colors together - purple,
green, orange), and the tertiary colors made by mixing a primary with a
secondary color (for example, yellow-green, red-orange, blue-violet).
White and black can also be used to create hundreds of different tints and
shades when combined with different colors.
The manner in which you bring different colors together into a single design
is called a color scheme. There are many different color schemes: a
complementary color one uses two colors opposite each other on the color wheel,
while an analogous color scheme combines three neighboring colors. Although
every color scheme has its set of proponents and and detractors, if you go with
a scheme that you love, you can't go wrong.
Picking a color scheme that works for you is a matter of experimentation -
look around you for encouragement. Nature, magazines, even the clothes in your
wardrobe can all provide inspiration.
Getting started
While it's easy to be intimidated by color, you don't have to settle for a
neutral color scheme that doesn't reflect your unique personality. In the long
run, you will be much happier with colors that affect you in a positive fashion,
than with those that don't affect you at all.
There are some tried and true rules that will help you avoid common mistakes,
as follows...
Step One: Narrowing Your Choices
The best approach is to start thinking about and noticing color. When you see
a combination you like, ask yourself why you like it, how it makes you feel, and
how you might recreate it in your home. Your inspiration for this exercise might
be a garden you passed, the upholstery of your favorite arm chair, a scene from
a travel magazine, a shot in a decorating magazine, or even a painting you fell
in love with in a gallery.
A great way to compile ideas is to start a clipping file. Magazines and books
are both excellent sources. Gather everything that appeals to you and study your
clippings to see what each scheme has in common. You may even own something
already - such as a painting, a rug, or a pillow - that you want to use as a
basis for your color scheme.
If you already have a favorite color, you can choose it as the dominant
color, then use a complementary or harmonious color to accent it. Not sure what
your favorite colors are? Just open your closet and take a look. Not only are
those likely to be your favorite colors - they're also the ones that you look
best in.
Step Two: Playing with Your Choices
Once you've got a concise list of your favorite colors, take it to a paint
store and select all the various shades of those colors from the free paint
color charts. When you get them home, cut out the shades you like and assemble
them on a white sheet of paper. See how they look together.
If you feel one is too bright, too dull, too saturated or whatever, remove it
and try different shades until you find combinations that work for you. Try to
display the colors on the card at the same proportions they'll be used in the
room - this will help you see if they'll work together.
Once you've settled on your color choices, paste all of them down on a single
white card. You now have your own personal color palette to keep by your side as
you're choosing amenities for your new home!
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