How To Choose A Color Scheme

How To Choose A Color Scheme

5 Tips for Choosing Interior Paint Colors

Pick a color, any color. Choosing a color palette for your interiors is that easy. It’s just paint and it can be changed if you hate it. The important thing is to get the project going and overcome the fear of choosing. Which brings us to tip number 1.

Tip #1. Overcome Decision Paralysis.

Decision paralysis is the clinical term for a phenomena in which your ability to make decisions is impaired as the number of choices increase. Every paint company offers literally thousands of paint colors to choose from. This large pool of colors makes it harder to choose the right color, because we are afraid there is a better choice to be made. Go with your gut.

Tip #2. Start with the formal areas of the house.

Specifically, the living room, dining room and entry way. Choose a color scheme for those areas first, then pull one color from the scheme. For example, take the red sofa and tone it down (say, to burgundy) for an accent in more private spaces such as the den, office or bedroom.

Tip #3. Choose a color already in the room.

If you've got a favorite couch, throw pillow, rug or large painting, choose a color you like from one of those pieces. It will help pull the room together. Designers and interior decorators use this trick all the time.

Tip #4. Steal an idea you like from a magazine or tv show.  

This is another secret of the design world. If everyone was coming up with original color schemes there would be no color trends in home décor. Decorators love to make idea boards using pulled pages and cut outs from magazines. But you don’t need a design degree or have to be a professional designer in Beverly Hills to clip magazines right? Pick four or five clippings that fit your taste. Choose one and copy it! No one will notice and it will get you professional results.

Tip #5 Let the architecture dictate your palette.

If you have a Spanish Mediterranean home choose warm colors and earthy tones. Most homes fall into one of 5 types of architecture:

• Contemporary
• Mediterranean
• Colonial
• Craftsman
• Modern

Not sure which type of home you have? Ask a neighbor or a friend. Once you know the type of home you have then the number of choices will be greatly reduced.

Ancient Chinese Proverb: The young inexperienced mind sees endless choices to solve a problem. The master sees only one.