You may not realize the extent of how colour influences our everyday lives. This is something that should be considered when choosing interior colours for your home. Colour not only changes the illusion of a room’s size and shape, it can have a profound affect on our mood.
Colours Have A Psychological Value
Think about the colours around you and how they affect you. Certain colours create a sense of peace and calm while others generate a feeling of energy and excitement. When paint a room you want to use a colour that will create the effect you desire.
What Mood Are You Trying To Create?
Look through decorating websites, magazines and paint company brochures for examples. See what you like and try to think about why you find it attractive. What is the mood of the space?
The feeling desired in this bedroom was a sense of calm and warmth. The relaxed feel has been achieved by using soft colours and by using various shades of the same colour throughout the room.
How Room Colours Influence A Space.
Light colours tend to make a room feel more expansive, airy and brighter. Darker colours can create a feeling of warmth and can make a space feel more intimate or they can make a dramatic statement.
This owner of the townhouse wanted a light and airy feel to their living space and a wall colour that would be a blank canvas for their large collection of artwork that they will be displaying.
Red Colours
Red colours create energy in a room, it can stimulate conversation and gives a strong impression. It is a colour that needs to be used carefully, it may be too stimulating for use in some rooms. It can increase blood pressure and heart rate. It is generally best to use as an accent colour. The right tone of red such as a muted, earthy red or brown red can create a feeling of comfort and coziness.
Orange Colours
Orange is associated with action and can create excitement and energy. It can be bright and cheerful. It’s said to be the best colour to paint a fitness room. This particular room will be used by a book author. They wanted a space to write in that would evoke creativity.
Pink Colours
Certain shades of pink can be calming and said to reduce anger. Vibrant shades of pink can be stimulating or even aggravating. Pink combined with darker colours like black and grays can look very sophisticated.
This space is going to be used as a music room for the owner to practice their cello. The colour has just the right amount of pink to remain sophisticated and elegant looking. If it was too pink it could look garish.
Yellow colours
Yellow can emit a feeling of sunshine and happiness. It can be uplifting, welcoming and somewhat energizing. Yellows that are too intense like sunflowers can be hard to live with. Muted or softer shades of yellow are best to use if it’s going to be painted throughout an entire room. Yellow tends to be a love it or hate it colour for many people.
The soft yellow colour creates a cheery and bright atmosphere for this family kitchen. A colour like this can be a good option for a room that does not receive a lot of natural light.
This gold colour used as the accent wall creates a completely different feeling than the cheery yellow in the photo above. The rich depth and warmth of the gold colour give a sense of sophistication, but still looks cozy and welcoming.
Blue Colours
Depending on the shade of blue it can have a calming and relaxing effect, or it can be dramatic or chilly. Certain shades of blue are considered to improve creativity which makes it a good choice for a study space. Make sure you choose the right type of blue to create the effect you are looking for.
This customer choose a blue for their master bedroom. It has quite a bit of depth, but with a warm undertone that creates a relaxed atmosphere.
This master ensuite bathroom is far from completed, but you can see the blue chosen for the walls gives the room a light and airy feeling. It’s a colour you often see in a spa setting.
Bold blues are not for everyone, but they can look very sophisticated. The deep blue feature wall in this bedroom makes a bold statement.
Green Colours
Green is associated with nature. It can be refreshing or have a calming effect, help you to unwind and relieve stress. Lighter shades of sage and muted or earthy greens are easy to live with. Be careful when using darker greens. They can be harder to live with over a period of time, you may find them too bold. Green is a colour that seems to evoke a lot of emotion in people, they either love it or hate it.
The light sage green feature wall in this bedroom mimics the nature outside the windows and creates a sense of calm.
The rich, earthy green used in this space that will become an office grounds the room and gives it a sense of purpose.
Purple Colours
Purples can be soft and subtle. Using light shades of lilac creates a restful feeling like in this bedroom.
Purples can promote creativity or give a room a sophisticated and dramatic look. Pairing deeper purple with light neutrals helps to soften the colour. The vibrant walls of this young girls bedroom create a sense of whimsy and drama.
Neutral Colours
Shades of blacks, greys, whites and browns are considered neutrals. They are the colours that offer the most flexibility in decorating. If you have a neutrally painted space you can liven it up with bolder coloured accents and furnishings or calm it down by using shades of the same colour. Black can be a very strong colour and is best used in small doses as an accent.
This living room has a light, warm off-white on the walls. There’s minimal contrast in the decor which creates a relaxed feel. Most of the interest comes from different materials and textures.
A complete sense of tranquility and calm has been created in this living room by having the walls and almost all of the decor in the the same soft, warm white colour. At the same time it looks very sophisticated.
This living room has been painted in a warm off-white along with the rest of the house. The neutral palette leaves the homeowner with the choice to go in many different decorating directions. They could do tone on tone, high contrast or something in between.
Gray Colours
Gray can enhance creativity which is probably why it’s used a lot in offices as an executive colour. Gray colours tend to be easy to live with and provide a neutral background for many decorating styles. Grays can be used to create a very modern look or a cozy and laid back feeling like that of a beach house. Darker grays can be used to create contrast between walls and trim or a dramatic feature or accent wall like in this living room.
A much softer contrast has been created with the feature wall in this dining room.
The gray used on the walls of this bathroom create the perfect space to relax and bathe.
The gray on this homes walls paired with the rich wood and fixtures create a modern elegance.
Brown Colours
Brown colours can be very comfortable and soothing. Depending on the shade of brown it can act as a background neutral. Brown can be used in interesting colour combinations like with a pale blue or pink. It can be a good colour choice for a room that people spend a lot of time in like a family room.
The colours used in this kitchen could be considered bold neutrals. A darker brown/grey was used as an accent wall with a lighter grey on the surrounding walls. There’s a nice contrast between the cabinets and the darker accent wall and it ties together nicely with the back splash and counter tops
A monochromatic look has been created in this bedroom by using different shades of brown with the walls, with the furniture and accent pillows. It makes the space feel warm and relaxing.
