Choosing a perfect palette

Choose Your Perfect Palette in 3 Simple Steps!

The first things you want to do when looking at which color palette you would like for your space is to decide on the “feel” you want your space to have. You can review how to get that perfect feel in my previous post about how each color evokes a specific mood.

Step 1- First things first, you need to figure out the mood you want to set in your space. For example, go for the soft blues and greens if yyou are wanting a more tranquil space, a red, orange or yellow if you are wanting a more exciteable space and high energy.

Step 2- Explore the colors at your fingertips! Don’t be afraid to play with color. Once you have selected the color you want, there are a thousand different shades you can pick, again based on the mood you want!  If you want a calm color, mix a blue with a green to get a teal color, or a pure blue with a white to get a lighter shade of blue. If you are wanting excitement but like green, pick a green and add a hint of yellow to get a pear like color. If you want a red but a cooler version and not so energetic, pick a red that has some blue in it to add wramth and yuo get a plum color for romance.

Once you have your main color picked, we move onto accent colors. Accent colors is an easy part.  Accent colors appear in smaller amounts, and usually in throw rugs, cushions, vases etc. A general rule of thumb is 60, 30, 10. 60% main color, 30% accent color, 10% secondary accent color (this would be you the color on your baseboards and frames etc.)

Accent colors can be found on the color wheel. They are the colors that best go with the main color. Easy way to find complimentary colors is to find a color wheel and find your color. Next look at the color directly across from it. It will be your immediate complementary color. This one will be the most bold. You can also find the color directly next to your main color and the color that is 2 colors away from your main color.For example: Blue as main. Orange and complimentary or a shade of yellow.

Step 3- Styling Your Palette.  First things first, find a paint chip with your main paint color on it. Now move your eyes up the paint chip. As you move up that color gets lighter and lighter. This is because you are adding white. Now go down from that color. It is now getting darker. This is because you are adding black to your color. If you have more traditional taste, go towards the darker shades. If you are wanting a more light and airy feel then go for the lighter shades. If you are going for a more contemporary modern feel, then you can use the main color as is.

You can pick some accent pieces based on choosing a lighter or darker shade of the main color.

Hope this helped you pick your palette.

Check back next wek for ideas on the different types of palettes you can choose!

Mini Color Lesson-How Color Evokes Emotions

This week we are going to have a mini color lesson. This lesson will be broken down into various parts and over the next few weeks I will touch on different moods, so make sure to come back regularly to get the full scope on the lesson.

Here we are going to go over how different colors bring out different feelings/emotions.

Tranquil and Calm

To achieve this feeling in a room, we are going to look at the blues and greens. Blue and green are nature colors and in their state of calmness they evoke calmness. So naturally they would create a calm space in a house.

Blues and greens reflect the ocean, sky, grass and trees. Greens are inviting and comforting while blues are calming and relaxing.

Some words that are associated with green: restful, tranquil, soothing, cool, refreshing, traditional, stable, conservative, calm, spacious, relaxing.Some common words that are associated with blue: clean, relaxing, serene, refreshing, classic, conservative, traditional, hospitable, professional, dependable, confident, nautical

Romantic

Red is the color of love and passion, but be cautious of red, it can evoke anger depending on your personality. Red is a very common color for a  bedroom depending on the shade of red you chooce ( we will discuss this further in another tip). Some words that canbe associated with red: power, energy, excitement, strength, hot, seductive, passionate, aggressive,attention-getter, fire, blood, danger.

Sensual/Contemplative

To create this type of room choose a purple. The energy for this type of mood comes from red, and the calmness from blue.It embodies the two different colors as one. If you like the warmer feel of red but dont want red, choose a purple that has more red in it such as a plum. If you like blue (a cool color) then choose a purple tone that has more blue. Some words that are associated with purple: regal,sophisticated, rich, dignified, magic, spiritual, mysterious, exotic, melancholy.

Joyful and Energetic:

To create a bustling energetic space, choose an orane or yellow. These colors evoke energy, joyfulness and excitement. People who lean towards oranges and yellows tend to be extremely social and fun loving. They enjoy the hustle and bustle of life and want to bring that feeling into their home. Some words that are associated with yellows and oranges are: warm, sunny, joy, bright, happiness,confident, adventurous, sociable.

Clean and Fresh

To create a room that feels clean and fresh, choose a white.Now i know many of you are screaming WHITE?! Theres no way I am painting a room white. White can be a very powerful color and can come in various shades of white. Any color plus white equals an almost foolproof color scheme. You can use white in various ways, either as accent pieces or on your walls and bring color in by using the furniture and accent pieces. You can have a lot of fun with white, it allows you to get creative.
Some words that are associated with white are : purity, sterility, fairness,snow,frost,clean,fresh,airy,harmless,honorable,fortunate.

Stay tuned for more tips next week on how to create a color scheme with all the colors of the rainbow!

Simple Ways to Update Your Bathroom

Transform your home with the help of our Interior Designer. Here you will find many tips and tricks of Interior Designing, for indoors and outdoors, for holidays and every day living.

Check back weekly for our Weekly Design Tip!

This weeks Designer Tip: Simple Ways to Update Your Bathroom

Tired of the same look in your bathroom? Don’t want to spend alot of money?

Here are a few ways to change things up a bit in your bathroom.

1. Update the cabinetry hardware. One of the  cheapest things you can do is update the handles on your cabinets etc. Instead of using gold, go with a brushed nickel. Instead of using a round handle go with a more linear handle.

2. Change the light fixtures. Another simple and innexpensive way to upate the bathroom is to change the lights. If you have those big bulgy bulbs go for a more elegant light in the same type of finish as your cabinetry hardware.

3. Get rid of that old drab looking faucet! Spruce up the bathroom with new faucets. You can go fancy or simple and elegant. Faucets can get pricey so choose wisely where you want to spend your money.

4.Switch out your mirror.  If all you have is one large piece of glass for your mirror, why not frame it? Or if you have a framed mirror think about repainting it a different color.

5. Change up the color scheme in your bathroom. Don’t want to paint the walls but are tired of looking at the same color? Change up the easy things like your shower curtain, bath mat and linens.

6. Bring in new accesories.  Go ahead,  buy a fancy toothbrush holder and soap holder and add a few decorative accent pieces to the countertop! It’s ok to splurge on the little things every now and then.

Have fun and enjoy your new bathroom with out needing to spend a lot of money!