What’s your favorite color?
Color is an important aspect of our everyday lives — our wardrobes, our homes, cars and what lands on our dinner plates. We live in a color-filled world.
Deciding what color to paint the living room is something any homeowner or renter must do before buying that first gallon of satin or eggshell paint.
When it comes to color there is no lack of choices — in fact abundance may be one of the problems encountered with the dizzying array of paint options available — before getting started.
From making smaller spaces appear larger to creating cozy or “moody” rooms, color is a driving factor.
Verywell Mind — https://www.verywellmind.com/ —reported recently the growing impact in “Color Psychology: Does it Affect How You Feel?”. The article breaks down the impact of color on our moods, our feelings and even how we behave.
A willingness to take risks or make bold color choices — especially if you are hiring a painting contractor — should be tempered by your overall willingness to try new things. There is no right or wrong — there is only what will bring you joy.
“If you want to take a risk, are you willing to pay to have it redone” if you’re unhappy with the result? That’s a question Nancy Gracia asks clients before their project begins.
Gracia is an interior designer and owner of Bare Root Design Studio Inc. in Newtown.
“How comfortable are you with your color choices in the past?” is another question she poses.
“When approaching color in rooms, if it’s a guest bedroom, taking a risk is better than painting a strong color in a room you spend a lot of time in, unless you truly love it,” Gracia said.
Color is the surface of what we see — and our preferences can be reflected in our cars, our clothes and other large item choices — like blankets, bedspreads and sofas.
She noted using clothing as a basis to pick color schemes for home décor isn’t always the best barometer “because [clothes] can be easily changed.”
That said, colors you enjoy wearing could be a way into exploring paint and décor colors for your home.
Gracia said she loves “moody” interiors and rich, saturated tones are a movement she expects to be resilient in coming years.
“If you take a look at colonial homes — even in Philadelphia and Williamsburg — it’s the same premise. It might not have been aubergine (a deep eggplant purple) but it would have been all yellows,” Gracia explained of a newer paint trend.
“Color drenching” has been around for hundreds of years — though not known by that name. In a color-drenched room, every surface — from walls, ceilings, baseboards, trims and doors is painted the same color.
“It is a nod to what was done 200 years ago,” Gracia said.
While the paint color is the same, paint finishes will be different. For example, eggshell is great for walls, but trim and doors require a higher sheen, like semi-gloss.
Paint sheens will subtly change the way color appears on surfaces — even the exact same color. Flat, matte, eggshell, satin, semi-gloss and gloss are standard paint finishes.
A monochromatic color scheme also means everything is painted in the same color: from the trim to walls and ceilings.
How comfortable are you diving into an uncomfortable space?
Gracia often receives calls about paint color selections with clients and prospects believing they can pick a color and schedule the painter right away. When clients are moving to new colors for the home, she discourages a “hurry up” approach.
She recommends for clients picking something outside their usual choices to paint a large swatch of the wall in the new color “and live with a couple of weeks.”
This allows time to decide if you love it — or not.
She said change is good, and throughout a lifetime, people may change their taste or surroundings — including their personal color story.
For many, painting a room a new or fresh color can be just the right amount of change.
“Sometimes there is a need for change, and we don’t exactly know what that is until it’s presented to us. Sometimes it’s something we would not have even have considered,” she said.
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