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In the days of black-and-white television, few people envisioned what a dramatic effect color television would add to subtly enhancing their enjoyment of their favorite shows. That’s the type of effect you’ll have when you enhance the colors in a room.
Imagine the aesthetic delight you can evoke in a room by bringing some color into it. Naturally, you won’t have a room without any color, but you may have dull colors, muted colors, or gaudy colors that don’t play well together. By deliberately adding the right selection of colors into a room, you can transform a boring, drab room into one that instantly puts people into a good mood.
Why Adding Color Makes a Difference
If you’re not sold on the idea yet and need a reason to get enthused, here are some good reasons to add better, brighter, more soothing, or better harmonizing colors to a room:
· Color in a room adds ambiance to it.
· Color in a room makes its occupants feel chirpy, content, or peaceful.
· Color in a room works like color therapy, dispelling gloomy thoughts and feelings, improving moods.
Adding color to a room can be as simple as using a fine art painting that instantly appeals to the viewer—perhaps, a nature scene, a nostalgic scene with people or animals, or an interesting magnified close up of an everyday object. It can also be as complicated as learning how to paint your own upholstery (which actually isn’t that difficult once you know how to paint fabric).
Where Do You Even Begin?
You begin with observation. When you walk into a room and look around and notice the colors, what do you feel? Write down your visceral reaction to the colors in a room. Perhaps, the colors in the room were too bright or too muted. Perhaps, they were just a little too eclectic and made you feel a little scattered and ill-at-ease. Don’t overanalyze it; this is not about getting things right, it’s about deciding what makes you feel good.
Next, get a handheld visual color wheel. Now, find the colors that match the mood you’re trying to evoke in that room. If the room appears cold and unfriendly, choose warm colors like red, orange, and yellow. Conversely, if the room looks a little too kitschy, then you may want some cool colors like green, blue, and violet. Keep contemplating the wheel until you arrive at the colors you think will work for the room. Think of this exercise as an intuitive science. You will “know” when you have found the right selection of colors.
Finally, think about what the colors mean for you and your family. When you see blue, do you think of water and sky? When you see green, do you think of grass and trees? When you see warm colors like red, orange, or yellow, do you think of hearth fires or a life-giving sun? Again, there is no right answer. It’s not about what you think; it’s about what you feel.
Solicit Opinions to Create a Consensus Reality
Before you take any action, get everyone in the household on board with the choice of color scheme. Harmony is a group experience; it’s not just one person’s interpretation of the best colors. Where there are disagreements, reach for a compromise.
3 Decisions to Make
Once you’ve decided on what colors to bring into a room, make the following determinations:
1. Decide if the chosen colors will match the rest of the house. If it doesn’t right now, see if it’s feasible to change the other colors in the house.
2. Decide on how you will change the colors. Paint the walls or add wall paintings? Paint the furniture or buy new furniture? Change the curtains or find new bedspreads? Look around the room and see if you can change color by painting walls or by painting upholstery. Think about adding a painting, handcraft, ornament, or fabric to the room that has the colors you’re trying to use.
3. Decide on an overall color theme. If you plan to just do one room, then focus on the elements of that room alone. If you plan to change the colors of the rest of the house to match your chosen room, then walk around the house and see what colors work best in different rooms. A color theme usually consists of choosing a primary color, then deciding on secondary colors that either blend with your primary color or contrast with it in a pleasing way.
You Can Do This!
Perhaps you’re someone who understands how the world of color works. You have a natural affinity for mixing and matching colors that delight viewers. When family and friends need help with deciding on colors, you’re the go-to person. If this is you, then you’re all set.
However, what if you’re like most people and never really thing about colors much. You can do it, too. It’s a learnable skill. Either work with someone who is good with colors to see the world the way they do or boldly experiment with colors until you develop a knack for picking the right colors.
You also don’t have to do it alone. Artistic solitude is optional. Why not work with others who love the idea of making the world a more interesting place?
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