How to Create a Paint Color Palette for Your Home
by Ann Marie Damashek, GRI, CBR, SRES 12/31/2017
Choosing the paint colors for your home is a daunting task. With so many options available, picking the right colors can take longer than the actual painting.
But it's a good thing to spend time on choosing paint colors that you're happy with. The color of the room we're in has been shown to affect our moods in positive or negative ways. Your home is the place you should feel the most comfortable, and the colors of your walls should be an extension of that.
Today we're going to give you some tips on choosing the right paint for your home that will fit your personal tastes but will also be appealing to just about any eye.
Take inventory
Before you head to the hardware store to start looking at color swatches, you're going to need to do some research in your own home. While you have the freedom to choose any color you want to paint your walls, it's advisable to take a look at the colors that are already in your home--not the colors on the walls, but the colors of your furniture, floors, ceilings, countertops, etc.
If you have a living room furniture set that you love and a new carpet, odds are you don't plan on replacing these items just to fit the new color of your room.
So, here's what to do. Take out your phone and snap some close-up photos (I mean really close up so that you can only see one color) of your sofa, chairs, and other furniture. Open up your photos and compare them next to one another. Do you notice a color trend in your furniture? If so, one of those colors could be a great place to start your palette.
Choosing a palette
There's no need to go to the store just to get a basic idea of the colors you want for your home. If you're reading this, odds are you have all the tools you need to start making a palette.
There are numerous websites devoted to creating color palettes. But today we'll talk about two specific tools that will be the most useful.
Palette makers
The first thing you'll want is to put one color into a palette maker online (Google will present you with many). This color should be the one that you want to tie the whole house together with.
Color harmonies
Have you ever head of complimentary colors? The term might make you think back to middle school art class. Complimentary colors are a type of color harmony. There are websites that allow you to enter the color of your choosing (in this case the main color you chose above) and it will give you the color harmonies for that color.
Tips to-go
- Choosing various shades of the same color help build continuity in your home
- Putting the darkest colors in your room near the floor and the lightest near the ceiling add a natural ambience to the room
- Use bolder colors for "high energy rooms" like the kitchen, and quiet colors for lower energy rooms like the bedroom