Choosing colors without guilt

I was recently helping a friend choose paint colors. Like many, she had been considering her paint choices for a long, long, long time (years even) Paint can seem so daunting but it doesn’t have to be! So let me try to help de-stress all of you out there buried in paint swatches.

 

1) First and foremost, you are not alone. Don’t think you need to hide all your sample paint cans in shame or live in fear the neighbors will see those 5 shades of white test strips on your living room wall. Most people mull over paint colors more than they do anything else including the furnishings. However, I recommend you consider the purchase of that bright orange sofa longer than a paint color. After all, paint is easily changed! Furnishing are a costly investment and one you live with for years to come (if not generations).

2) Buy the crème colored sofa and paint the room orange!  you hear it constantly- don’t be afraid of color.  Yet, a room is not just about the wall color – consider the whole space.  How much natural light is in the room?  Are you floors dark wood or light tile?  Are your funishings dark and visually heavy or cottage light?

3) Let go of the guilt and be free to love beige! Do you feel most at home and comfortable in a neutral space? Then embrace it and make it your own. Color can always be added with accessories, rugs, drapes, throws, small furnishings and art work. If you already own that bright colored sofa, then let that, not your walls, make your color statement.

                                                                           Contemporary Entry by Chicago Interior Designers & Decorators Michael Abrams Limited

4) Follow your heart, not the trends. When it comes to wall color stay away from the trends. The color of the year is just that, next year it will be completely different.

Inspiration can come from anywhere or anything. A room’s color scheme can be designed around your grandmother’s quilt or your Caribbean vacation photos. Ultimately, it is your home so make yourself happy whether that is in all neutral or a rainbow of colors.

Where did your home’s color inspiration come from?