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Posts Tagged ‘paint color’

From the Design Files of Heather B – Daughter’s Bedroom Paint Color

Monday, September 20th, 2010

Design Question

We are remodeling our home and are building a bedroom (11′ by 15′) for our 8 year old daughter upstairs. The room gets somewhat low natural light from a fairly big window on the north wall. The ceiling is flat, but then slants down on two sides and has a natural (somewhat lighter) pine (wood) on it (pine looks a bit darker in photo). We put a forest wallpaper mural (all trees-lots of different greens) on one wall. Some of the greens in the mural are very bright green, which doesn’t exactly show in photo (a bit more yellowish in photo than what it actually looks like).

We are trying to decide on a color to paint the other walls. We are thinking green, only because green would be best with the mural (I think?), although I’ve gotten suggestions of beige instead of green. I would like it to be something more “grown up”, and not look like a little girl’s room. I’d like something that will not need to be changed as she gets older, yet she will like. We are going for a “nature” or “forest” feel for her room. I don’t want it to be too dark or too bright and I want to be careful that it is not too dull of a color. My daughter wants either green, or the color in our living room which is a brown called “County Cork” by Ralph Lauren. I think that brown is too dark for her room (especially since the trim is kind of dark – no white in the room) and I don’t know if it goes with the mural.

If green is not the way to go, I would be open to consider another color. I’ve looked at lots of greens and some beiges and none of them seem right. I’d like it to work with the mural and the pine ceiling. If I go with beige, I don’t want it to be too close to the color of the pine, as I’d like the pine to stand out somewhat from the wall color. I don’t know if green or beige is better or if I should do one wall green and the others beige? The focus is the mural, so I don’t know if it would look right to have 2 wall colors?

I have gotten samples, put on big poster board and held it up on different areas and nothing I’ve gotten seems right. I have also gone to the Sherwin Williams and Behr websites and put in a photo of the room and tried different colors on the wall, but again cannot find anything. If you could give me any suggestions, I would appreciate it. Thanks!

Design Answer

What a great space! Many parents choose themes and colors for a child’s room that will “grow” with their children so that they do not have to constantly redecorate. A forest theme is a good choice. The room is such a beautiful shape and where you’ve chosen to put the mural provides the perfect accent.

That is the tricky thing about trying to look at colors in photos or in online color visualization programs; other factors come into play, including your computer monitor, settings, etc. Speaking of colors in photographs, I am curious about the green that is on the vents in the first picture. In the photo, it appears like it would be a good candidate for your daughter’s bedroom.

I don’t know which specific greens you were looking at but I selected four that I thought would go well with the forest mural. This palette I created uses greens from Sherwin Williams. You most certainly can use two wall colors in a room. The darker colors like the “festival green” or “pickle” would make great accent wall colors.

Depending on the intensity of the color, if you would like to use beige I would go more brownish than grayish. I would have to see how it works in the room, but I would tend to use cream instead of beige. Again, I selected some creams from Behr you might consider for your daughter’s room. I personally love the “pumpkin cream” because since green is a cool color, I thought that the orange (warm color) hue would provide balance. You’ll have to do your poster board test to see, but the orange cream might make the pine appear too orange. It might work as an accent color, though.

Thanks for writing in. Let me know how it turns out. Come back next Monday when I answer another interior design question. Keep sending me those emails and don’t forget to include pictures if you can.

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Posted in Bedroom Furniture & Design Ideas, From the Design Files of Heather B, Home Decor and Design Ideas, Home Decor Design Ideas, How To & DIY Furniture | 6 Comments »

From the Design Files of Heather B. – Wall Color for Yellow Furniture

Monday, September 13th, 2010

Design Question

Hi, I found your email on a website and I don’t know if you answer personal emails but if you do, then I have some questions. I need to decorate a room that’s got yellowish/beige wallpaper and yellowish/beige floors. I have dark yellow couches and from there I am stumped. I was thinking since there was so much yellow that I would work with grey and dark blue, but what do you think? What colors would complement all the yellow and actually make it look classy instead of boring. Should the carpet and curtains be the same shade of grey, or different? And what colors should the lamps and accessories be? What other colors could I incorporate? Thanks for your help.

Design Answer

Since there is a lot of yellow in the room and yellow is a “warm” color, balancing it with “cool” colors like grey and dark blue is actually a good idea. I know this might sound funny when discussing neutral colors, but if you go the grey route, you will want to make sure that the shade of grey you pick will “play nice” with the beige hues of the wallpaper and the floors.

Pale green is another cool color that will go with your yellow sofas and your floors. The carpet and curtains don’t necessarily have to be the same shade of grey, but they shouldn’t be jarringly different. If you are purchasing either a carpet or curtains or both with a pattern, the ideal window treatments/area rug combination would be to choose a shade of grey that appears in both – again, they don’t have to match exactly but they should be in the same “family.”

Another option would be to use navy blue for the curtains, carpet and accent pillows, gray for the walls and a soft shade of lime as the accent color for one wall.

You didn’t mention what style of living room furniture you currently have in the room you are in the process of decorating. But black and white – white on the walls and black for the curtains and carpet – could work especially well in a contemporary environment. Pairing black and white with the yellow would also be a stunning color combo for a traditional décor as well.

If you have dark wood in the room in the form of coffee tables, accent chairs, etc. adding red and blue to mix, all primary colors, is an alternative to using neutral shades. The rich wood tones will balance the primary hues in the room. You could offset these colors by using white paint for the trim (windows, doors, baseboards, etc.).

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Posted in From the Design Files of Heather B, Home Decor and Design Ideas, Home Decor Design Ideas, Living Room Furniture & Design | No Comments »

From the Design File of Heather B – Accent Color Paint Choice

Monday, August 23rd, 2010

Design Question

I need advice on interior paints. Currently I have Fresh cut Grass (~ cream from Benjamin Moore) colour in my living room. I also have lot of Cherry wood furniture on dotted gum (Brown) wood floor. I like to paint one wall with a different colour. Could you please advise me which colour goes with this setup?

Design Answer

You’re definitely starting off on the right foot. When choosing an accent color for a living room, you want to take several elements into consideration: the main paint color choice (fresh cut grass); the predominant color of the furniture whether it’s construction material of the furniture or the fabric of the sofa/chairs; and the mood you would like to create with your paint choice. Another thing to remember about choosing an accent color is that many people think that it must be bolder or darker than the main color that has been chosen, but it all depends on your personal taste and the effect you would like to achieve.

Warm Colors

Warm colors are red, orange and yellow. They, of course, include any shades, tints and hues in the red, orange and yellow color families. Warm colors have specific characteristics that contribute to the overall mood of the living room and how it interacts with the rest of the living room furniture. A warm color has the appearance of “moving toward you” which is why bright reds, yellows and oranges have a tendency to make a room look smaller in the cozy sense (not the cramped sense). Because warm colors are closely associated with fire, they energize a room. 

Cool Colors

Cool colors don’t mean “cold,” but they do have the opposite effect of warm colors. Cool colors include blue, green and violet. A cool color looks like it is “moving away from you.” This will make the room seem larger; contributing a sense of distance or space in the living room’s décor. Cool colors have a comfortable soothing and tranquil vibe to them.

Even if we are conscious of the affect that color has on us, the color choices in a room does contribute to the overall mood. So, it really is a personal preference, depending on whether you would like your living room to energize (warm accent colors) you or to soothe (cool accent colors) you. However, from the description that you gave me of your living room, but without seeing any photographs, I would be drawn to warm color choices.

I hope this has been helpful. I answer your design questions every Monday, so keep sending them in! I love to hear from all of you.

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Posted in Home Decor and Design Ideas, Home Decor Design Ideas, How To & DIY Furniture, Living Room Furniture & Design | 2 Comments »

From the Design Files of Heather B – Furniture Color Question

Monday, June 14th, 2010

Design Question

I am currently in the process of redoing the family room, since it’s just a mishmash of mismatched furniture with a large plasma TV on the end wall. Because it was previously painted not even two years ago, we’re not planning on doing it again. So the color of the walls are light blue. Same thing concerning the carpet; it’s still new enough that we won’t be replacing it. It’s a soft cream color. I want a contemporary look for the family room, something casual but still smart looking. With light blue walls and cream colored carpet, which would look better, white or dark brown furniture?

Design Answer

The short answer is either white or a darker brown like espresso or chocolate will work perfectly well in a room with light blue walls and a cream colored carpet.

The longer answer is that both choices have their pros and cons. Some people would shy away from choosing white furniture for a family room because it can be easily stained; especially white furniture that has white or lighter colored upholstered seating or accompanying accent cushions. However, white furniture can look smart, especially contemporary style living room furniture. It has the added advantage of being able to go with virtually any other color. White furniture can be a great backdrop for accent pillows of different colors. Or you can implement a standard contemporary color scheme by starting with white basics and accessorizing with black fabrics and other decorative items.

White in a room, whether it’s on the walls or it is the color you have chosen for your family room or living room furniture also has the advantage of opening up the space and making it seem roomier. This is a plus if the room you are redecorating is small to begin with.

On the other hand, choosing furniture with finishes that include chocolate, java or cappuccino will give your family room a much more sophisticated look and feel. Particularly in a room that has an area rug or carpet in a light shade, darker colored furniture will create a pleasing contrast, while adding warmth.

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Posted in Family Room Furniture & Design Ideas, Home Decor and Design Ideas, Home Decor Design Ideas, Living Room Furniture & Design | No Comments »

From the Design Files of Heather B – Wrong Paint Color

Monday, May 31st, 2010

Design Question

Please, I need your professional advice. I have been living in my house for over 8 years and never had the opportunity to paint it. My husband and I went to the store to choose a paint color. We bought “Sand Motif” (Behr) for our living room but when we painted the walls, it was very dark.  We chose white for the “trim”.

We did not expect the color to be that dark but we could not change it. We went back to the store and bought the “Russian White” for our family room and chose the “Antique White RM” (CIL) for our kitchen. We have not chosen our stairwell color yet.

I do not like the “Sand Motif” due to the color. Could you please help me to choose a good color for our furniture; a color that will brighten the family room? Thanks

Design Answer

I’m sorry to hear that the color ended up to be not to your liking. I’m assuming that the white that you have chosen as the color for the trim isn’t brightening up the room enough for you. Other than repainting the entire area, there are some things you can try.

Since you have not yet chosen the paint for the stairwell, why not select a lighter shade that will complement the sand motif color? Then paint two of the living room walls the color that you will be using for the stairwell. The other two sand motif walls will be your accent color.

Do you have enough of the Russian White or the white paint you used for the trim in the living room leftover? If yes, and either one of the whites matches the sand motif, then you might consider repainting two of the walls in the lighter shade and leaving the darker one as an accent color.

As for living room furniture, especially the sofa or the coffee table, again choose a color that is complementary to the sand motif. A complementary color is the color that is directly opposite on the color wheel. For example the complementary color for red is green. Since the living room wall color has green tones, you will want to look for living room furniture that has a light cherry or oak finish. Pine furniture with hints of rose would also be a good choice. The same applies to any window treatments, an area rug or accent pillows you add to the room; select fabric and accessories that complement the sand motif. You can also make the furniture “lighter” by choosing less solid pieces such tables with glass tops or bookcases with open shelves.

Hope this is helpful in giving you a workable solution. Thanks for writing in. Come back next Monday when we tackle another interior design question. Keep sending me those emails and don’t forget to include pictures if you can.

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