How to pick the best colour for your home, a simple 3 step guide.
Photo - Graded Interiors
Hey there and welcome to my blog on all things interiors and styling. I'm Kimber, founder of Graded Interiors and lover of re-purposed and pre-loved everything. When I'm not designing, you can find me anywhere that remotely resembles a second hand shop or out in my garden, pretending I know what I'm doing and willing for things to grow or not die.
I love being an interior designer but have found there's a perception that it's a profession only accessible to the super wealthy and shrouded in mystery. Well I'm here to welcome you into my designers circle and de-mystify all those interior related problems and help you achieve the best results for you and your home.
I thought I would kick start my blog with THE most common question I get asked when helping clients with their homes, colour selection. I can just feel the shudders and hear the moans of despair but fear not my loves, with my quick and handy colour selection guide you'll be a courageous colour connoisseur in two shakes of a paint brush.
Photo - Graded Interiors
Trust the process
When embarking on a renovation project or home refresh, the colour you choose can have a massive impact on how you feel. Colours have the power to alter our moods, from increasing our appetite to calming our senses and colours are used extensively in advertising to influence a desired outcome. This is why getting the right colour really can benefit you in your home, so, this is a good place to start.
STEP 1 - Lets briefly look at the most common colours and see what feelings and words they are associated with.
GREEN - Relaxing, Natural and harmonious.
BLUE - Sophisticated, cooling and calming.
RED - Passionate, stimulating and intense.
YELLOW - Optimistic, fun and warm.
PINK - Youthful, serene and comforting.
WHITE - Fresh, clean and neutral.
BLACK - Refined, strong and impactful.
ORANGE - Invigorating, exciting and fresh.
Now consider what your desired feelings are for the space you are decorating? Do you want to feel relaxed and calm or do you want to feel uplifted and energetic? Whatever and wherever you want to feel it, see what colour above matches those goals and use that as your step 1 starting point.
Photo credit - @Joannagaines.
STEP 2 - What's your colour strength? Are you a bold and brave colour user or are you a fan of the softer shades? By pinning down your colour strength preference, you can begin to narrow down your options.
So as a quick example, you have decided you want to feel calm in your bathroom, and by checking the list above, you have found green is associated with feelings of relaxation. You've always liked that colour so have decided to give it a whirl as a potential option, awesome first step. Then, after having a little think about what types of colour strength you like, you've decided that softer shades are your go to as the dark side seems a little too much commitment (and that's absolutely fine, go with your gut if you want a lasting and happy colour relationship).
Well look at you go! you've got a colour selected and you've decided on softer, lighter shades as your preferred choices so, without all the stress, you've narrowed down your search from thousands of colour options to a core group that you can now go and explore in whatever your favourite paint brand offers. How quick was that? That's step 2 complete, now time for some fun!
Photo - Graded Interiors
STEP 3 - Testing, testing, its all about the testing. This is the exciting part. Getting sample cards, wahoo!! I'm like a kid in a sweet shop with samples and love seeing what's on offer. I recommend getting at least 3-5 different shades of your chosen colour from steps 1 and 2, the more options you have, the better equipped you are to make the best colour selection for your home.
Colours change depending on their location in the home due to natural light direction, the surface they are painted onto and the finish of the paint (satin, gloss, matt etc).
This is why it is important to see the paint sample in the room it is to be used in. If you have sample cards, place them somewhere like a sideboard or tape them to the wall with low tack tape to prevent surface damage, and then revisit them at different points in the day to see how they change according to the available light levels. You might discover that the shade you were considering is just too dark in the evening light or looks too dull in artificial light, so I will always advise to live with the samples for a couple of days at least before deciding.
Now, as great as sample cards can be, they tend to be on the smaller side which doesn't always give you the best visual, so I recommend, if budget allows, to buy tester paint pots and paint a piece of thick card or paper, the bigger size the better (preferable A4 size) with a few coats as this will give you a more realistic idea of how the colour will look.
A word of warning, I know paint selection can be really fun and exciting but those painting urges to buy without testing can also cloud your judgement. Even the best of us has succumbed to our in-store painting impulses and bought a colour that, on reflection, was probably not our finest hour because we just can't wait to get home and start painting with reckless abandon (guilty, guilty, guilty!).
I promise you, by taking the time to do step 3, you will be able to select the most suitable and satisfying colour for your project with confidence and avoid paint regret or feelings of disappointment down the line.
Photo - Graded Interiors
EXTRA HELP - I've tried to keep this colour guide as quick and simple as possible to help you get that perfect home hue but I couldn't let you leave without just a couple little extras to help you on your way.
1 - This is just my guide that I find helps my clients with colour selection but it is not the only way to choose colour. If you are still stuck, try looking through your home or even your wardrobe to see if there are any colours you are unconsciously drawn to that could be used as your next interior scheme inspiration.
2 - Paint finish alters colour perception. Depending on the look you are going for, the finish of your paint can have a big impact on the overall look. Paint finishes tend to come in Matt, Satin and Gloss so make sure your tester pots are in the paint finish you are thinking of using.
3 - Base coats, I briefly mentioned earlier that the colour you are painting onto will also impact the chosen colour once it's on the walls. A lighter or white based surface will make the colour brighter and a dark base will tone the colour down so you need to make sure you are mindful of this. If you are choosing darker colours, especially on woodwork, a dark primer coat will help achieve a more accurate colour match to the sample cards than if you were to paint onto white.
Time to shine my loves, I hope this quick colour guide has given you some inspiration and now I'm handing over the colour crown to you, armed with my three simple steps so you can find your colour confidence and achieve the look you've always wanted for your home. Happy painting!
Kimber Gray
Interior Designer
