Choosing Your Colors

After you have decided the decorating style you like, focus on your taste in colors, especially those that go with your favorite style. think about the colors in your closet. Think about the things you already own.

Color is the single most important ingredient in decorating. colors send messages. They create mood and can make you actually tingle with excitement. They can be dramatic or tranquil; they can suggest styles. Colors have the ability to enlarge or minimize a room or a piece of furniture. Think of yow a dark, drab room can be changed by a coat of paint.

Moods and styles can be created with color. A formal mood--as in a classic Victorian house --is best accomplished with roses, blues, beige, wine, royal blue and pinks. Since pinks are soft and restful, they are good for bedrooms. Pinks and greens may be used in country cottages. for the contemporary look, use blues, greens, off-whites, lemon yellow and grays. For country French, use yellows, blues, and whites. For southwestern, use terra-cotta colors with primary colors and turquoise accents.

Use yellows to make gloomy rooms look sunny and cheerful. Paler shades give a softer look, If you add blues or turquoises to green, you create the effect of water. Dark blues and greens are good bedroom choices, but red --a stimulating color--may not be. It is good for kitchens unless you are aiming to eat less.

Consider the amount of light in the room you are decorating. How will each color look in the available light? Both artificial and natural light affect the colors you choose, so bring home as large a sample of the color as possible to view at different times of day and in different lights. Incandescent light enhances warm colors and washes out cool colors. A color's value is changed by the surrounding light. Low light values darken colors, but too much light can make it seem weak. Select colors that everyone in your home likes.

Painting your home all one color saves on paint, so a monochromatic color scheme in which one color is used in varying shades will make your house look larger like the popular white farmhouse look.

The easiest color scheme to use is the three-color scheme - two main colors and one accent color.

Don't be distressed while choosing a color scheme for a room or entire house. Follow your instincts and the colors in your closet. Select those you would wear in your favorite outfit.