How Colour Works Home Styling Advice from Maggie at MHOR design
We see colour when our eyes respond to light wavelengths in the spectrum so the perception of colour varies from person to person. Colour either “feels” right or not so I don’t worry too much about the terminology of it, words like hue, tone, shade and tint are used interchangeably. It is almost impossible to set down rules relating to colour because there are always exceptions, so what matters is your response to colour and how it makes you feel.
Natural and artifi cial light, texture and form aff ect light, texture and form can absorb or refl ect light. Before deciding on a colour for your room look at the amount of light the room gets. If a room is north facing it will appear colder so avoid blue, yet a grey with a warm hue (e.g. Elephants Breath Farrow and Ball) will make it feel cozier/warmer.
If you have a lack of
natural light then you have two choices, either embrace the lack of light and opt for a ‘den’ like atmosphere, or maximize the light by painting in light neutrals and use refl ective fi nishes like silvers or glass. If bright light is the problem (not so much in Scotland unfortunately) then avoid whites and believe it or not yellow as it will leave you squinting due to the over bright eff ect, instead opt for deeper cooler colours like blues and greens avoiding warm colours as it will make you feel hot and uncomfortable.
Colour can be used to trick the eye. Use shades of white and grey to push the walls of a small room out making it appear bigger, however using the same colours in a bigger room will make it feel exposed and cold. Dark colours can have the opposite eff ect of making rooms appear smaller, and the walls close in on you so avoid dark colours if you want the space to look bigger. Obvious? Yes, but it is the single most common thing that people get caught up with…
..Colour that is!
In a small home using tonal colours (colours that are only slightly lighter or darker than each other) will create a fl ow between rooms so the boundaries of each room are insignifi cant however, try painting each room a diff erent colour and it will ‘jar’ breaking up the space, compartmentalizing it.
If you are unsure about colour in a room try using it as a feature wall. Feature walls are usually (but not always) the wall opposite the door. It can also be where you have or want a focal point. Adding wallpaper can give you much needed texture as well as colour. It just depends what you need to ‘lift’ the room.
Next article: bringing colour into your home. 54 To advertise in thewire t. 07720 429 613 e.
the.wire@btinternet.com
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