Some people obsess with picking the exact right colors for their homes but most of them don’t. Not everyone can stay up-to-date with the latest color and design trends. That’s where a color consultant comes to rescue.
As a color consultant, I have seen clients take countless trips to the paint store before deciding to call it quit and hire a professional color consultant for their project. They think they have no idea what to pick for their home but that’s not true. They just lack the vision and confidence to trust their choice.
So, whether you feel confused because of endless paint choices. You are looking for the confidence to experiment something new. Or, you feel overwhelmed by the fear of managing a tricky space. I have some surprisingly easy color secrets for you to use on your next project.
Give these color secrets a read to help you make the process of transforming your home interior as exciting and relaxing as it should be.
Top 3 Color Secrets of a Color Consultant
Lighting Affects Color
Have you ever thought, why do my white walls look yellow in the evening? Why are my dark blue curtains appear black at certain times of the day? It’s due to the lighting in our homes. Yes, lighting influences our perception of color.
There’s a lot that goes into selecting the right color for your home interior. Positions of our homes compared to the sun. The color temperature of artificial lights. Or the neighbors red tile roof cast a tint on our walls can influence how colors read in the room.
I am a firm believer in having the best lighting you can afford to complete your color scheme and make your interior décor look perfect.
How Sunlight Affects Color
- North Facing Room: Gets soft light and produce gray to blue effects. Bold, warm colors show better than white or cooler colors.
- South Facing Room: Gets intense warm light. Dark colors look brighter while light colors can look washed out if you have several windows.
- West Facing Room: Have shadows in the morning and beautiful, warm light in the evening. However, morning light shadows make colors look dull. Towards the evening, the warm light can make cooler colors stand and balance the room.
- East Facing Room: Before noon, this light is warm and yellow. After that, the light turns cool and blue. Yellow, green, and red are great colors for such rooms.
How Artificial Light Affects Color
- White Incandescent or LED Lights: Provide natural warm lighting. Make dark colors look more intense and light colors appear duller.
- Fluorescents: Give cool bluish light and go well with gray, blue, and green. Usually used in kitchens and workspaces.
- Halogens: Their light resembles natural light thus making dark colors look more intense.
Pink is a Neutral Color
Do you think neutrals can only be gray, white, beige, or black? Well, not exactly! Now, we widely use many tone-setting shades like yellow, orange, green, and even pink for the interior of our homes.
Yes, there’s a hot, new trending neutral in town, Pink. Light, dusky pink makes a beautiful neutral color. First light, Benjamin Moore’s color of the year, appeals to people looking for a pink neutral color for easy blending with existing décor.
Pink has quickly gone from favorite accent to favorite neutral color. Providing a soft minimalistic look, it is the ideal color to create a statement in your bedrooms or living rooms. Gone are the days where pink is exclusively for a feminine look. Now men are boldly accepting this color and expanding the ways it’s infused in interior design.
Metamerism Can Trick You
Have you ever liked a wall color in someone’s home and decided to put the same color on the wall in your home? However, when you painted your wall that same color, it looked VERY different from the way you saw it. Why did that happen?
Well, that’s what we call metamerism – one of the top color secrets in the world of interior designing. It’s a common spoiler to a color perfect look many people may not be aware of. Simply, metamerism happens when colors look different under different lighting conditions. It is a saboteur, but there are color tools and lighting tricks available to help you get an accurate color read.
This explains why it’s never a good idea to finalize the color for your home decor standing in a paint shop. We suggest using large paint swatches in the space you are going to paint. Take 24 hours before making a final decision. Follow your color choice under all the unique lighting conditions in your environment to get a better impression of how the color will look. Remember, it’s impossible for a color to look the same under all lighting conditions.
But still, if you want to minimize the chances of making a mistake, always hire a professional color consultant who can guide you on which color theme will work best for your home.
