Selecting Paint Colors / Part 1

Selecting paints for your home.

 I assist my clients with this task regularly

so I thought I would share

what I have learned through the years with you. 

(NOTE:  These are my own personal opinions and findings

on this matter  --  you may or may not agree with me

and that's ok! Just wanted to share some basic guidelines

that I follow when selecting paint colors.)

I can totally appreciate why 

choosing the right paint color can be daunting. 

It's not easy! And if there are two or more of you 

trying to pick a color for a room -- 

that makes it even harder.

And it doesn't help that

there are literally THOUSANDS

of paint colors and so many brands out there 

that you can choose from which makes this task

 even more overwhelming.

 MORE is not always good. 
:-/

So I am writing this to give you
some pointers that may help you save
time, money, and definitely some aggravation
when trying to find the perfect shade for a room.

Since there is a lot of info to cover
on a subject like this

I'm going to break up the information in 3 parts

and will post each section every two days.

Part 1 -- Selecting a color

Part 2 -- Selecting the right finish
(hues, saturation, etc.)

Part 3 -- Helpful tips

So please come back every other day

to take a peek at each section!

PART ONE

Selecting a paint color 

 Define your home's palette.

First things first.

Before you can pick a paint,

you need to determine your home's color palette.

Why is this important?

When you walk into your home

you want it to have a welcoming feel  
where each room flows effortlessly

into the next -- 
with complimenting shades 

and colors from one room to the next.

Ultimately, you want your home
to look like you had a plan when you started
decorating and not like
each room was thrown together without a plan.
(Emphasis on the word "ultimately!") 

How do you achieve this?

Just take a look at your furniture, 

rugs or carpeting, your artwork and accessories --

would you say you have:

 neutral tones?

a fall or spring palette?

a pastel or jewel tone palette?

maybe a primary color palette?

Define your home's color palette

Defining this is very important.

You want your rooms to be cohesive 

 with complementary color shades and tones.

And when I mention room flow --- 

I am referring to the public access rooms 

where guests frequent 

to include your entry hall, your kitchen, living room, 

powder room, dining room, and other "common" areas. 

(Bedrooms need not be considered in this

main color palette zone-- they are private rooms

so you can handle them individually if you like.)

Ideally, all of your rooms should share similar colors 

and tones but the formality might change.

You are using the same colors, but their application

goes from formal to casual depending on the room.

Here are some images to illustrate the point. 
Thank you design-seeds.com and Pinterest
for this awesome photos.

Here is a great photo reflecting how rooms should flow together.

Here's another nice visual on rooms flowing into each other using same/similar colors.

Here is a nice neutral color palette from design-seeds.com

A neutral room

Jewel tones fill this room

Deep vibrant jewel tone shades 

This area is layered with pastels. 

If your palette looks like this -- you are drawn to pastels.

Primary colors compliment this room.

Fall shades for your home

A fall color palette is the basis of this decor

Cheerful spring color shades

These rooms flow with bright spring colors

Another neutral room example.

Neutral loveliness

So once you determine 

the main color scheme or palette 

for your home you can begin 

your color selections from there. 

If you can --- 
pick your room color
AFTER you have selected the fabrics, rug,
 and other pieces that you want to put in the room.
 You don't want to back yourself into a corner
by picking a paint color first
and then having to finding the right things to match.

I prefer to start with the entry 

and connecting hallway(s).

A nice neutral lighter color (like a shade of a white, 

cream or gray) works well since halls tend 

to have fewer (or no) windows so you want 

to keep this area bright and well lit

especially in smaller spaces.

Next you can begin selecting colors for the walls

in your rooms making sure each paint shade

works well with all connecting rooms. 

Research your color choice.

The internet and Pinterest are great tools

in helping to select rooms colors. 

Let's say you are looking for a paint color

for your kitchen and the cabinets are white.

Create a Pinterest page for kitchens you love 

and you will be surprised at how quickly 

you will see what shades your eyes are attracting

you toward in each room.

Once you have decided on a color

(let's pretend you have selected gray)

then you may want to Google search

 "popular gray paint colors"

and see what is trending. 

via 

This will also help to assist you

in narrowing down your choices.
When I say -- "see what is trending"
what I mean is what people are talking about
and LOVING. Not the bold trendy accent colors
(that you may use as an accent color
for a lamp or pillow or rug)
but a wall color... a trending 
nice 
basic
wall color.
That's what I'M TALKING 'bout.

Now go and collect the paint chips,  

bring them home, and tape them to your wall. 

You would not believe 
what a difference that makes ---
seeing them in your room. 

DID YOU KNOW
the color completely changes 

depending on whether you are looking at it 

horizontally on your kitchen table 

versus holding it up vertically 

as it will be applied to your wall.

It takes on a totally different shade.

Try not to buy the paint you need 

unless you have brought home

a swatch and/or a small pot of paint to try out.

Your room's lighting is so different

than a paint or hardware store's lighting and

what looks good there 

may not look good in your room, 
trust me on this one!

(Such a small investment to keep you from making a costly mistake.)

Go buy paint samples.

Once you've decided on some shades --

 buy one or two or several paint samples

to put on the walls of the room. 
If the walls already

have a shade of paint on them 
you will need to paint

your sample on a white poster board

so the existing paint color

doesn't show through giving you a poor 

sampling of the color you are considering.

This method works best on painted walls!

Give it a day or two.

Check those paint swatches in the morning light,

in the afternoon and the evening too.

Check it by daylight and by lamp light.

Paint colors change during the day

as walls reflect light so you want to

be sure you like the shade at all hours.

When the sun goes down a color can wash out or become very intense,

Once you do this, 
you should have a color that works!

If not, bring home a few more and don't give up.

(Luckily, paint sample pots are much smaller

now so it's easier to try more colors.) 

I hope these little pointers have helped you.

Again, I will post part 2 and 3 of this series

so as not to overwhelm you.

Thanks so much for stopping by

and feel free to ask me questions!

~ Alison 

For fun
you can help choose
2015's COLOR OF THE YEAR
by clicking here