Choosing your Colours

Mood
Any colour normally reflects a mood and hence is a very important factor to contemplate whilst choosing colours to decorate. Remember that as a rule warm colours advance, make a room look smaller and cool colours recede to make a room look larger.

Examples:

• Warm colours promote a cozy atmosphere and are good for rooms with limited natural light
• Cool colours can have a cooling effect on rooms
• Plain white sets a very sterile look and is only best used when attempting an extreme minimalist look
• Children's rooms are best in primary colours that promote fun
• Certain colours have definite effects: Red is a vibrant colour whilst yellow is a happy one
• Deep, rich colours tend to lend a more formal look

Using a colour wheel

It is well worth purchasing a colour wheel from a stockist

There are four main combinations of colours which are:

Related: Two or more colours that are located next to each other in the wheel

Complementary: Two colors that are opposite each other on the wheel but using one as a dominant colour to avoid clashing

Mono: As the title suggests, this is the use of one colour, but possibly in different shades

Triadic:
The use of three colours, one dominant and two as accents, that are on equidistant positions on the wheel e.g.. red violet and green


Modern Colour Trends

With trends continually changing, it is difficult to list the most popular or unusual schemes. The best source for new ideas generally emanates from home magazines which generally have a vast selection of styles and have the added bonus of colour pictures and material suppliers for that exact match.