About Family Room Colors

About Living Room Colors

The colors that you choose for your living room decor can affect a lot more than the way that your room looks. Psychologists have learned a lot about the way that colors affect mood and outlook. Before you decide to paint your living room walls fire engine red, learn a little bit about how living room colors affect your family and your guests.

Significance

Color plays a huge part in interior design for a good reason. The colors of your walls, carpets, accessories and furnishings form an enormous part of your environment. Since color can evoke emotional responses--and, some research suggests, physiological responses in our bodies--it makes sense to choose colors that evoke the emotions and feelings you want people to feel in your living room.

The colors that you choose for your living room can affect emotions, make your room seem larger or smaller, warmer or cooler, sophisticated or rustic. Interesting research done in Japan in the past few years has even shown that many of the emotions associated with different qualities and values of color are true across different cultures. In other words, even though many cultures associate colors with very specific celebrations, people around the world have similar emotional reactions to most colors. That doesn't change the fact, though, that many people have highly personal reactions to colors based on their own history and experiences. Regardless, because you and your family will spend a great deal of time in your living room, choosing colors that are appealing to both the eye and the emotions is very important.

Types

Generally, interior decorators start planning the colors in a living room by developing a color scheme. There are several different types of color schemes based on how colors appear in a color wheel. Choosing living room colors based on one of these types of color schemes will help you choose colors that look good together rather than colors that clash.

Monochromatic color schemes are based on one color and use only lighter and darker variations of that base color. While monochrome color schemes may sound boring, they tend to be very harmonious and pleasing to the eye.

Contrast color schemes use two colors directly opposite each other on the color wheel. A contrast color scheme always provides both a warm and a cool color. Your choice of which is dominant will determine whether your room is "warm" or "cool."

Triadic color schemes use three colors that are equally distant from each other on the color wheel. Triadic schemes tend to be vibrant and high energy--imagine red, yellow and blue as the main colors in your room to get an idea of just how vibrant the scheme can be.

Soft-contrast color schemes use a base color and two contrast colors that are equally distant from the base color on the color wheel. They tend to be more relaxing than high-contrast color schemes.

Analogous color schemes use colors that are next to each other on the color wheel. Using analogous colors makes it easy to balance tones and colors and creates a harmonious palette.

Considerations

When deciding on living room colors, there are some important things to consider. These considerations include the amount and type of light in the room, the size of the room and the effect that you want the colors in the room to have.

Light is an important factor in choosing living room colors. A room that gets little natural light, for instance, will change the way that colors look on your walls, carpet and furnishings. Light colors on large surfaces can make the most of the available light in the room and make it feel naturally brighter. By contrast, darker colors can absorb some of the light in a bright room, making it feel cooler.

The living room colors that you choose can also affect the perceived size of the room. Light colors in your living room will make the room appear larger than it is. Dark colors will make the walls seem closer and the room smaller and cozier. Choosing a dark color in a warm color family--a brick red, for instance--can make a cavernous living room feel warm and sophisticated.

In addition, you should consider your own and your family's likes and dislikes in colors. No matter how aesthetically attractive a gray and eggplant color scheme may look on the paint swatches, if you hate purple, you'll never be comfortable in that room.

Theories/Speculation

There are many theories about the effects of various colors and color combinations on the emotions. Some of these are so commonly known that they're accepted as fact. Others may come as a surprise to those that don't keep up on color theory and psychological studies. If you're not sure about color schemes for your living room, but you do know the kind of mood you want your room to project, these theories about color may help you make a decision.

Red is a high energy color that provokes both emotional and physical responses. Research has shown that red increases respiration and blood pressure and stimulates the metabolism. Bright, clear red is jarring and may be overpowering as a main color, but hues and shades of red can be used very effectively on walls and in carpets. In particular, pink is light, fresh, feminine and romantic; cranberry and wine colors are sophisticated and modern; and brownish or brick reds are cozy and rustic.

Blue is the opposite of red. It slows the metabolism and decreases respiration and blood pressure. It is strongly associated with tranquility and nature, and tends to have a calming influence on the spirit. Light blue and shades of gray-blue are especially tranquil. Dark blue adds a note of respectability, solidity and integrity. Very pale blues combined with white and gray can create an almost ethereal room, while deeper, dull blues like Williamsburg blue can anchor a Colonial palette.

Yellow is warm and sunny and evokes feelings of happiness. It stimulates mental and muscle activity and raises the energy level. Pure, light yellow should be set off with contrast to a darker color because it tends to disappear against white.

Expert Insight

If you're choosing paint or wallpaper colors for your living room, keep in mind that a color that looks great on the paint swatch may look entirely different on your walls. To be on the safe side, purchase a pint of paint mixed to the color you want and paint a swatch of it on one of the walls, then live with it for a few days. The paint store will easily be able to match the color exactly later. It's far harder to repaint the entire room if you find that the color isn't quite as appealing as you thought.

Prairie homes

Friday, May 10, 2013