Painting your living room requires some planning.
Choosing the right paint color for a living room, or any room, requires a degree of forethought and planning. There is nothing more aggravating than painting a room in what you think is your favorite color, and then finding you hate the way it looks on your walls, or that it makes the room feel cold and unwelcoming. However, with some careful thought, you can make sure you choose the perfect color for your living rooms walls. You will find that your favorite color is less important than the way you intend to use your room, so you need to be clear about your intentions before you begin.
Instructions
1. Decide what kind of mood you want to create in your living room. You may want to create a calm mood, or an energetic mood. Establish the lighting conditions of your living room. Does it get the sun? Consider the way your living room is used. Is it used mainly during the day or during the evening? Take a look at the dimensions of your living room. Is it a large space, or is it a little on the cramped side?
2. Having decided on the mood you want to create and the purpose of your room, start to think about the science of colors. If you do not get much light in your living room, you would be wise to choose a light color. Be wary of white as a color for walls, because in poor light conditions, white can appear cold and gray. A yellow shade would be a good choice for a dark room, being both light and warming.
3. If your room is light, you have a wider selection from which to choose. A light room can take a bright white if you want a clean minimalist look. Greens provide an excellent palette for a calming color scheme. If you don’t particularly want a light effect, however, an already light room can take darker colors. Warm terra cotta can provide an excellent background color scheme, and depending on the shade, needn't be overpowering.
4. Be open to ideas. Colors don't need to match your furniture; you can, and should, choose colors that are complementary. Get a color wheel from a decorator's store to see how colors work together. Orange and green, for example, can work together surprisingly well. Muted shades are usually preferable. Once you have decided on your color scheme, it's time to work out your palette.
5. Go to the paint store and collect sample cards and tester pots. Take any fabric samples with you, although you won’t be able to tell how the color will look until you actually try it on the walls. Go home and try out your colors in small patches on the wall. Don’t rush at this stage; let the colors stay on the wall for a week or so, in order for you to see how the colors look under different light conditions. That cream shade that looked perfect in the pot looks too yellow on the wall; that beautiful deep blue is dark and cold in the mornings. You may want to paint a larger area with your sample to see how it looks on a wider section of wall.
6. Once you have lived with your colors for a week, you should have a good idea of your favorite, and which ones definitely don't work. Having established these matters, you are finally ready to paint your living room.
Related posts
The living room is the most important room in the house; it's where you kick your feet up after a long day at work, the place where your company gathers, and your kids huddle up to watch movies. H...
The living room is an area in which your family and visitors usually spend the most amount of time. Therefore, you want it to be stylish and visually appealing, while also remaining comfortable an...
The living room and kitchen are the most lived-in rooms of the house. When choosing a color for your living room, you want it to be pleasing and comfortable. So, where do you start? Interestingly,...
Paint RollerA small living room can make you feel cramped, especially if it is painted in dark colors. To liven up the area and give the illusion of space, take advantage of natural lighting or ad...
Open kitchens, like this one, typically connect to the living room.Whether your kitchen and living room are separate or create one big space, the colors you choose for main rooms help define the e...
