Thinking about changing the color of your living room? How about a color makeover for the bedroom? No matter what room of the house you are thinking about, the choice of color is important. That calming bedroom you always imagined could turn into a nightmare that won’t end. Of the stunning entry way could be the eye sore of the neighborhood. Knowing a little bit about colors can help you choose the one just right for the look you are trying to achieve.

The Color Wheel

This is the most fundamental thing you need to know about colors. There are 2 basic groups of colors: warm and cool. Warm colors are red, yellow and orange. They are exciting colors, full of life and energy; think about fire with its glowing flames. Cool colors are more mellow, blues, greens and purples. Think of an outdoor scene, with green meadows and blue skies. The feel that you are looking for should lead you to one group of colors or the other.

Color Harmony

Putting just any old colors together can really be unpleasant to the eye. Color harmony is all about colors that go well together. The simplest way to think about this is when looking at a color wheel, colors that are adjacent to one another or directly across from one another compliment each other. Monochromatic color schemes work well too – where you have varying intensities of the same color.

Where to start

So now that you have the basics, think about the room you want to change. Would it be a place fo relaxation? Or a place for entertaining? You might think about shades of blue and green for a bedroom you can really relax in. Or shades of orange for the kitchen and dining room you love to entertain your guests in. And remember, when working with more vibrant colors, a little goes a long way. If you love the ides of red in your living room, stay away from painting the walls AND having your drapes and upholstery in shades of red. Pick one peice that will take on the spotlight, and accent that with other hues, tones, colors, etc.

And now you can get small paint samples for cheap to bring home and try out. Feel free to experiment with how the colors you are thinking of would look together. What are you waiting for? Get colorful!