In this chapter you will understand how colour is the key to creating the right mood for your home, and how to manipulate colour to your advantage.

Choosing the right colours for your home is the most important step in interior design. It can totally transform your environment, change your mood, alter room proportions, set a mood, and add thousands to the value of your property.

Conversely, many houses have sold well under their true value due to looking ‘bland’, or worse, off-putting with bright lime and orange walls.

It is one of the cheapest ways to transform the look of a house, if you are buying paint it will cost the same whether it’s a bottle green or a soft pastel green, but it will give two totally different looks.

Twenty identical rooms could be painted twenty different ways, each creating a totally different environment. Some would make the room warm, some cold; some small and claustrophobic, others spacious and light; some sombre and depressing, others cheerful and welcoming. By using advancing colours [orange] the rooms will appear smaller. The permutations are endless.

Don’t let the latest fashionable colour dictate the colours you choose, you can have any colour from any era if you like it, without looking retro. The way you choose your secondary colours, furniture, soft furnishings, and accessories will bring it up to date. If you liked the 60s brown, use it with pink, instead of the retro orange. You pick and choose which fashionable colours and clothes suit you, do the same for your home.

 

Like it or not, each colour makes us feel a certain way, and this can be used to our advantage. As there is well over 10,000 colours to choose from, have some fun!

 

 

RED

 

Reds range from bright post-box red, flame orange red, to the more sombre maroon red. As it has orange one side, of the colour wheel, and violet the other, it can be both warm [orange-red] or cold [violet-red]. The hottest reds have a touch of yellow, and are almost orange, the cooler reds have blue, which makes them violet-reds.

 

Red is the colour of love, romance, royalty, courage, passion, but also danger and rage. It gives an impression of wealth and luxury.

Prior to the 19th century, when synthetic chemical dyes were invented, red was made from earth oxides, plants and ox blood, so the colour was nor the bright, vibrant colour that we know to-day.

Red is a passionate, it attracts attention, excites, increases heart rate and metabolism and sexual activity, which makes it popular for bedrooms to increase love-making, but difficult to sleep after. It can also be used to stimulate people to make quicker decisions and their expectations. It also helps people lose track of time. This makes it more suitable for a brothel, than a home! It also makes weight seem heavier and time longer. It stimulates ideas, but is not good for their execution Red also increases appetite, hence it is used widely in restaurants. It is thought to be the first colour seen by babies and is very popular with children, it’s always the red crayons that wear down the fastest.

 

Red colours advance.

 

On the negative side, red does promote aggression and adrenaline [the fight or flight syndrome], so it is not recommended in unruly teenagers bedroom, or prisons!

Used too liberally in a room it and be irritating and uncomfortable, it’s best used as a feature wall or on accessories.

 

Complementary-green

Split complementary-yellow green or blue green

Triad-blue, yellow

Neutral-black, white or grey

Metal-gold

YELLOW

 

Yellow ranges from a warm buttercup, cool lemon, pale corn, to browny ochre and mustard

Yellow is the brightest of all colours and has the greatest illuminating power. It is warm and cheerful, and stimulates activity and communicating, but can also stimulate aggression.

 

Lively and happy, cheerful and warm, it’s the colour of spring flowers, and has special appeal to the young.

This colour speeds-up metabolic rate, aids recall, sharpens memory and stimulates creativity, so it’s great to use in an office. It also stimulates the digestion and circulation, and helps create social ambience.

Bright yellow over a large area will raise anxiety levels and increase blood pressure in forty seconds! Studies show that babies cried more and adults argued more when placed in a bright yellow room.

In daylight, yellow is the colour that is seen first, it is dominant in the world of colour. It is used extensively in advertising and food labels, as it readily catches the eye.

It advances, and is the brightest colour when fully saturated, so can startle if used to strongly

Bright yellow on four walls would become oppressive, so use it for a feature wall, as an accent coulour, or a pale shade, especially in smaller rooms. Yellow works well with blue [reminiscent of a sandy beach and clear blue summer sky] or grey for a restful scheme.

Highly saturated it can increase irritability and hostility, the same way as red.

 

Complementary-purple

Split complementary-red-violet or blue-violet

Triad-red or blue

Neutral-grey

Metal-gold

Orange

Orange ranges from the bright orange of the fruit, to a burnt browny orange.

Orange is a social and exuberant colour, warm and happy. It needs to be used with restraint, or it will be to overpowering.

 

This colour was not called orange until the fruit arrived in Europe, it was called red until then -hence ‘red head’ It’s a warm, cheerful, expansive, exotic, extrovert and rich colour, with special appeal to the young. An exciting colour, it is used to grab attention to advertise or warn.

Orange needs to be used with restraint, as a feature wall or accent colour, [orange cushions on a dark blue settee, for example] a whole room would be too energising.

Orange stimulates the appetite, eat fast and leave. Hence it’s wide spread use among the fast-food chains. It also promotes conversation.

It looks good with blue, green, purple or violet.

Used badly it can look cheap and intensely annoying.

As an advancing colour, it can give a closed in feeling to a room.

 

Complementary-blue

Split complementary-blue-violet or green-violet

Triad-violet or green

Neutral-grey

Metal-gold

GREEN

 

Greens vary from the calming grass green, to the vivid, warm lime yellow green; soft pastel green, to the blue-green of turquoise. Add brown to green and it becomes khaki or olive.

 

Green is conservative, restful and calming, but also refreshing. Hence the ‘Green Rooms’ at television studios, to calm guests before they are interviewed.

The dominant colour of nature is green, and it is tranquil, pastoral and calming -the colour of emotional balance.

It used to be the colour of wedding dresses in Europe, symbolising fertility. Bright green reminds us of spring and youth.

But green can also make us thin of poison, envy and jealousy, mould and decay.

The deep greens have been used traditionally in studies and libraries, as it is thought to relieve eyes from close work or bright light It is the most restful and calming colour that helps filter out distractions, enhancing concentration. Green is used in operating rooms as it is the complementary colour to the red of blood, and is restful for the surgeon’s eyes.

Banks and legal firms use green to suggest performance and value, and, of course, money is usually green.

Fir-green was common in the Georgian era, pea-green in the 19th century, bottle green in the Victorian age, eau-de-nil in the 1930’s, and lime in the 1960’s. The new greens are pale pistachio, rich aquamarine, and burnt lime.

 

Complementary-red

Split complementary-red-orange or red-violet

Triad-orange or violet

Neutral-grey or beige

Metal-silver or gold

 

BLUE

 

Blues range from sea blue, green aqua and turquoise blue, to dark navy, soft pastel and warm violet blue. It can be both warm [ violet-blue] or cold[ ice blue].

 

Blue is a peaceful, tranquil colour, generating a sense of well being. It gives a sense of space and coolness. Some Eastern countries believe blue to be the colour of immortality.

Throughout history blue dyes have been easily available, The indigo plant produces deep blue, and the ancient Britons used wode to dye their cloth, and their bodies!

 

As blue reminds us of the sea and sky, so we are used to seeing this colour in large areas. Calming and relaxing this colour also lowers blood pressure. Blue aids concentration so is a good colour to use in the office, or where children do their homework.

It is powerful, the colour of authority, used by the forces and policemen, so we are more likely to respect and obey their orders. For this reason it is also the favoured colour for power dressing suits, your colleagues and customers are more likely to agree with you. Sales people are advised to wear a blue suit with a white shirt, to increase their chances of closing a deal.

Studies show that students score higher grades and weight lifters lift heavier weights in blue rooms.

Light blue looks young and sporty, hence the popularity of denim jeans. Dark blue, royal or navy has a dignified, wealthy air,

Too dark a shade of blue can cause depression, the same as black, so use it on a feature wall, not a whole room.

It is also a natural appetite suppressant, many blue berries are poisonous. So it’s a great colour to paint your kitchen if you are trying to loose weight!

 

Blue is a recessive colour, use light or pastel blue make a room seem larger.

Blue appears coolest with greens, warmest with peach, terracotta, primrose yellow, crispest with white, boldest with red, and dramatic with metallics.

 

Complementary-orange

Split complementary-yellow-orange or red-orange

Triad-yellow or red

Neutral-grey

Metal-gold or silver

 

Violet

 

Violet varies from pale lavender, mauve pink, magenta, to dark aubergine. Depending on the blue to pink ratio violet goes from the masculine red, to the female

lavender side.

In ancient Greek and Roman times, the colour was extracted from a marine mollusc, and was incredibly expensive. The bottom of the toga was dyed purple and this signified that the wearer was of noble birth.

A dignified, dramatic and sophisticated colour associated with royalty, spirituality and creativity.

It lowers blood pressure, slows breathing, depresses the appetite for food [and sex!] and calms overactive glands and organs. It is often perceived to be the colour of introspection and internalisation.

Violet encourages lateral thinking, daydreaming, and activates learning by helping link the left and right spheres of the brain. This makes it another god colour for the study or homework area.

Rich and vibrant, the more intense shades look dramatic with gilt mirrors and chandeliers, for an opulent look.

 

Complementary-yellow

Split complementary-yellow-orange/yellow-green

Triad-green, orange

Neutral-grey

Metal-gold

NEUTRALS

 

Neutrals range from earth brown, beige stone, to the colours of wood. These colours work well together in nature, and in the home.

They look good with hessian and linen, and give a natural look. They work well together in a country style, and also in a sophisticated minimalist setting.

Compliment them with brighter or stronger colours, eg.beige walls and carpet with a strong dark blue feature wall.

They can be used together on a monochromatic colour scheme, but tones and shades need to be varied or the room may appear bland, so use a shot of bright colour with accessories or feature wall.

WHITE

 

White represents purity and innocence, and looks expensive and sophisticated.

Before 1920 white was made from lime. Now it’s made using titanium dioxide, which is very bright. It is a cool colour but the starkness can be allayed by using an off-white, with a touch of a warmer colour added. There are at least twenty shades of ‘white’ to choose from.

This is a highly reflective colour, so it will draw attention to any deficiencies.

White walls will pick-up the colour reflected from the carpet, which will make them appear to change colour. So if your carpet is pink the walls will appear a light pink. Sometimes this might be the effect that you want.

White rooms can be sophisticated and chic [white wool carpets, marble fireplace, damask curtains, chandeliers] or rustic peasant [white calico curtains, white wool wood floors, exposed beams, wood furniture].

White makes rooms look larger.

Some designers have become famous for their all white rooms [Syrie Maugham, Ralph Loren]

Walls painted white allow other features to dominate-furniture , paintings or a beautiful view will stand out more.

This colour can look cold and clinical, so it looks best with a contrasting colour to make an impact. It will also need more care and cleaning.

All colours go well, but particularly striking are red, blue or green. But for maximum impact try using white with the vivids- shocking pinks, or lime greens!

BLACK

 

Black is an absence of light and colour. It is sophisticated, elegant and dramatic, and is perceived as being a masculine colour.

Black needs to be use very carefully, or it may cause depression. It will make a room appear smaller. It is not a colour that I would recommend on all four walls.

It is the colour associated with night and death.

Small touches of black in a room [i.e the skirting board] give a sense of depth to the colour scheme. When I was talking with the English designer Mary Gilliatt, she told me that she always tried to use just a touch of black in every room that she does. I am not sure that I would go quite that far, but I did take her point.

If a large amount was to be used, as in a feature wall think, about using a gloss paint that will give a reflection where the light catches the wall, so it appears lighter. And doesn’t seem so oppressive. Hung with gilt framed mirror it would look very striking.

All colours apart from dark, fully saturated tones [e.g. dark blue] look good with black. The brighter the hue, the more impact.

 

PASTELS

 

Any colour mixed with white becomes a pastel. These colours are restful and soothing.

They are perceived as being feminine, but at least the blues and greens can be used by men, even if they shy away from the pinks.

With the exception of yellow, all the pastels work well together, so they are very easy to mix and match, providing they are of equal intensity.

Pink is a very peaceful colour-one of my all time favourites. It has been found to calm aggression and open feelings, and is often associated with calm and romantic people. There is a report of an American football coach painting the visitor’s locker room pink so that it would decrease their aggression and desire to win!

Pastels make a room appear lighter and larger.

 

 

 

 

A pastel pink scheme

WARM COLOURS AND COOL COLOURS

 

Warm hues range from red to yellow, including orange, pink, brown and burgundy. Bright and aggressive, they attract our attention and excite our emotions. These colours heighten motivation and make us work faster.

They make a cold room feel warmer. They are good colours for a lounge or dining room, where they stimulate conversation.

They are not such a good colour for a kitchen, where you are rushing around getting meals ready. Nor for a bedroom, where you need to relax

Warm colours will overpower cold ones in the same colour scheme.

 

Cool colours are from the other side of the colour wheel, the blue and greens. They are the colours to use in hot rooms [or countries]. They are also the more relaxing colours, so are good for bedrooms.

Cool colours can look warm with a hint of a warm colour added to it, [blue with a touch of red gives a violet-blue]. Yellow can be a cool lemon yellow, which is moving towards the green, or a warm yellow, with a touch of orange in it. There is usually a warm or cool alternative to a colour, so a cool room can still be painted blue, but it will need to be a violet-blue; and a warm room can still be painted yellow, but it needs to be a yellow-green.

 

EXCITING

 

Bright and strong colours, using warm secondary, secondary colours. Bright clashing colours with grey or black.

 

TRANQUIL

 

Secondary colours are more tranquil than primary, cool more than warm. Avoid contrasts of light and dark. Use pastels, by adding white to any colour.

When you use colours have about 80% of the primary colour, then 10% of one or two other colours, with the matching metal.