It is very difficult to determine how a particular color will look on your walls, and with your lighting. If you have a color in mind, it is a good idea to buy a sample.
It is a known fact that painting is much easier when there is nothing in your way. This means empty out the room, or at least as much as possible. If you are painting your living room, move large furniture pieces to the center and cover them up with old sheets or drop cloths. Although it seems like an unnecessary step to wipe the walls down, it is a very important step. Whether you can see it or not, there is buildup on the walls of dirt, dust, and oils from your hands. Removing this debris prior to painting will allow the paint to adhere to the walls.
Color swatches look very different when they are brought out of the store and viewed in natural sunlight. Also, colors always appear lighter on large surfaces than they do on small samples. Chances are that you'll need a darker color than the one you first picked when comparing samples.
Remember that very bright or very deep colors will fade. In fact, the color may change altogether as the paint gets older. For example, a deep, slate gray may turn more green or blue as it ages, even if the paint is an expensive name brand. The more intense a color, the more likely it is to fade.
A burst of a single color on just one part of your home may give it a lopsided appearance. Strive to balance colors over the entire building. Some experts disagree with this, but most color experts advise that you should avoid extreme contrasts. It's usually best to choose colors that are related. Use available software programs to visualize combinations. Remember to check with your historic commission about color combinations that are historically accurate.
Contrasting colors will draw attention to architectural details, but contrasts that are too extreme will clash and actually detract from details. To be safe, consider staying within a single color family—a group of assorted lighter and darker shades based on the same color hue. For some accents, try using a darker or lighter shade instead of an entirely different color. Brush up on the differences among tints, tones, and shades.
Dark siding or dark bands of trim will make your house seem smaller, but will also draw more attention to details. This technique of accented banding can be found in many of Frank Lloyd Wright's interiors. For exteriors, accent the recesses with darker shades and highlight details with lighter tones. Traditionally, the window sashes of Victorian homes are painted with the darkest of the chosen historic color combination.
It's no wonder that large, grand estates are often painted white. Light colors make a building look larger, and white is the favored color for traditional classical architecture. (Remember, for example, that there's a very famous White House in Washington, D.C.) You can add to your home's sense of size and dignity by using white or a pale cream color. Use darker colors to emphasize shadows and lighter colors to project surfaces or details into prominence.
To emphasize architectural details, paint them with an accent color that has an intentional relationship to the background color of the home. This can be a matter of using a complementary color, a contrasting color, a hue within the same color family, or sometimes even a clashing color, depending on the effect you're trying to achieve.
Architect Frank Lloyd Wright preferred the colors of natural materials, yet he used his favorite Cherokee red color everywhere, including the Zimmerman House in New Hampshire. Consider the color schemes that are used inside your home, and choose exterior colors that harmonize. It may seem comical to paint an entire house based on the pattern of a pillowcase, but this approach actually does make sense.
Every home has some features that will not be painted. Is your home brick? Stone? A combination? Does it have a dominant chimney? Vinyl windows? A natural wooden door? Construction materials have their own colors. Will the steps and railings on your home remain their existing colors?
Your house is your canvas, but it is not blank. Some colors are already established. Is your roof asphalt? Shingle? Metal? Terracotta? Slate? Clay? Roofing materials have their own colors. Your exterior siding paint color doesn't need to match the roof, but it should harmonize.
The landscape around your house is blooming with color ideas. The prevalence of trees may suggest an earthy palette of greens and browns. A beach setting might suggest using vivid blues and turquoises or even shades of pink. A front yard garden can inspire exciting color combinations for your house based on what appears in the garden at tulip time.
The house next door can give you paint color ideas, but it's a bad idea to copy your neighbor exactly. Choose colors that set your house apart but that don't clash with nearby buildings.
In some neighborhoods, it's common for homeowners to fly in the face of history. Instead of choosing historically accurate colors, they paint with modern colors to dramatize architectural details. Using bright colors on old architectural details can produce startling and exciting results—if your local historic commission approves. But before you buy 10 gallons of bubblegum pink, it's a good idea to look at what your neighbors are doing.
If you're planning to paint an older home, you'll probably want to use a historically accurate color scheme. One way to do this is by a simple form of archeology—you can hire a pro to dig down to old paint layers on your siding and trim to analyze them and recreate the original color of your house. Or, you can refer to a historic color chart and select shades that were common at the time your home was built.
Any room that is exposed to water or steam should be coated with a semi-gloss paint. This is most imperative for bathrooms that are used the most frequently. Half-bathrooms or those with less-frequent use can be painted with lower-gloss paints with satin or eggshell finishes.
While most color scheme ceilings use flat finish paint, there are additional options. If the surface of the ceiling is flawless, then an eggshell finish is a nice looking option. These glossier finishes promote good light reflection, but unfortunately they can also magnify imperfections.
While most color scheme ceilings use flat finish paint, there are additional options. If the surface of the ceiling is flawless, then an eggshell finish is a nice looking option. These glossier finishes promote good light reflection, but unfortunately they can also magnify imperfections.
Pre-mixed, matte finish paints are common choices for those looking for plain white ceiling solutions. While cleaning is not usually a particularly important consideration, some ceiling paints use cheaper formulations. Homeowners seeking an exact color match often choose regular tinted flat wall paint.
