Stop Overthinking and Choose a Paint Color
When you're decorating your home, you have so much freedom. You have nearly endless options of color, texture, and style, which, while incredibly exciting, can also be extremely overwhelming for some people. Choosing a paint color for a room may seem easy, but then, you question your decision, wondering if there is some better paint choice waiting out there, leaving the room unpainted for months. Our Benjamin Moore paint experts have some tips to help the perpetual ponderer in you select shades you'll be happy with in the long run.
Limit Outside Opinions
Don't ask every coworker what color you should paint your kitchen. Everyone will have an opinion and will be happy to share it. And we do mean everyone. Taking too many suggestions into account can make you doubt your decision-making even more. We advise asking a couple of people you can trust to keep your home's best interest in mind over their personal preferences.
Take a Step Back
Wait, what? It's MY house, and you suggest I remove myself from the equation? The fact that it is your house is precisely why you should take a more objective viewpoint on the project. The architecture and natural lighting in your house significantly affect how colors look. Being in love with a particular color is not always enough to make it work for your home, and there's nothing like the regret of realizing you went with the wrong hue.
Acknowledge the Hierarchy
If you're familiar with Maslow's hierarchy of needs, you know that certain things must be achieved before moving on to the next level. Picking paint colors for your home works similarly. These four things must be considered (and in this order):
- The current needs of your home's interior; what will look best with furniture and trim in a space?
- Next up is the color scheme of adjacent rooms. A stark change in aesthetic from one room to the next can shock the senses and affect your perception of both chambers. Smooth transitions between rooms make your home a more welcoming place.
- The amount of natural light the room gets and from which direction. You can use the same color in north-facing and south-facing rooms, which will look very different.
- Last but certainly not least is you. Once you've checked off the first three items, you can feel more confident making a final decision.
A Few Final Tips
- Surround paint samples with white paper so you get a more accurate view of the color will look in a space. Looking at white cleanses your visual palette, so the current wall color doesn't affect your opinion. You should also leave the sample for a few days and look at it throughout the day in varying lights to see how deep your love for it goes. What looks outstanding in the natural light of midday may look appalling when you turn on the lights in the evening.
- As soon as you decide you don't like a color, get rid of the sample. The longer it lingers, the more opportunity you have to second-guess yourself. Narrow your choices down to no more than three before bringing in the trusted opinions of others.
- You can make magic happen by switching undertones. If the sample color seems too warm, try using a shade with warmer undertones and vice versa. The color you choose must blend well with the rest of your home's interior, so listen to the words your house cannot speak.
Contact Us
paintCLE is proud to be your premier Benjamin Moore retailer. We have paint and stain for interior, exterior, and specialty jobs and professional-grade tools to ensure picture-perfect results. Stop by one of our three locations or call us to get your paint job "rolling." paintCLE proudly serves Willoughby Hills, Shaker Heights, Medina, Ohio, and the surrounding areas.