How to Use Color and Light in Room Makeovers
Not only does your dwelling space project a particular mood (i.e., formal, cozy, fun-loving, mysterious) but it also influences the personalities and energy levels of everyone who lives there. If you want to give your home an interior makeover but don't have a lot of cash to spend on it, a few changes in your color and lighting schemes can make a major world of difference. Here's how. Does this Spark an idea?
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Things You'll Need
- Imagination
- Notebook and pen
- Paint and painting supplies
- Lighting fixtures
- Computer
- Digital camera
- Printer
- Photo editing software (optional)
Instructions
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Walk through your abode with a notebook and pen and make a critical assessment of which rooms need the most improvement. Take into account things such as how the room is used (i.e., entertaining, sleeping, working), how much natural light it receives during the day, and whether its current color scheme has been dictated by existing furniture fabrics, flooring, tiles, or cabinets.
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Make note of movable items that can be shifted to a different room and, by virtue of their relocation, expand your opportunities to experiment with different color combinations.
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Evaluate whether you can redefine certain rooms to take better advantage of natural light. This, in turn, can also result in energy savings insofar as heating and cooling them.
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Take digital photographs of the rooms you want to update with new colors. If you have photo editing software on your computer, it's relatively easy to learn how to "paint" practice colors onto the photograph and get a general sense of what the finished product might look like.
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Print out your room photographs to make it easier than relying on your memory when you go shopping for specific shades of paint. Take a close-up shot of the wall itself if you are planning to add a compatible accent color or trim and want to make a good match.
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Consider light colors for rooms that you want to make appear larger than they actually are. Light colors are also advisable for rooms whose only source of illumination is artificial.
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Consider dark colors for rooms that are on the cavernous side. Dark colors such as earth tones, deep blues, and reds will create a cozier ambience.
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Use cream, brown and grey tones for rooms that are going to be used for work, study or meditation. Use greens, blues and dark woods for bedrooms since these will invoke tranquility as well as be cooler for sleeping.
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Install dimmer switches in bedrooms, dining rooms, and living rooms. Being able to control the amount of light allows you to go from a brightly lit room to a cozy, seductive and mysterious one.
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Highlight hanging artwork with battery-operated, clip-on lights that attach to the top edge of the frame. Install bright lights in kitchens, bathrooms and hobby areas to ensure a safe working environment.
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Tips & Warnings
Another trick to make a room seem taller is to very gradually lighten the color as you get closer to the ceiling or to introduce wainscoting and paint the top portion a lighter shade than the bottom portion.
If you're fond of bright, bold colors but don't want to overwhelm the room (or your guests!) by painting the entire thing orange, paint the walls a neutral shade instead such as cream, beige, light tan or a very pale pastel and then get your color buzz by adding color window treatments, pillows, artwork, area rugs or furniture.
A large painting can transform the mood of a plain room without having to paint anything at all.
If your home office faces the afternoon sun, the combination of heat and glare is going to make it unpleasant to work or concentrate no matter how beautifully it has been decorated. The same thing with a skylight in a loft; this space might be better used as a family TV room or spare bedroom when its primary use will be during evening hours. In contrast, a southern exposure room would be perfect for a child or for entertaining guests because the warmth of the sun will imbue it with cheerful energy.
If you're dubious about painting an entire room a darker color all at once, pick out just one wall and paint that. The illusion this creates is that the painted wall will appear to have advanced into the room. Further, if your accent wall includes a doorway or archway into another room, the darker color will make it look as if the room beyond is much bigger.
A room can be made to look lighter, airier and even a few inches higher if you purchase halogen lights and angle them upward toward a ceiling that has been painted white.
Fluorescent lighting is going to look different in a painted room in the evening hours than it did when you were painting it in the natural light of morning or afternoon. Before you commit to a large-scale project, paint only a small patch of wall first and then see what it looks like when night falls and you shine a fluorescent lamp on it.
