Six Tricks to Choosing a Paint Color You Love
Wouldn’t it be nice to go into the paint section of a store and just be drawn automatically to the perfect paint chip for your room? Sadly this rarely (if ever) happens. I just wanted to share some things that I do to make the whole process a little less daunting and hopefully make the whole experience more enjoyable!
Spend time finding inspiration for what color you want.
Before you go to a paint store and overwhelm yourself with analysis paralysis, have a good idea of what you want. There are so many places to find inspiration, both in person and online. Spend time looking at images to determine what color you are leaning towards. Keep in mind the elements of your space that will not be changing, like dark wood floors or oak trim, and incorporate that parameter into your search. Once you have determined that blue is your color, then you can head to the paint store.
Look at a lot of different paint chips in the color scheme you have chosen.
The best way to do this is with the paint chip fan deck. Why? It allows you to look at all the variations of color and compare them to each other. This helps you identify whether the shade is warm or cool based on the undertones. Also, the LRV (Light Reflectance Value) of the shade which will be greatly impacted by how much natural and/or artificial light your space has. It also helps you see which shades compliment the colors and tones that are also going to be in the space.
Find rooms that have used the same color
Now that you have found potential options, search online to see if you can find rooms that have already used the specific colors. Google, Pinterest, and Houzz are great places to start. Keep in mind their lighting will not be your lighting and their accent colors may not be the same as yours so this is not a guarantee that it will look great in your space. It is just another way to further help you understand the colors you are leaning towards
Put the color in your space
The best way to test a color is to either paint it on a white poster board or have a designer order you the large extra-large paint samples to tape on a poster board. Do not make the mistake of painting over the color on your wall because the existing color can and will blead through and change the way your new color looks. This is necessary because lighting, both natural and artificial, are everything when it comes to how paint will actually look in your space. What direction the light comes from (North, East, South, West) and at what time of day can dramatically change the way any color looks in the room. This is because the undertones and LRV react to light from different directions or artificial light differently.
NOTE: No paint color can fix bad lighting! Just because you pick a light, bright color does not mean you can brighten up a space with bad lighting. It just does not work that way! That is why it is imperative that you spend time with the color in your room.
Check on potential paint colors throughout the day and in different locations
Leave the paint samples up for a few days to check and see what they look like as the light changes in the room throughout the day. Make sure to move them around and see them in different parts of the room. Why? Have you ever noticed that the same color can look like a different color in the same room? You need to make sure you can live with all the ways the color looks.
What’s next? Commit to your color and paint!
If the entire idea of finding the best color for you and your space overwhelms you give us a call. We can provide a paint color consultation and help make steps 1-6 fun!