Choosing the right paint colors for your home can feel like an impossible decision. With so many shades, brands, and finishes available, narrowing down your options is overwhelming! Painting the walls in your home is both a new design choice and also an opportunity to change the mood, light, and style of your living space.
Whether you’re refreshing a single wall or reimagining your entire home, this basic guide can help you make confident color choices that bring your dream home vision to life.
Understand the Psychology of Color
Color can have a profound effect on our emotions and how we experience a space. Before selecting your paint shades, take a moment to think about the mood you want to create in each room.
- Energizing & Social: Warm tones in reds, oranges, and yellows can encourage conversation and add vibrancy, making them great choices for living rooms and dining areas.
- Calm & Restful: Cool tones in blues, greens, and soft lavenders promote relaxation, making them ideal for bedrooms and bathrooms.
- Balanced & Versatile: Neutrals like soft whites, grays, and beiges create a timeless backdrop that can work in any room and pair well with different decor styles.
Pay Attention to Light
Lighting can drastically impact how a paint color appears in a room. Pay attention to how natural light hits your paint swatches throughout the day, and how it might differ on sunny versus cloudy days.
Likewise, watch what happens when you turn on overhead lights or lamps. Cool lighting can make colors appear crisper and truer-to-color, and warmer bulbs can cast a cozy yellowish glow. Test your paint samples on different walls and in different lighting conditions to see how the colors shift before making a decision.
Find Inspiration in Your Home and Surroundings
Instead of picking colors at random, take cues from existing elements in your space.
- Furniture & Decor: Look at the dominant tones in your furniture, rugs, and artwork to find complementary or harmonious shades.
- Architectural Features: Highlight crown molding, built-in shelving, or wainscoting with a different color to add depth and interest.
- Learn from Nature: Draw inspiration from outdoor landscapes—coastal blues, earthy greens, or warm desert neutrals can bring a natural, grounding feel indoors.
Test and Compare
Don’t rely on tiny take-home paint swatches! Try painting larger sample patches on different walls to see how the color looks in various lighting conditions. Observe these patches at different times of day to check for unexpected undertones and compare them against flooring, furniture, and decor to make sure your paint color complements the overall look.
Create Flow and Cohesion in Your Home
If your home has an open-concept layout, using a cohesive color palette will help create visual harmony. You could paint the same color throughout your space or use varying shades of the same color for a seamless transition. Introduce accent colors through smaller spaces, like hallways or guest bathrooms, for added interest. Finally, Kee trim and ceiling colors consistent to tie everything together.
Accent Colors: A Bold Touch Without Overwhelming the Space
If you love color but don’t want to paint an entire room in a bold shade, accent colors are a great solution. Try choosing a deep, rich color to add drama behind a bed or around a fireplace, or perhaps a contrasting color to highlight build-in shelves or other unique architectural details.
Don’t Forget to Enjoy The Process!
Selecting the perfect paint colors is an exciting way to personalize your home and create a space that feels uniquely yours. Take your time exploring options, testing samples, and considering the unique characteristics of each room. With the right color choices, you’ll transform your home into a place that looks and feels exactly the way you’ve been dreaming.