The Characteristics of Color

Did you know colors can actually help you change your mood? They can make you feel better once you get them on your floor, walls and  dining room furniture.

Yellow, Orange, Red

Yellow is the essence of sunshine and communicates the feeling of happiness. You can use it in your bathroom, dining room, or kitchen, where this type of happy color will uplift and energize you. In small spaces, entries, and halls, yellow can be welcoming and make you feel expansive.

Orange, like its close cousin red, can make you feel hungrier. If used in its “pure” form, though, it can be rather difficult to live with. Instead, use orange derivatives like coral, shrimp, peach, salmon, and terra-cotta. For example, peach can be restful and nurturing for your oak bedroom furniture, while you can use it in a bathroom to flatter your skin tone if light. Used in a family or living room, it can give the space energy and warmth. However, take care not to use it in a kitchen that faces west, because orange tones can make this type of kitchen feel very “hot” — unpleasantly so.

Purple, Green and Blue

If used in its darkest hues, such as eggplant, purple gives off a dramatic, sophisticated and rich feel. Associated with creativity, it also denotes luxury and can be used as a secondary color or accent. Used in this way, it can give a color scheme depth. Used in lighter shades, such as lilac or lavender, purple gives a restful feeling to bedrooms, but won’t make you feel chilly like blue might.

Green is considered perhaps the most restful color visually. Cheerfully present like yellow, but refreshing like blue, green can be used in just about any room in the house. For the kitchen, for example, use a medium green or sage to cool things down, while in a family or living room, you can use it to encourage relaxation while promoting togetherness and comfort with its warmth. In the bedroom, green is pleasant and relaxing.

Blue can slow respiration and heart rate, which is why it’s serene, relaxing and calming. Bathrooms or bedrooms do well with his color. However, be careful with particularly pastel blues. Although pretty on the color chart, they can be unpleasantly “chilly” on furnishings and walls, especially if the room you paint a pastel blue doesn’t receive a lots of natural light. If you go with a light blue as the primary color in a particular room, use warmer hues in fabrics and furnishings.

To encourage relaxation in places that encourage people to gather, such as living rooms, family rooms, or kitchens, you can use warmer hues like periwinkle, or bright blues like turquoise or cerulean.

Neutral Shades

Neutral shades like gray, black, brown and white are basics that should be on any decorator’s list. “All neutral” color schemes come and go, but they are very flexible and can be used in a variety of ways. Add color to make things livelier, or take color out to make a room more soothing. It’s best to use black as an accent in small doses. Many experts, in fact, say that every room needs a little bit of black in it to give any particular color scheme depth and grounding.