interior painting designs

As you learn and explore more about the world of Interior Design colors, you'll come up with your own interior paint ideas and, many of those ideas will fly in the face of color dogma you've heard over the years.

My room is so small; color on the walls will make it look even smaller.

As far as perception of size goes, color isn't going to make a big difference. If some of you have had interior paint ideas that included deep saturated colors for smaller rooms. Go for it!

I recently read of a color design study done with two identical rooms--mirror images of each other. One was painted off-white, the other a pretty sage green. A number of people passed through both rooms and were then asked for their opinions. The overwhelming majority didn't notice the smallness of the room at all but, almost all preferred the green room to the cold, naked off-white room. So, why sacrifice style?

Designer Tip: An interior paint idea that will make a small room feel larger is to paint adjacent rooms the same color. The effect is a spacious feeling as the borders between rooms disappear.

My windows are too small. there isn't enough natural light for color on my walls.

If your windows are small, they won't matter anyway.

The little bit of light you're getting from your small windows isn't going to make a big impact even if your walls a white. I like to celebrate small rooms with deep color. Color emphasizes the intimate values of a small space and makes a personal statement about you.

My furniture is so dark, I need white to lighten the room.

Surrounding large, bulky, dark wood furniture with white, off-white or pale pastels is the worst thing you can do. Why? Because the extreme contrast between light walls and dark furnishings makes the furnishings stand out and feel out of character to the rest of the space. Again, deep, saturated color will tend to diffuse the contrast and the darker colors will make more sense.

My room faces west. Won't warm colors make the room feel hot? Or vice versa--my room faces east, won't cool colors make the room feel cold?

There are many influences on a room's "mood". Don't base your interior paint choices on only one lighting or environmental element. The emotional warmth of a compact west-facing room with a warm color palette again celebrates the intimate realities of the space.

Remember too that context is everything. Pay attention to environmental influences. Light filtered through the trees brings green; light bouncing off bricks also shifts the mood and look of interior paint colors. Finally, evaluate the color where it will be used. Don't choose interior paint colors for your vacation house in New Mexico while back home in Montreal. However brilliant you feel your interior paint ideas are, never forget the big influence light and location play on the perception of color. Always bring home small tester pots of paint colors.Paint swatches on all the walls and examine the colors at different times of day.Then, trust your instincts.

I hope the interior paint ideas on this page have empowered you. Keep learning as much as you can about Interior Design colors and you'll feel your confidence grow.