Colour is a powerful element in any home. It can make a room more vibrant and alive. It can make a room feel more spacious or intimate, corporate or cozy. It can be a statement of your lifestyle, and affect your mood.
Utilized well, colours are a powerful tool to uplift and transform the way you live. Consider their purpose and effect on a room before you start painting.
Low ceilings
Small rooms
Improportionate rooms
Awkward rooms
1
Use light colours
White paint on a ceiling is widely used to add height to a room. This illusion works well with any light colour. Contrast the light ceiling with a dark, advancing wall colour.
2
Extend the wall colour
Create the illusion of height by continuing the wall colour onto the cornice and skirting. Complement the effect with a light-coloured paint for the ceiling.
3
Camouflage details
Architectural features can shorten a room's proportions. Hide the problem by painting them the same colour as the wall.
1
Choose light tones
White is not the only colour to give the illusion of light and space. Cool, light tones have similar effect.
2
Paint the wall facing the window
Choose a light-coloured tone. This allows light that comes in from the window to reflect more effectively, creating a bright and airy room.
3
Make a flat or small apartment seem larger
Small living areas can appear more spacious with a single wall colour throughout. Use a soft sheen finish to reflect the light, and create the illusion of space.
1
Highlight features
Create an eye-diversion by highlighting any one feature in the room. Pick out details, like skirting or window frames, and give them a contrasting colour.
2
Paint one wall
Make the room interesting by throwing the room's proportions out of balance. Paint one wall in a different colour. The more contrasting, the better.
1
Choose a one-colour scheme
With sloping ceilings, it is often difficult to decide where the wall ends and the ceiling starts. Solve this problem by treating the whole room with one colour.
2
Alter the shape of the room
Emphasize the walls with strong, advancing colour to alter the room’s proportions. For example, make an L-shaped room feel squarer by linking opposite walls together with colour.
