Picking the right color for your home’s interior is no joking matter. Although painting the average size room can cost as little as $100 to $300 the choice you make will have a lot to do with how you feel in your surroundings.
Color Science has become a technical trade used in many different design related fields. Car manufacturers take months and years of research to develop as few as 10 colors that will attract buyers to their fleet. Product designers know that the color of a can of soda can effect purchase volume and chefs understand how a plate looks is as important as the taste.
The use of paint science in building interiors is commonly performed by Psychiatrists who work with artists to develop colors that have a calming effect in hospital and institutional settings.
Although we are not going to get into the psychological effects that color choice can have… it is important to understand how the value of the color you select can effect the brightness of light.
White surfaces reflect light very well and this is one reason most rooms have a white ceiling to help reflect light back down into the room. If you want to brighten a room use lighter colors.
Picking a color should be based first on the style of your home and then also to take into account maintainability and resale.
Although white can be a difficult color to keep clean especially if you have children all colors will change over time either by being bleached out by the sun or by absorbing dirt and cooking oils that can travel throughout your home.
Types of Paint
Most interior paints are now latex and can provide a full range of surface gloss from a dry flat to high gloss.
The more gloss a paint has the longer it will last and the more light it will reflect. It is best to use gloss paints for moldings and not for large surfaces because too much gloss reflection can cause distraction and provide a bad appearance.
For doors you may want to use a semi-gloss paint because the added protection of the gloss surface will reduce fingerprint stains.
Walls should be flat to semi-gloss however there are now many steps between the two such as eggshell that can provide better maintainability while also cutting back on the reflections.
Testing the color
Once you have decided on a basic hue or shade of color a great way to test your color selection is through computer rendering.
Many home stores can provide a virtual sample room painted with the color you select. Other resources are available for you to do the work on your own computer for little or no cost.
Buying the paint
When you make your final selection you should purchase enough paint that will allow you slightly more then you need. This extra paint can be stored for later touchups in the months or years to come.
Keeping your color chart chip is also important just in case you need to repaint a full wall or room.
Manufacturer
Today you are not tied to a manufacture’s selection of paint colors.
Home stores will provide on demand mixing and can use your sample colors as a tint selection.
Tinting is provided for free and the store will use a basic white in your choice of gloss to produce a color that fits your request.
If you find that one paint manufacturer has a paint chip sample that you like then just hand that to your paint store representative and they can mix to your request.