Interior Design 101: The Relationship of Color Combination and Moods

An interior designer’s world is a world that is filled with colors. He knows that with colors, he can achieve a desired effect or mood. Using the traditional color theory and rules, the can come up with kitchens and living rooms that are oozing with energy or he can come up with a bedroom that can soothe the senses.

Color theory explains how blue can give you that calming feeling while red inspires a romantic mood. Yet before anyone can apply color theory in architecture, art, fashion or interior design, one must understand how it actually works.

The Color Theory in Practice

Put yourself in this scenario – you are asked by a client to come up with the perfect theme for his home. When creating ideas for such tasks, it is important to begin with the color palette. Along with this, consider three vital things – the physical structure of the room; the homeowner’s lifestyle (or the function of the office that is being set up); and the client’s personal taste or preference. Armed with these bits of information, you can then determine what colors are best used in the home based on the client’s perspective.

Though you may concoct a design that is in accordance with your client’s taste, still, there are a few color schemes that are really better than others. For example, farmhouse kitchens often have analogous or monochromatic schemes. When presented with this setting, people immediately think about deep reds and pale yellows combined.

Contemporary kitchens, on the other hand, are often presented in bold patterns and the brightest colors.

Customers who are aiming to achieve tranquility in their homes must look towards the monochromatic color palette. Just think about how restful the place should be – think of cool beaches – and you would picture lush greens, the blue skies and the bluish ocean waters; hence, blue is the safest color to use.

To add a little bit of personality and spunk into a room, you can search for complementary colors. Exercise caution in adding a lot of bright colors inside the room. It is vital to balance every color with energy since it can easily become taxing in the long run. This is when the complementary color scheme truly shines.

Since the colors are opposite one another on the color wheel, combining such colors will create a balance between the warm and cool hues.

A Time-tested Formula

These days, feng shui has been integrated in interior design and this is now an acceptable fusion. Color has such as powerful influence in terms of homeowner’s moods and behaviors that by understanding color psychology, one can design rooms to foster prosperity, health and wellness.

A few interior designers now know how to divide rooms into passive or active spaces. Kitchens are at the very top of the active category while the bedroom is assigned to the passive group.

Warm colors like red and orange always represent tension and energy, hence, they are often combined and used in active rooms such as the kitchen. Cool colors, on the other hand, comprise of greens and blues which have a calming and soothing effect. These shades are often painted onto passive rooms such as bathrooms and bedrooms.

In using the color principle, it is important to refer to the 60-30-10 rule which means 60% of bathroom and kitchen color should be one, solid color. Thirty percent is assigned to the color of the furniture and cabinetry while the remaining 10% is for accents like artwork, plants and linens.

These are the basic rules in color combinations; and while everyone seems to want vibrant and colorful interiors, they are not always pleasant. Learn which colors go best on which rooms and which colors blend well with one another.

If you have no idea on how to apply or combine colors, then you might as well pick up the phone and call an expert designer to help you.