When purchasing furniture, the quality and durability are important parameters. But the first impression is always about what the furniture looks like. Colour and design are an important part of that first impression. The colour palette, can boost the aesthetic of your home, leaving your guests in awe of your creative side! But the main question is, how do you get started? For this, we have gathered a few tips on choosing the right colours for your home:
Understanding colours
The first thing one needs to know before selecting colours is to understand the colour wheel. There are primary, secondary and tertiary colours on the wheel.
The three primary colours are red, blue and yellow. These are also considered “pure” colours and are fixed.
Next, you have secondary colours: These are purple, orange and green. Secondary colours are formed when you combine two or more primary colours.
Tertiary colours are a mixture of secondary and primary colours. These help in creating different hues and shades, which eventually make the first two types of colours less strong and vivid.
Photo by Mika Baumeister on Unsplash
Creating a colour scheme that you love
Once you get well-acquainted with the colour wheel, one can select a colour scheme that would suit your taste! There are a few types you can look into, such as:
Monochromatic: Monochrome means single colour (chrome coming from the Greek word Khroma), and a monochromatic scheme uses only one colour, with differences in tones and shades. The darkening and lightening of the colour can help create subtle but beautiful contrasts at your home. The most commonly used schemes are greys or browns. This format works best in homes where designs are clean and furniture is minimalistic.
Analogous: In the analogous scheme of colours, the colours used usually appear right next to each other on the colour wheel. If this is your aesthetic, we suggest looking up a few combinations and let your creativity run wild. Our favourite picks include beiges and greys.
Contrast: As the name suggests, you can use colours from the colour wheel which contrast each other. This helps in adding a dramatic flair to your room, and if you have an inclination towards this, you should definitely look it up. This also boosts the energy in the room you are using it in. It is advisable to stick to contrasting colour palettes in the living room with accessories such as cushions or throws. It keeps the ambience lively and upbeat! Contrasting colour options can be grey and blue or light green and purple.
Complementary: A complementary scheme uses opposite colours from the colour wheel in order to create a dramatic look. These include combinations such as yellow and purple. These colour schemes help in creating a vibrant and beautiful look at home!
Find inspiration
Now that you have a fair idea of what colours you can pick and the mix-and-match that goes in it, you need to find your aesthetic! This can be done by picking an image of a type of furniture that you love. Try and analyse the following:
- What did you love about it? Be specific
- Which colours from the image spoke to you? Make a note of those!
- Pick a few more images, is there a pattern that is emerging? Chances are, that is your aesthetic
Use this information to carry forward which colours you will pick next. This can help you recreate a similar look at home, which will match your vibe.
Lighting and colours
The type of lighting used will change the way your furniture is perceived and seen. To find the right shades of furniture for you, experiment with different types of lighting (natural and artificial) to see how it looks on fabrics, furniture and other areas of your home.
Usually, daylight is considered the best type of lighting, as it is spread across uniformly and gives an even shade/hue to the furniture. Incandescent lighting gives red shades, and is a little warmer than natural lighting. On the other hand, fluorescent lighting is cooler and has a blue tinge to it. These three types of light sources are vastly different, and you can experiment with your furniture to understand what works best for you.
Photo by Collov Home Design on Unsplash
These are some of the basic tips on colour palette, there are a few more pro tips from our end that you can utilise. This will help in making you house look finished, snazzy and up to your mark:
- For items such as rugs and other large furniture pieces, use mid-tones. This is admissible even if they have patterns on them.
- Accessories such as frames and pillows can have the brightest colours, as these are usually smaller and more subtle. The use of bright colours can make them pop and stand out.
- For items that will last for many years, such as a sofa or a bed, consider the budget you have and the colour you are going for. This is because this piece would be locked in for a long period of time, and you need to be okay with the colour you choose for such an item! Only invest if you really think it is a colour you love.
- For trendy, current colours that you might want to spend on now, but might get dated later: Get easily disposable items in such colours, such as accessories (show pillows, artwork, etc.).
- If you do not want the entire house to have the same tone, consider having a colour theme for each room. For instance, the items in your living room can have louder shades with contrasting or complementary colours, while you can have a conservative colour palette for your bedroom.
- Consider the colour value of your house: this means the darkness/lightness of a hue. Make sure that there is a balance in the lights and the darks, in order to avoid any chaotic colour schemes at home.
- Don’t go by the colours of your walls to choose the colour for your furniture - go about it the other way. Choose the colours you want for your furniture, and centre the colour scheme for your walls accordingly.
- Use a dark-to-light colour scheme in a vertical format. This means that the ground is usually the darkest shade (for example, your rug or carpet can be a dark shade of whichever colour you pick), followed by a mid-tone range of furniture, after which the furniture which is above your eye level will be the lightest in shade.
Choosing colours is not the tricky part, making sure all of the shades work together, while keeping in mind the entire space is. However, if you go in with a clear mind, this can be a fun activity for you to do with your family or friends.