Although a finished room should look effortless, it often takes a good deal of effort to make it look that way. From the light fixtures to the flooring, you spend a lot of time making sure everything coordinates and works together to create the look you want.

Many years ago (even before I went to school for Interior Design), a woman told me, “Don’t try too hard with your decor. Put only pieces you truly LOVE into your spaces and your design will always be perfect.” And I’ve stuck to that ever since.

Choosing a paint color for your space seems like it should be a breeze, but it’s easily one of the most difficult parts of the decorating process. Often, a room’s paint color sets the tone for the rest of the room – literally – as you coordinate your bedding, curtains, and artwork with its hue. Some paint colors can even make your home sell for more money!

If you’re struggling to find colors you’ll love for years to come, then follow these tips to get the perfect shades for your home.

Think About It: What Statement Do You Want to Make?

Your home should be all about you and your family. Think of it like an extension of the things you love and your unique personalities. Your paint colors should absolutely reflect all that.

What do you want to feel as you walk through your home? How do you want visitors to feel when they join you? Some families love the idea of calming, neutral colors, while others feel instant pleasure walking into their sunny, bold rooms.

Think about the furniture and accessories you have or will have too. Will the furniture make a statement or the accessories? It’s typically one or the other. Most of the time, it’s either the furniture or the walls that do the talking, so think about which one you’d rather have giving the biggest statement in your home.

Before stepping foot in the paint store, spend some time thinking about the statement you want your home to make. Check out Pinterest, Instagram or interior design magazines for inspiration, but make sure you’re pulling in your style too.

Consider Your Room Size

With tiny rooms, you want to be careful with dark colors as they can make rooms feel smaller or confining. If you’re really into darker shades, consider weaving those colors into accent walls or large, airy spaces with significant natural light instead of using them in a small bathroom or bedroom. Having said that, a dark color CAN work in a small space but it can be tricky so definitely invest in a sample of the paint to test it out before you commit:)

You can always use your paint color choices strategically, too, to make your home feel larger. Softer, lighter colors can open up small spaces.

Consider the Overall Vibe of Your Home

Always consider how colors in different rooms look together.

There are ways to use the colors you want by working them into an overall theme for your home, but it’s important to keep that theme in mind as you start thinking about the paint on the walls.

Consider creating a mood board to see how various pieces complement one another (or not!). I just use PowerPoint to pull in various screenshots – like this (which happens to be my dining room ?)…

 

Don’t Be Afraid to Be Bold

There are lots of ways to make a statement with your paint colors. If you’re leary of painting an entire room a bold color, consider doing just one, accent wall.  I’ve even been known to paint a ceiling or the trim something bold.

Photo courtesy of Kate Osborne / Design: Studio McGee

Photo courtesy of Katie Charlotte / Design: Courtney Bishop Design

Grab Some Samples

When it comes to painting, samples are your friends!  Although no paint job is permanent, you can save yourself a lot of time and money by using samples to compare several colors.

The thing is, you never know how a color will look on your walls until you actually bring it home. The natural light and the light from your furnishings can make that beautiful rose color look like a muddy, pinkish-brown once you get it on the wall. You also might find that a color you weren’t sure about completely won you over once you saw the sun shine on it and how amazing it looks with your hardwood floors.

You can buy paint samples for a fraction of the cost of a gallon of paint, and most samples will cover anywhere from 50 to 75 square feet of space, so you’ll have plenty of paint to give the color a real test drive.

Do you find it challenging getting the perfect paint colors for your home? Do you have go-to shades you usually fall back on? Let me know your struggles when it comes to color – leave me a comment below!

xoxo,