Color Theory

A good way to decorate your home to compliment your mood and personality is to look closely at your homes color scheme.

The easiest way to get a picture of how colors will work together is to look at a color wheel. For centuries artists have used these and defined red, yellow and blue as the three primary colors. From the three primaries all the rest are able to be mixed.

Unfortunately, while this is technically correct the truth is an artist cannot mix a pure green or purple from the primaries. The intensity will not be the same in the mixed color as it was in the original two.

Thankfully to decorate you will not need to do that all you need to know is that purple goes well with both blue and red while green is appropriate with yellow and blue. Their underlying relationship allows them to harmonize well.

The fun part comes in reading the wheel; the wheel itself shows you the pure colors, like red, blue and green. However when you paint and decorate you will be using varying shades or tints of the original color. For instance you probably would not use an intense green on a wall instead you may go with the soft tones of sage or the bold look of hunter green.

To find good contrasts look to the colors that are opposite each other on the wheel. These colors together make each one look more vibrant. Colors that lie right next to one another on the wheel are analogous. They will always play nice together because they are derived from the same hues.

A combination called triad is any three equally spaced hues on the color wheel. When used together they will compliment each other however, it is quite energetic this may feel somewhat harsh. To prevent that allow one color to dominate while you pick the others up in accents and small amounts.

• The color wheel will allow you to identify warm and cool tones.
• One half of the color wheel is labeled as warm and vibrant. This description shows an emotional attachment to colors. The sun is yellow and therefore yellow is a warm color. However that is not the only basis for description it is based loosely on physiology as well. You see the human eye can not bring reds and purples into focus at the same time therefore the red is seen as closer or advancing.
• The remaining half of the color wheel is called cool colors. These are seen by the eye as being further off or receding. That is one reason a small area could benefit from cool colors. They will open it up making it appear larger.
• TIP: Remember that warm color schemes still need at least a small amount of cool to be well rounded and just picture a green plant in a warm colored yellow room.
• TIP: Conversely a cool room will need some warmth to keep it lively. A small amount of red will perk up a room decorated in blue and white.
• Green and purple are more flexible because they can be seen toeither advance or recede, depending on the rest of the room; because of this some interior designers consider them neutrals that can go with any color.

You may like a color not specifically for the pure color, blue red, green or orange but instead for their values, like pink, teal, or terra cotta. Values are a colors lightness or darkness. To lighten a colors value you must add white and to darken you must add either black or umber. For example sky blue and robin's egg are lightened values while navy or cobalt are darkened.

It is important to balance any color scheme with the use of accents. Light and mediums work well together but in order to keep it from being boring through in an accent of a darker value. For instance in a light blue and light yellow decorated room add a small bit of navy or cobalt to ground the scheme. This will give it greater depth than it would have without it.

Another key aspect of color is in its intensity or saturation. A pure color is a representation of the highest intensity or saturation. To soften the color or make it less intense add the hues complement. To create a calm restrained mood try to use low intensity colors that create a calm and serene atmosphere.

For a more elegant look and energetic feel go with high intensity colors. The feeling will be dependent on the specific color chosen and the style of the furniture. Creating a successful color scheme you need to use balance. Strong colors need strong partners. This is true whether you are talking about value or intensity. Navy blue walls will require equally bright yellow or red to create a balanced feel.

Work hard to keep all intensities equal or almost equal. A deep pure red will call for an equally intense green or yellow green in the color scheme. When you partner colors of differing intensities will leave your color scheme looking out of balance.

Leon Tuberman has almost 40 years of experience in home furnishings and interiror design. His furniture store carries a wide selection of solid wood bedroom, home office and dining room furniture. Whether you're looking for handmade oak dressers or solid cherry dining room sets they have everything you need.