Your Color Questions Answered

You can create a successful color palette for a space with anywhere from one to five colors. But limiting the number of colors doesn’t mean you have to limit the range of values (tints or shades) of each of those colors within a room. You could use even more colors, but you need to be aware that the more colors used within a space, the busier it can feel, which in turn can make it feel smaller.

There is certainly nothing wrong with ridding yourself of unnecessary items every now and then. Using a particular color can minimize the impact of items within a space, however. It comes down to contrast: the difference in colors and values between the items and the walls behind them. The less contrast you have between unsightly objects and the wall behind them, the less easily they will be seen by the eye. The less contrast of colors within a space in general, the larger it feels and therefore the less cluttered it feels. And you can keep this theme going by directing attention away from less desirable objects by creating a strong color contrast in other parts of the room.

Do all paint colors on the main floor have to have the same flow?

No. You can vary colors throughout your main living space as long as they come together in some form of accessory, fabric or furnishing. For instance, if you use three different paint colors in a semi-open main floor, be sure to repeat those three in a patterned fabric in several of the rooms. Once you see the colors all together, you will find that the paint colors make perfect sense.