Design Tips

Finding the perfect shade for your walls

Designers and experts share tips for choosing the right shade for rooms in the house: purple, yellow and red in the bedroom.

Magenta

1. Give preference to magenta, which has more cyan than pink. Mountbatten pink combined with pale pink or yellow – perfect for the bedroom and living room.

– Sara Story, New York, interior designer

Finding the perfect shade: expert advice (Part 2)

Finding the perfect shade for your walls

2. A rich purple hue is best used only as an accent, otherwise it can «crush», visually reducing space.

– Elaine Griffin, New York, interior designer

Finding the perfect shade: expert advice (Part 2)

Finding the perfect shade for your walls

3. Paint on walls tends to have a more intense shade than on samples, keep this in mind when choosing the perfect shade at a paint store. The lavender color is well applicable as a base color, but it can be an accent in combination with white..

– Jeffrey Bilhuber, New York, designer

Finding the perfect shade: expert advice (Part 2)

Finding the perfect shade for your walls

Beige color

1. A beige shade can have a greenish, golden or brown base. When choosing the right shade, compare them with each other and with white – and you will never be mistaken in choosing the right tone.

– Mary McGee, Los Angeles, designer

Finding the perfect shade: expert advice (Part 2)

Finding the perfect shade for your walls

2. With beige, you can cross the line and cause boredom in the room. You can avoid this effect by using different textures and patterns in the room. A coffee table upholstered in leather, a bright coral armchair, a large carpet add richness and completeness to the room..

– Mary McGee, Los Angeles, designer

Finding the perfect shade: expert advice (Part 2)

Finding the perfect shade for your walls

3. When looking at a sample with beige shades, choose one shade less saturated than the one you would like to choose, because colors tend to look darker on walls.

– Kelly Keiser, San Francisco, designer

Finding the perfect shade: expert advice (Part 2)

Finding the perfect shade for your walls

4. Rethink beige. Beige ranges from greyish and greenish to coffee latte.

– Kelly Keiser, San Francisco, designer

Finding the perfect shade: expert advice (Part 2)

Finding the perfect shade for your walls

5. Ecru is a more intense shade than ivory or beige. Therefore, if you do not want to use bright accents, you can combine ecru and beige, getting an elegant color scheme.

– Jonathan Rachman, San Francisco, designer

Finding the perfect shade: expert advice (Part 2)

Finding the perfect shade for your walls

Yellow

1. If you like yellow, but would not like to make the room too bright, mix your favorite yellow in half with white and apply to the walls – and the base color will be your favorite, and the saturation is not so defiant.

– Marlaina Teich, New York, designer

Finding the perfect shade: expert advice (Part 2)

Finding the perfect shade for your walls

2. Yellow looks perfect on accents – it can be a favorite rug, vase or lampshade. Combine the color of the walls (part of the walls, or just the end wall) with bright accents – and the yellow room will sparkle with new colors.

– Sara Gilbane, New York, designer

Finding the perfect shade: expert advice (Part 2)

Finding the perfect shade for your walls

3. Yellow walls are best «work» in a room with lots of natural light. Dark rooms can be decorated with yellow with an admixture of dark and gray shades.

– Sara Gilbane, New York, designer

Finding the perfect shade: expert advice (Part 2)

Finding the perfect shade for your walls

Orange and red

1. If you are thinking of painting the room red, use a peach or melon shade. All these shades are also saturated, but not dominant..

– Katie Ridder, New York, designer

Finding the perfect shade: expert advice (Part 2)

Finding the perfect shade for your walls

2. Gravitate towards hard-to-define shades – peach-pink, orange-coral. These hybrid colors are even more interesting due to their depth and softness..

-Katie Ridder, New York, designer

Finding the perfect shade: expert advice (Part 2)

Finding the perfect shade for your walls

3. Combine terracotta with equally saturated colors for even more intensity: gorgeous gold, deep purple, olive, fiery orange.

– Allison Smith, designer

Finding the perfect shade: expert advice (Part 2)

Finding the perfect shade for your walls

4. Use a deep shade like rusty or chestnut for a dramatic effect.

– Cecilie Starin, San Francisco, designer

Finding the perfect shade: expert advice (Part 2)

Finding the perfect shade for your walls

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