5 Tips For Choosing The "Right" Colour For Your Room

Before you do anything, decide what you do and don’t like about your room as it is. It may help to list 5 things you like and 5 things you’re less keen on. Perhaps the room has lovely high ceilings, attractive architectural features, a great view out of the window and lots of natural light in the mornings. It may also have dodgy wallpaper, curtains that have seen better days, a wonky door and an ugly radiator that you can’t afford to replace. This exercise is time well spent because you’ll want to preserve the features you like whilst changing or disguising those you don’t. And you may find that you don’t need to change absolutely everything. Perhaps a rug, new blind or pair of curtains is all that’s required.

Do you want to create a calm, relaxed space or something more energising? Do you want the room to feel cosy, rich, cool, spacious, elegant or intimate? Any of these can be achieved through the right choice and use of colour. Generally speaking, choosing different tones of the same colour or colours that sit next to each other on the colour wheel (e.g. blue, blue-green and green) will lead to a more relaxing harmonious space. You could choose a pair of curtains in a colour that’s a lighter or darker tone of the wall colour for example. By contrast, choosing colours that sit opposite one another on the colour wheel will create a more dramatic, stimulating space. Don’t overdo the contrast though otherwise it all becomes a bit much. Better to choose one or two accents in the room, so for example, a bright pair of curtains or a dramatic rug in colours that are complementary to those used elsewhere.

It’s essential that you test out paint and fabric colours before making a decision. With paint, you should always buy tester pots, paint a large piece of lining paper or similar in your shortlisted colours and then tape the paper to different walls within a space. Check how it looks at different times of day as well in both natural and artificial light. Similarly with fabric, request samples and tape them to windows. Get a sense of how they both look and feel.