How to Select Paint Colors

When you are renovating any room in your home or office, you may need to change the color of the walls and ceiling. This is why you have to buy gallons of paint that will match the rest of the room. To do it right, here are a few things you should do.

First, decide what the overall theme of the room is. The rule of thumb when selecting paint colors is that if the furniture and other items in the room are dark, you have to select a light colored paint. If the items in the room are light colored, then you have to choose a dark paint color.

But if the room you are painting has different colors, it is best to play safe and choose a neutral color. If for instance, most of the items in the room are color red, it will be a good idea to choose the color yellow.

This means that before you can buy paint, you have to decide on the décor of the room. Once you have figured that out, only then should you proceed to the next step which is to choose the paint color. Most hardware stores have 4 or 5 different shades for each color.

Since you want to get it right the first time, you have to get paint swatches which are usually given out for free from the hardware store. When you bring the samples home, stick the different shades on the wall.

Now, take a step back and see which one actually looks good. You should look at the samples when you are at least 5 feet away from the wall. That way, you can see both the sample and the area that will be painted.

You should also look at the samples more than once because natural lighting has an effect so this changes what the color will look like at different times of the day. If you are having a hard time picking the right one, remove those which you don't like first until there are only two choices.

Another way to help you along the process of elimination is to show the swatches to your friends and neighbors because they are able to give you a fresh perspective of how it will look like when the renovation is finished.

You don't always have to use on shade of paint especially when you are painting a bookcase or shelf. Some variants have a strip of light and dark color when you buy it and this looks good when it dries.

The rule of choose light colored paint in a dark environment and vice versa is different when you are choosing the color of the paint to use for your ceiling. If there are decorative details, use a light colored paint color. But if you are renovating a contemporary or traditional home, your best bet will still be black, chocolate brown and navy blue.

Don't forget to check the paint's sheen when you are selecting what to use in your home. Sheen is another word which means shiny and the advantage of selecting a paint color that is shiny is the fact that it can help hide imperfections and one good example of this is either eggshell or satin finish.

This color will not work though in the bathroom. For that, you should use semi-gloss. As for the ceiling, use flat or matte paint.

You might think that selecting paint color is easy but in reality, it is really challenging. Thanks to advances in technology, there are many shades of blue, red, orange, brown, white and others to choose from which is why you have to take your time in selecting the right one.

So figure out the overall theme of the room first before selecting the paint colors. Next get swatches so will be able to choose the right color for the ceiling or wall. Don't forget to compare the paint pieces of one hardware store to another before you buy because one dollar you save from a can of paint could save you twenty or thirty dollars especially when you will be buying a lot of these and bringing it home.