subject: Interior Design Tips On How To Add Color To Your Home [print this page] There are a lot of people who are afraid to add colors to their space. This is understandable but the truth is, when you know the basic rules to using colors, there's really no need for you to be afraid of it. Here are some tips on how to beautify your homes using the right colors.
1. 60-30-10 Rule - This is the first thing that you need to understand. This means that you should divide the colors that you'll use in these percentages. There should be a 60% use of the dominant color, 30% use of the secondary color and 10% use of your accents. To give you a better idea, think of a man's business suit. He has a jacket, slacks, a shirt and a tie. The slacks and the jacket make up the 60% of his outfit color; the shirt makes up the 30%; and the tie makes up the 10%. In a room setting, this rule means that 60% of the room's color is your walls. Then the next 30% is your upholstery and the last 10% should be your accent pieces or floral arrangements.
2. Color Scheme - You can make use of the color wheel so it would be easier for you to select 2 color themes. This technique is a good place to start. The color wheel can be divided into two, the complementary color scheme and the analogous color scheme. The complementary color scheme is great for formal areas of your home. On the other hand, the analogous color scheme is great for informal areas of the home or places where you want to relax or rest.
3. Add black - when you add a black element in an area, you enhance the rest of the colors that you used in the said area. For example, you can add a black picture frame or lamp shade.
4. Nature's role - in interior design, there is a term called value. Value is considered as the lightness or darkness of a particular color. Sometimes, the values of the color in a room are not balanced. Sometimes, one side of an area is darker than the other. This must be avoided. To guide you, take a look at how Mother Nature designs the outside world. For example, your floor can be likened to the ground; it should have darker values. Your floor can be likened to the trees and mountains and therefore it should have medium values. Lastly, the ceiling may be likened to the sky and should therefore have light values.
