This week I had the opportunity to go to a class on color hosted by Rodda Paint. I took Beth who is our Color Expert and Carmen from our office who wants to get into color consulting and design. I had no idea how much I did not know about color and how people see it until I took this class. Many of us are just color blind so that really makes it hard.
So many factors affect how we see color differently. I just want to talk about some of the factors that go into choosing colors. I think most people struggle when they go pick out paint colors and for good reason. The most common problem when picking out paint colors is that the samples people look at are so small at the paint store. You look at a strip of paint colors that are about half the size of a credit card in strange lighting typically. Not many people are good at picking a color in these conditions.
The best way to choose colors is to look at them in the space to be painted under the actual lighting. Natural light usually is the best for choosing colors. We have so many different light bulbs these days and everyone of them makes color look completely different. If you are choosing exterior colors you should really take your samples outside and put it on your home or get a sample you can hang up that you can put on different sides of the home. The background color can make it hard to see what the new color will look like.
We really prefer to get a sample of the actual paint in the sheen that you will be using and put it on the surface to be painted. The bigger the sample the better to really see what it will look like. They recommend a 4’x4’ sample for best results. If you do not want to put samples up you can get a drawdown from the paint store which is a large piece of paper with the actual paint on it so you can hang it in different areas to visualize the color.
The sheen of the paint also can make the paint color look completely different so make sure you are not using a sample of flat paint if you plan to use satin or some other sheen. Higher sheens reflect more light and this totally changes the color.
Just because you like a paint color it does not mean it will work in your home. When it comes to picking your colors you should consider the colors in your home like your flooring, counters, art and furniture. If you use a designer to help you they should see what your home looks like so they can help choose paint colors. At Absolute Painting & Power Washing we provide a professional in home color consultation for our clients at no extra charge. Let us know if we can help you with choosing colors so you can just enjoy the experience and not make any costly mistakes.
Mike Hughes
Owner
