Infloormation

Understanding Color Part 1: Warm vs. Cool Colors

Do you remember painting color wheels in grade school art class? You started with the three primary colors, red, yellow and blue, and then filled in the secondary colors. Then it got confusing for most of us. Well, although generally our artistic days are past, that work can still have some value when you’re adding color to your home. One of the basic concepts, warm vs. cool colors, comes in handy when matching color to purpose for various spaces.

First: a quick, review. Warm colors are oranges and yellows, along with connected colors such as orange-reds, yellow-greens and browns. For the most part, warm colors are sunny day colors. Cool colors are rainy day colors: modifications of blue: purples, turquoises, blue-greens and some blue-toned reds and pinks.

When considering color and space, other issues come into play. Warm colors seem to advance to meet us in a room. They are welcoming and can create a sense of excitement. Cool colors are more distant. They tend to be calm and relaxing in a space. This means that different rooms benefit from different color choices. A room where you host parties may be more inviting if the color scheme leans in the warm direction. On the other hand, if you are designing a nursery, you don’t want to paint the walls a color such as yellow that will keep the baby awake and alert all the time!

If you walk through your home, chances are you will find that most of your rooms have a combination of warm and cool colors. This is generally a good idea. Cool colors in an otherwise warm-colored room will create pockets of serenity and keep the space under control. A few warm colors, however, in a basically cool-colored room will make the room seem friendlier. In a cool color space, only a few warm touches are needed, because warm colors have such a strong visual impact.

Want to change some colors? You may find that considering your current balance of warm and cool colors and measuring that up against a room’s purpose may help you determine whether you want to go warmer or cooler in your new color selections. If you’re still not sure about your color direction, grab a few warm or cool color samples from other rooms and scatter them around the room, or remove some warm or cool elements from a room, and see what kind of difference it makes to the feeling of a space.

You can always call us and we’ll be happy to help find the right color floor to compliment the colors in your home!