Do I Have to Choose a Color Palette for My Home?

Do you have to choose a color palette for your home?  In short, yes.  Choosing a color palette for your home is an important part of creating a cohesive interior design.  Colors that flow together nicely are not only pleasing to the eye but helps evoke a feeling of order and purpose.  Attention to detail and intentional color choices are the hallmarks of a good room design. So, how do you choose a color palette?  Here are three easy ways.

How to Choose a Color Palette

1. Inspirational Image or Object – One of the easiest ways to create a color palette for your home is by using a favorite painting, scarf, or photograph as your source.  This takes the guesswork out of trying to figure out which colors go well together.  These colors are also meaningful to you.  They may make you feel energized, relaxed, focused, or creative.  Whatever it is, it resonates with you in some way.  This makes it a good place to start when choosing a color scheme.  There are several websites that will automatically identify colors within your inspirational object.  All you have to do is upload a photo to the site, hit generate, and boom! Instant color palette.  Check out coolers.co or colorfavs.com.

   
2. Precedent Study – Many of us use precedent studies to decorate our homes without even knowing it.  A precedent is simply seeing a room you like and emulating it.  Of course, Instagram, Pinterest, and magazines are great sources for precedents but don’t be afraid to step out of the box and find other places.  Movies and television are great ways to draw inspiration for a color palette.  Emma Welsh from Invaluable.com shared with us this awesome post on How to Decorate Your Home Like Wes Anderson.  In this post, they explore color palettes from different Wes Anderson films.

   

3. Color Theory – If you want to create something really original, you may want to study up on color theory.  This is the science of mixing colors based on the teachings of the color wheel, primary colors, complementary colors, color meanings, and much more.  This is better explained by Cameron Chapman in this post from Smashing Magazine.  But, in essence, you’re using an extensive base of knowledge on colors to develop something from scratch.  For some, this will come easily.  However, if you feel like you’re getting in over your head, try one of the other methods.

   

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