Part 1

Decorating with color is not as easy as it seems. When it comes to decorating or redecorating our homes, one of the most important dilemmas we face is what color should it be?  We are bombarded with hundreds of colors, hues and tones, pastels and naturals, labelled with evocative or designer names – all staring at us seductively on never ending shelves in DIY stores and home decorating shops. Yet we remain confused as to which one to go for, so we end up choosing the one that looks best on a swatch or has a nice image on the tin or is part of a trendy range or a magazine recommended it or a friend has it in their house…  And almost always we end up with the wrong tone, shade or hue. Why? Because getting the right color for a space needs planning, experimenting and proper preparation (which most of us don’t do).

Actually,  decorating is just like cooking for a dinner party. The difference between a successful and not so successful dinner lies not only in choosing the right recipe, but the quality of ingredients, proper preparation, sensual presentation  – all executed with perfect timing.

In the following articles I’ll write about how to get the right color for your home. Before doing so, let’s examine how and why colors affect us physically, mentally and emotionally.

Color

According to colour theorist there isn’t such a thing as color: just light (white) and the absence of light (black). In between there are different absorptions or reflections of light – these we perceive as different shades of colour. Different colours have different wavelengths. The longer they are, the more adjustment they require in our eyes. The different vibrations of light then pass from the retina to the brain, then to the endocrine glands, which release hormones affecting certain parts of the body. Red has the longest wavelength, thus requiring the most adjustment. Many people become stressful and tense in red interiors. Green, at the other end of the scale, requires no adjustment and is considered a restful, peaceful color.

We also experience colors by association. Green may be relaxing on the eye but it’s also the color of nature, which we associate with serenity. Blue is associated with sky and sea; white with purity and heaven; black (the absence of light) with death and darkness. Our current preference for natural colors is a response to our contemporary concerns for environmental issues – over the last decade pastel greens and earthy browns have become the predominant colors for the packaging of most goods. Then, slowly but surely most of us started to want shades of stone, brown and “natural” colors on our walls and furnishings.

According to psychologists, we have a universal order of color preference. Blue is the most preferred color, followed by red, then green, purple, yellow and orange. Recent research shows that the differing combination of the three dimensions of a color that influence us the most:- the hue, the tone and the saturation. Green at full chromatic strength can be just as stimulating as red, whilst paler or darker shades of red can be perceived as calming. The hue seems to be the least important factor -  people respond more strongly to tones and strength of a color than to hue itself. Except when it comes to color temperature. We perceive yellow & red rooms as warm whilst a blue room feels cool – even if the actual temperature is the same.
 
So color has an important impact on our mind, our feelings and our perceptions of our environment. According to more recent research, each of us belong to a seasonal color group (reflecting certain personalities) -  which we should take into consideration before we decide on the color-scheme of our home.

Find out which seasonal colour group you belong to in part 2 of Decorating with color.