The Psychology of Color.

There is no reason why your home should look the same from one year to the next

Giving your home a new look in the New Year provides you with a forum to express your new self, as well as express the positive energy that makes you productive. Our homes, more than anything else, are a manifestation of ourselves, these being the places where we relax, reflect, and be at ease with our inner being.

Just as you wouldn’t dream of wearing the same clothes year in year out, there is no reason why your home should look the same from one year to the next. A monotonous atmosphere is obviously depressing and draws energy from us, and this is absolutely the last thing that anyone would dream of at the beginning of a year. Indeed, giving your home a makeover is the best gift you can give yourself this year.

The perception that redecorating a home is an expensive exercise is already outdated, especially now that interiors are more fashion-driven thankfully, there is so much we can do and buy to create whole new looks without completely discarding the embellishments that we already have. Certainly, no one would want to get rid of items of sentimental value, because of the memories they preserve. And so, completely discarding our own past can be equated to throwing away a whole dimension of our lives. Yes, we cherish all this, but there is a trick to conserving these timeless treasures while still embracing new design concepts: by creating an easy-to-live-with blank canvas in our homes, on which we can paint and repaint as trends and our individual styles evolve.

In case you are not ready to repaint the whole house, you can at least update the look on certain rooms or walls. If you are not out for a radical departure from the past, you can still keep to the same color family, but add an interesting paint technique to make a feature on one wall. Be careful though, in choosing which walls to highlight. Preferably, and to start with, choose one that has a naturally inbuilt sense of importance. The wall could already incorporate an architectural feature on it, such as a fireplace, or be opposite a window where natural light will enhance a special color. You may also want to make a statement on a landing or hallway.

CHOOSING COLOUR

Color has the potential to elevate and energize our interior decorations, besides bringing our homes to life. It can also warm or cool, calm or excite us. Creative use of color can make a small room look spacious, or vast rooms look cozy. Besides, color conceals unsightly features and brings the ornate to the surface.

Finding quality paint to use in home remodeling is no longer a problem since we have a good number of quality paint manufacturers around. The challenge, however, lays in making the right color choices amidst the existing wide ranges that keep on growing. This can easily lead to confusion and indecision.

From a tender age, we are confronted with situations where we have to make color choices Remember your nursery school favorite crayon or pot of paint? Most of us developed strong color preferences to the extent that we threw tantrums if we were not dressed in our favorite color dresses or shorts on special days.

Although we are grown-ups now, color preferences live on, but sometimes they need to be adapted to suit particular settings. For example, if you work hard and need a relaxing environment to come home to the aquamarines, lilacs, or shades of blue will provide you with a calm environment.

Inspiration for color schemes can be drawn from a variety of sources, besides swatch cards and conventional magazines. For instance, you can adapt schemes of a variety of fruits we have around, fish in the aquarium, a butterfly, or even the beautiful color combinations on some snakes. In other cases, you may experience a special lure to a certain place for the simple reason that the color combination of its environment appeals to you. In my case, the colors of the landscape and plant life have always been a constant source of inspiration. Think of the wildlife in the Maasai Mara, Serengeti, or the Amboseli national parks, against the savannah background under the pale blue skies. Or even the daises sticking out of the green leafy plants in your flower garden. They look wonderful. If you choose your colors this way, you can hardly go wrong. Most inland house owners prefer exteriors painted in earth colors, as contrasted to those found in coastal regions where white dominates.

However, in both settings, most interiors are painted in bright colors that include various shades of white, apple green, and golden yellow. A clever combination of beige and mahogany brown is also used to render that traditional African ambience that ties people to their roots.

Choosing a fashionable color scheme has great advantages. To start with, the paint color will be readily available in shops. Secondly, your home will look fresh and up-to-date, not to mention that shops will at all times be full of complementing accessories. Unlike clothes, color fashions change less often and this makes remodeling easy on your pocket.

However, the biggest challenge that people face when wading through color charts is finding colors that complement each other. Coming up with a color combination that will make you feel good requires good planning as well as an understanding of color and how it can be used to create a positive effect in your home.

Of all colors, white is the easiest to work with. Whatever your style, always looks good. The color is timeless, smart, calming, light reflective and it offers few distractions. Besides, white comes in a number of shades, ranging from ivory to the deep cream of a rose. If you decide to use white, consider the lighting in the room you intend to paint. In a sunny room, for example, using brilliant white on walls will make it too bright, and it is, therefore, advisable to go for other not-so-bright shades of the color. You can also add texture to create contrast

You can, in addition, introduce visual interest in the room by bringing in textured rugs, fluffy cushions as well as natural flowers and plants to the white room. And since white is pure, your choice of form and shapes should project simplicity. Similarly, accessories should be kept simple and dominated by geometric shapes.

There is no doubt that color affects us psychologically. Certain colors warm us up others cool us down others have therapeutic effects on us. Research conducted to establish the effects of color on humans have all come down to the same conclusion that; indeed different colors affect us differently.

While there are standard psychological associations to color, different cultures interpret color differently. Among the Buddhists for example, yellow is associated with spirituality while in the Muslim world the holy color is green. The French have red as a color of masculinity, contrary to the rest of the world which represents masculinity as blue.

Most colors have both positive and negative sides. Yellow is seen to bring warmth and sunshine while it can also represent jealousy and cowardice. We often use color to express our feelings like ‘feeling blue’ when we are unhappy or ‘seeing red when we are full of rage. Green is associated with envy, pink represents good health and the list is endless.

It is important therefore to determine what you intend to achieve in a room before getting down with your brush. Choosing a color is one thing and getting it right is another. You wouldn’t want to paint your bedroom in a color that keeps your mind active ensuring that you do not sleep a wink, would you?

ORANGE is a color of equanimity- it reduces tension. It is energetic and more often than not says, “I want everything level around me, and I want everybody to get along.” Orange is attractive, positive, warm, and cheerful. It symbolizes prosperity, both physical and mental energy. The best shades of orange are those of ripe fruits that hold the promises of sunshine, sparkling good health, and pleasure. Orange is the most preferred colour by professional interior designers for living rooms and entrance halls. It gives a room fresh energy and it is a choice that requires a certain amount of bravado.

RED denotes power and control. You have it, you want it – you express it. Red is fire, strength, blood, the heart, danger, anger, excitement, and passion. It is a powerful alarming extrovert colour. It can be aggressive and has a negative as well as positive association. It is also the first colour you see as an infant. When decorating in red you need to take careful consideration! Red is an attention seeker and therefore good for details and accessories. In nature, red suggest ripeness. It is a delicious colour hence decorations should be inspired by visions of red in nature.

YELLOW entails motion, spontaneity and change. It is a playful color that connotes fun and happiness. It is associated with intellect, understanding, and knowledge. Yellow never stops moving; it carries the eye from one area of a room to another. Yellow makes an atmosphere lively and good for conversation. It encourages creativity, imagination, and communication. When a room is decorated in yellow it is like sending out an ‘open house invitation.

BLUE is associated with authority and strength, knowing what you know and being aware of it. It is also associated with peace, authority, and intelligence. In some shades, blue is balancing, calming, and rejuvenating. A colour with the power to replace excitement, with tranquility perfect to come home after a draining day at work. Blue is the colour of law enforcement, motherhood, the sky, and the sea. It is dependable and truthful. Blue absorbs light and will make a room appear darker and small, and therefore should be mixed well with other colors. Pure bright blue freshens the space making it feel cool and airy. It is meditative, good for focusing the mind on higher things.

GREEN shows possession of either objects or oneself, enhancing confidence and stubbornness. It also means vitality and growth. Green also stakes out a territory- it is definite. Green is a colour of youth, growth, ecology, relaxation, balance, recovery, and optimism. It connects us to nature. If you intend to use various shades of green it is advisable that you consult combinations in nature.

VIOLET indicates a transitional period from childhood to maturity. It is often associated with ambivalence, indecision, and need, but it also conveys spirituality and a magical essence. Purples are said to help us achieve serenity. However, those who are temperamental and prone to depression are advised to avoid it. Deep purple is too heavy for large areas but tremendous for adding depth, richness, and colour accents to a room.