By Jessica

Summer is in full swing and it feels so refreshing and wonderful. Bring on days spent at the lake and eating ice cream.

The perfect season to talk about COLOUR.

I am the first to admit that I have absolutely loved my white house. When we bought our home, I painted the entire upstairs in an off-white colour (Gray Mist, Benjamin Moore). It was the perfect soft white that gave off different hues throughout the day and I loved it. Throughout the past 8 years of living in our home, I’ve changed the majority of the paint to a stronger white (Cloud White, Benjamin Moore) that still has a touch of softness but not as many hues as the previous colour. Within the last couple months I have been craving injecting large doses of colour…and the easiest way to do that is with paint.

Colour is such a large topic, it’s hard to know where to start. Here are a few tips on where/how to use colour and hopefully that will give you the boost to try injecting more colour into your life and home.

Find Your Inspiration

Colour inspiration can come from so many different places. Nature, photographs or artwork, rugs, your wardrobe, your favourite pottery bowl or furniture piece. Search around and take note of what colours and colour schemes you are naturally drawn to and the feelings they bring up for you. There’s lots of research done on the effect colours can have on your emotions and moods, and for the most part I’d agree, but I do also think that colour is a personal experience. You might love red and feel warm and cozy surrounded by the colour red, and I might feel like it’s just way too abrasive and strong. Everyone interprets colours in different ways, so do what works for you in your home. The biggest part of creating a home, is keeping it an accurate representation of yourself and your family. It’s the personal touches that make homes cozy and inviting, and colour is for sure a part of that.

Create a Colour Scheme

So you’ve gathered your inspiration and chances are, there are similar colours throughout. If not though, again, take note of colours that you are naturally drawn to. From there you can begin to create a palette. Why a palette? Because you might really want to venture out and paint a room blue. It takes work to find the right blue and once you’ve finally taken the time to pick the right colour and paint the room, it would feel awful to hate it. That can definitely happen if you don’t have a palette, or colour direction for the rest of the room, not just the wall colour. Adding in the additional colours to compliment the walls is what will bring cohesiveness and a completed look. Your colour palette can determine direction for your trim work, ceiling, furniture pieces, rugs, curtains, cushions, etc.

This is where your inspiration pieces can really be helpful. Pull the colours out of your inspiration pieces can help you determine your colour scheme. The fun part is maneuvering the colours around and determining what direction you want the whole room to take, not just the walls. If you’re still unsure of how to mix different colours, work with one colour, but incorporating different shades. This will create a cohesive and tonal look to your space.

Pick Your Space to Experiment

A bonus to starting with painting walls is that it is an easy change if you want, and usually you can tell whether you’re going to love or hate your colour within 10 minutes of having it on your walls. If you’re wanting to start with a smaller space to experiment there’s a few options that tend to be good places to add doses of colour. Bathrooms or ensuites, spare bedrooms or entryways are all good places to add a pop of colour.

Another way to add a dose of colour into your room without painting the walls from ceiling to floor, try adding wainscoting or wood trim pieces and paint them a different colour than the rest of the walls. This can add such a strong statement without taking the risk of surrounding yourself with a bold colour.

Another way to add a good dose of colour (and pattern!) is by applying wallpaper to your room. Wallpaper adds amazing impact to any room. Again, you will want to find a wallpaper in the colour scheme that fits the rest of your room (maybe picking your wallpaper was the jumpstart to your colour palette!). This way all your elements will still tie together in the end.

For answers to all your questions on wallpaper you can check our blog post here.

Don’t Be Afraid to Be Bold

If you absolutely love colour but are fearful to be bold due to the endless amount of white and grey houses we see on social media and in design magazines, don’t be. Be Bold. Your home and space is a reflection of you. If you love all white spaces, go for it! If you love colour and pattern and want to inject it into your home, do it!

Create Flow Throughout Your Home

You’ve tackled your room and love the outcome…do you keep it to just the one room?! Go back to your colour palette. The easiest way to create flow and cohesiveness throughout your home is to inject colours from your palette into other areas of your home. You can do this with rugs, cushions, throws, furniture pieces, artwork, photos, honestly anything you love to decorate with. And not every room has to incorporate every colour on your palette. But by picking one or two colours you will create a cohesive look without everything being matchy-matchy.

I’m still tackling my bathroom project (maybe next month it will be done?!) but I can honestly say that having a bold colour injected into that room makes me happy. I love walking in there and seeing how the colours work with each other and the feeling they emit. It’s been so fun! I’ve been dreaming up my next project with colour…

“Our spaces can reflect who we are, and they can become environments that meet our needs both aesthetically and purposefully. Pick a color scheme that inspires you. Acquire pieces that speak to you. Start paying attention to what colors, materials, textures, and shapes make you feel happy, creative, or whatever it is you like to feel."

- Paige Geffen, an L.A. based stylist and art director.

Hello to August…