Monday, January 24, 2011

Color Wonder~101

This post is a little long, I promise I wont do this again, but its a lot of much needed info, for the artist/Decorator in us all~ He who endures to the end of this Blog will be rewarded!!

I recently Painted my Dining room Purple, and I love it~

I Love all color, I live in Color...and I think you should too:)

Painting your walls is the Cheapest and most dramatic way to give your living space a much needed face lift! **painters tip** Splurge for the good stuff, I used Kilz 3 in 1 , painter/primer. It painted over the red in 1 coat!, and I still have about 1/3 gallon left! Amazing!!

My house is full of color, on purpose, and for a purpose. But so many people get it so wrong...no worries, read through this and you will be a pro!! Once you understand color, decorating is a breeze~

All Color has meaning....Lets go through the rainbow together....

COLOROLOGY BY KATHIE~
Here we go

RED~ red is the "look at me" color,when  u wear it, paint a wall with it or put it on your lips, the color red will always draw the most attention, because it catches the eye. Its the warmest of all colors, and infuses passion, intensity, and high energy. When using red in your home, go easy.. just one accent wall should do, and it works best in the kitchen, or dining room, because it also increases appetite~I Love Red, the former color of my dinning room was a maroon red, and worked great!

PINK~pink is the color of Love and acceptance, my master bath is painted powder pink, and I am not sure that I will ever change it. In fact a lot of people mistake my favorite color for pink, because of how much I use it, wear it, craft with it etc...But the truth is pink is a very  welcoming, warm color, that promotes calm feelings...
*fact* more and more prisons are painting there hallways,  muted pink, to dissolve aggression....and I have my daughters room painted the same color for the same reason..ha ha*
Pink clothes bring out a healthy skin color in anyone who wears it. Everyone...yes even men, look there best in Pink!

ORANGE~ orange is the opposite of pink in many ways, its the color of aggression, and hostility, use it very sparingly in your home, but don't be afraid to use it! I have one wall in my kitchen, that is a very spicy, pumpkiny, orangy color, and It works great, in small amounts to promote healthy food choices:) So keep that under your hat~
too much orange in the house can be very off putting...(hello Brady Bunch)...so go easy on it and stick to earthy tones....

BROWN~ brown is a very versatile color, when used appropriately it can be a stabilizing color for the home and wardrobe, but to much brown, on brown, on brown...can give a very dull effect, and promote laziness, and slow moving. If you love brown, stick with the warm shades, and do a classy amount, and you can create a sense of Wholesomeness and clear thinking~
*fact* Most coffee shoppes are painted in abundance of brown, not because its the color of coffee, but because of the laziness factor. They want you to stay, as long as you can~*

YELLOW~ I love yellow, however, it is so miss used...let me share. yellow brings clarity, and order to a room, it promotes creativity and joy. Yellow works best in small closed off rooms, basements, and creative spaces, you can even use it in living areas, if you want a bigger wider feel to the space, works great.....HOWEVER if you to not select the right shade you will dislike the results. Yellow is the most miss tinted paint, either you get mustard, or dandelion, or too white.
*here is a Kathie tip*
Go to your refrigerator, pull out you tub of butter, and never stray over 2 shades away from it!!
The wrong color yellow, can and will produce feelings of anxiety, and messy thinking.
*another Kathie tip*
When creatively brainstorming, use a yellow pad, to provoke thought.

GREEN~ green is my favorite color to paint on the walls, it is in my main living area, hallway, and foyer. Green promotes health,growth, safety, motivation and is the color of life. You cannot go wrong with green...almost. Green is a balancing color, if you want a punch of red, orange or purple somewhere, you can balance it out with green every time.
*side note* Beware of mint green walls, you do not want to live in a mental institute.

BLUE~blue is the coldest color, it ushers in relaxation and peace of mind. I have had sleep issues in the past, and changing my bedroom, from brown to blue, has been awesome! Put blue in quiet places, do not use an abundance of it in you main rooms...esp, the kitchen. your kitchen should never be blue. Blue in a kitchen represents mold, and does not attribute to healthy food choices. Make sure you choose a muted quiet blue, for the bedroom, laundry room or kids room...don't get me started on baby blue....it should never be on anyone's wall...ever...

Purple~My color for 2011!!!Its the color of change, purpose, and royalty, it stimulates imagination, calms over activity, enhances most environments, and is the color of glamour! Need I say more? Always use it in moderation, as you can see, my dining room , has 3 door ways in it, very narrow walls, and lots of natural light, so the dark plumb shade works great!
Purple is the combination of the warmest and coldest colors...its the best of both worlds!
Surround your self with purple when you want to be reminded of valuable you are!

Wow this is getting to be very long...I have to add this though..

GREY~ grey is the color of sorrow. I know its the fad right now, but grey is lifeless, void, lacks emotion, or movement, and gives feelings of isolation, and loneliness...I am yet to understand why anyone would live between walls of grey. If you like grey, decorate with it, accent with it, small amounts of grey can be very classy, but it is not to be the focus of the room!

Black and White...neither are colors, and neither should be on your walls...

If you live somewhere that does not allow paint on the wall, first of all, I am so sorry..and I am grieving with you...but you can add lots of color with out painting! Curtains, rugs, throw blankets, furniture, candles, paintings, plants, and flowers work great for that extra punch of color!

Let me know if there is a color I have not covered that you would like to know about, Id be happy to share~
Thanks for spending tome with me today, I hope I helped a little~
Colorfully Yours~
ArtsieMama~

3 comments:

  1. I enjoyed this blog a lot - you certainly have done your research on colors! Unfortunately, I'm not going to be moving into a house anytime soon, so I won't be able to paint myself for many years, but still good info to know :O)

    *Tip on blogging: read over your blog once before posting to take care of typo errors.

    ReplyDelete
  2. ps- I like that you kept the ceiling in your dining room white - it helps to keep an open feel so that the dark plum color isn't closing the space in too much.

    ReplyDelete
  3. Yes I am all about leaving well enough alone, when it comes to the ceiling~..I do a Spell check, and a couple read throughs before I post but then when I read it on the Blog, I see more that need to be fixed...oh well, I never claimed to be an expert on grammer, spelling or punctuation....

    ReplyDelete