My thoughts on color

Clients tend to think that it’s the decorator who makes all the color calls. And surely, there are designers that will attempt to impose their “vision” on you.

However, what I tell my clients when it comes to color, is to follow their heart.  As an interior decorator, I see my role rather as the manager, the professional that knows how to work with the choices that my clients make rather than make them on their behalf. After all I want you to be happy in your home!

My approach towards color will not only manifest itself during my home visit but in my design. For one of the many questions that I will ask you when you are showing me your home is: what color preferences do you have? How will you use this room? What are the colors that are used in the other rooms? I will not only write your answers down, but I will then attempt to implement your preferences into my design with a carefully thought-out color scheme.

My color philosophy revolves around the concept that I design for my client, and not for myself. This is a concept that many a designer lacks. I want you not only to feel that your home is beautiful, but that the choices that you made are ultimately yours.

Once you tell me your color preferences, it is my job as a designer to figure out the appropriate color scheme. Depending on what your preferences are, this can be a monochromatic color scheme that features only grays and whites, or, if your choices were bold, I will have to dig a little deeper into the complex world of color theory. 

Planning a color scheme is a carefully thought-out process for which I apply a five-step process. 

First, I decide where your best opportunities are for using color.  Will painting one wall in an accent color give your room the spark you desire?  Or perhaps, a soft blending of similar color hues will give your new room it’s desired “feeling or mood.”

Then, I take a critical look at your room’s architectural features.  Do you want them to stand out – take center stage – or be minimized?  Perhaps you have painted bookshelves flanking a room’s fireplace.  Adding an accent color or even wallpaper to the back walls of your bookshelves might add just a bit of much needed color flair to the entire wall scheme.  

Thirdly, I try to define how your space will be used (you will help me define this by answering my questions).  Reading, relaxing, game playing, watching TV?  An important consideration in selecting your new color scheme is how you use and enjoy the space.

Next, I will analyze your room’s lighting.  How much natural light does your room have?  A room with a lot of artificial light will definitely call for a different color plan than one with a lot of natural light.

And last, but not least, it’s critical to consider your “new” room’s relationship to the other rooms in your home.  Color continuity is key to creating the overall look most people desire for their homes.  

Are you tired of your old colors? Eager to share your new ideas with a  professional designer? If you have any questions or would like to schedule a free in-home consultation, call or email me and we will set something up.

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