Our Paint Colours

Something that we get asked about fairly regularly, are the paint colours that we’ve used in our home. While we’re certainly no experts in choosing colours, this is how we tend to go about things.

In general we think we have fairly safe colour choices. We’re considering using Azure Sky for the 4^th bedroom (that’s currently a room full of junk), which is definitely a break from our usual colour theme, but it’s something we’re going to have to carefully consider.

All of the colours (except Azure Sky) have a slight grey undertone, which we think kind of ties the colours together.

Living Room:

Front Door:

Master Bedroom:

Office:

Guest Bedroom (in progress):

Here are a few things that we’ve learned along the way. 

• Always buy a tester and paint a few small areas dotted around the room. Then check the colour at different times of day. You’ll be surprised how the light can affect the a colour! The colour can also look different depending on where it’s painted within a room, so definitely don’t rely on one test patch.
• We like to paint our narrowed down colour testers next to each other – it helps compare them more accurately and makes it easier to decide if one colour is too dark, too light, too blue, ….
• Don’t ignore the surfaces that you aren’t painting like floors and built-in furniture. Make sure you consider them when choosing the colour for your walls.
• In general we tend to go for fairly neutral colours. We like to think they are a good backdrop for some more colourful accessories and artwork – which can easily be changed and switched around to give the room a fresh and new feel.
• We like using different colours in different rooms, but it’s important to consider how the rooms flow together. We have a white hallway, which works as a kind of neutral zone that connects the more colourful rooms.
• All of the woodwork in our home is painted in the same shade of white. We think that it helps create a more coherent feel by having an element that is repeated in every room.
• If you have a piece of art or furniture that you know is going to be in that room, take it as a starting point for your colour theme.
• Apparently there is a rule for 70-20-10 for decorating. 70 % for the lightest, 20% for the second lightest and 10% for the darkest colour.
• Most importantly – choose what you like! It’s your house, so go with what feels right for you!

Do you have a fool proof way of choosing paint colours?