How to Choose the Perfect Paint Color
- 1). Stop at the local paint store for a no-strings attached visit. Take a look around and get inspired without the pressure of having to make a selection immediately. Pull off a bunch of paint swatches that look interesting and take them home.
- 2). Examine the furniture and decorations that will make up the interior of the room being painted. Choose two or three prominent colors from the interior design scheme that match the swatches taken from the paint store.
- 3). Select a shade from the swatches. Colors in the middle of the spectrum are best for walls, while Sheri Thompson, director of color marketing and design for Sherwin-Williams, suggests choosing a shade one step down from the wall color for the trim. Darker colors can give the room a smaller feel, but if coziness is the objective then that could be a good thing. Lighter colors open a room up and allow light to reflect better. Pick the shade that will most enhance the room being painted.
- 4). Purchase a small amount of paint. Paint a 4-by-4 foot swatch on one of the walls and let it set there for a couple of days. Don't worry about it making the room look bad--it is going to get repainted any way. After two or three days, if the paint still looks great then it is the right choice. If second thoughts start appearing, try a new color and paint over the old one.
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