Steps to choosing perfect paint colors for your Belclaire home

Picking the right paint color is a fundamental part of any interior design process. Often, it’s even what decorators base the rest of their design aesthetic on. Freshome put together a list of foolproof tips to ensure that making color selections for your Belclaire home is a quick and easy process.

Buy textiles first
Usually when we talk about textiles, they’re considered a finishing aspect of the design, so this advice may seem counterintuitive. However, one of the easiest ways to make sure your paint coordinates well with the rest of the room is to use fabrics as your design inspiration. If you pick the paint first, you might find yourself limited to only a few fabric options that match your wall. But if base your color palette on an existing product, you’re far more likely to find a coordinating shade of paint.

Work with neighboring spaces
Paint can be a unifying element. Before you decide on a particular shade, consider how it will look with your existing interiors. The colors should work in harmony. While this tip is especially important to follow when working with open concept spaces, the effect a color has when transitioning between more traditional rooms should be considered.

Factor in lighting
Like it or not, the way in which a room is lit can have a huge impact on how the room looks. Each light temperature pulls out a color undertone, which is why rooms often feel vastly different at night than they do during the day. Once you have a color in mind, ask to have a sample made up for you at the local home improvement store. When you take it home, paint a few, small sections of paint on each wall. Then, check in on them throughout the next day. If you’re happy with how the color looks in both natural and artificial light, you’ve found a winner.

Don’t forget finish
Many people tend to overlook the fact that paint color is about much more than the shade itself. Finish is another component that can alter how your finished product looks.

• Flat finish: This is your least shiny option. It comes off as modern and sophisticated, but it doesn’t clean well, so it isn’t the best choice for kitchens and bathrooms.
• Egg shell finish: Low luster, the finish looks decorative and is often used in dining rooms.
• Satin finish: This is the most popular choice and works well for high-traffic areas like hallways.
• Semi-gloss finish: Will give the room a subtle shine and is fairly easily cleaned. It works well in kitchens and baths.
• High-gloss finish: This will give the room a shiny and polished look, but is stain-resistant and easily scrubbable. It works best in kitchens and baths.

Be sure to check out our sister company American Legend Homes’ new Pinterest page for inspiration.