Colour choice could be considered the most important part of decoration as colours can determine the moods and the functions of rooms.

There are many things to consider when choosing colours. Visit your local paint and fabric stores regularly until you feel confident about selecting the colours that you will have to live with for the next ten years or more.

To be successful at selecting colours you have to understand colour.

Colour is light.

Isaac Newton proved that by bending the light rays the colours of the natural spectrum can be observed.

Try this:

Place a prism in front of a light source and you will see the spectrum reflected on to a surface: red, orange, yellow, green, blue, indigo and purple. When these colours are bent into a circle a colour wheel is created.

The colours of the wheel (see Figure 5) remain in the same position with the exclusion of indigo. This leaves the three primary colours: red, yellow and blue; and the secondary colours: orange, green and purple. The colour wheel (see Figure 6) has been broken down even further to include the intermediate colours. The colours are now in the following order:

• red-red orange-orange
• yellow orange yellow yellow green
• blue green-green-blue
• blue purple-purple-red purple.

This is called a twelve-hue colour wheel. It has been further devel­oped by adding tints, shades and pastels of each hue.

Note: A tint is made by mixing white with a colour. Variations in tints can be made by adding further white as required.  A shade is made by mixing black to the colour.  A pastel can be achieved by adding light gray to the colour.

One extremely important factor in the way we see colours is to do with the amount of light hitting a surface. The more light, the lighter the colour will appear.

Go outside on a sunny day and look at the lawn under a tree and compare it with the colour of the grass out in the open. The grass in the shade will look quite a lot deeper in colour. On a cloudy day, where there is no direct sunlight, it will appear all the same colour. These colour changes are occurring in your rooms all the time.

The colour you see also varies according to whether the type of light available is natural or artificial.

 

 

Juxtaposition of Colour

If a person looks at a strong colour for a second or two, and then looks away, they experience the sensation of seeing another colour. This is referred to as `afterimage’. Everyone experiences this, usually without realising it. You need to be aware of what happens when colours are placed alongside one another as they can have a dramatic effect on the finished job.

A client purchased a can of paint to paint the top section of the walls above the tiles in the bathroom. The colour he chose was a pale green. He returned to the store after completing the painting and complained that the colour he had been sold was not what he chose. It looked grey.
The colour was correct. It appeared different because the green tiles caused a red afterimage which, when mixed with green, appeared grey. What was needed to avoid this was a slightly stronger green.

Look at Figure 7 You will see two red and two green squares. The two top squares have a yellow square in the middle. If you study these for a minute or two the yellows will appear to be different. The yellow on the green square looks a little more orange than the one on the red square. They are in fact the same. The yellow on the red square appears colder and slightly `greener’ due to the green afterimage from the red. Now look at the grey squares. The grey on the green square looks a little more lilac.

Using colour cards

Colour cards that offer a wide range of colours on one sheet are a useless tool simply because it only needs one bright colour on the sheet to cause an afterimage. The colours on the chart will appear differently on your walls.

 

Figure 13 shows an example of how you should position your colour chips. Note that the colours have been arranged with cards to represent the ceiling at the top and the walls in the middle. The colours on either side represent the window coverings and the furniture; the bottom card represents the floor. An attempt should be made when arranging these cards to place them in sizes to represent the size of the area on which they will be used. Any afterimage will be revealed using this arrangement.  If you like what you see, use it.

Don’t forget you need to look at these colours at the time of day you would normally be in the room. Look at them over a few days to be sure you see them with all the possible light changes.

Matching colours to requirements

To be successful at selecting colours a decorator must:

• Have an understanding of basic colour theory
• Know the characteristics of the area to be colour planned
• Have a clear understanding of the function of the room
• Know who will be using the area and understand their needs
• Be able to recognise the need for mood and create an appropriate one.

The decorator must know how to create a psychological mood to match the needs of the people using the room. For example, a person who works in a stressful situation during the day will need to have colours that offer relaxation. To do this the decorator needs to know how to allocate colours that reflect the appropriate amount of light and colour strength.

The terms that describe colour

The three terms that describe colour are:

• Hue
• Value
• Saturation

Hue refers to the position a colour occupies on the colour wheel and is synonymous with its name, such as red, yellow or blue.  The range of colours available on the colour wheel can further be extended by the addition of varying amounts of white or black to any of the colours.
When white is added, a tint is produced.  When black is added, a shade is produced.

Value describes the lightness or darkness of a colour and is used interchangeably with the tone.

Colours of equal value or tone appear as the identical shade of grey photographs.

Saturation is the intensity of a brightness of a colour, with highly saturated colours usually appearing richer and fuller.

 Colour coordination

Colours can be arranged using the twelve hue colour wheel. Templates can be made to fit over the colour wheel to hide the unwanted colours and draw attention to the recommended colour groups. With practice the user can relate the colour groups to specific environments, for example relaxing, formal, quiet, bright and cheery, motivational or even sensuous.
Care must be taken not to associate a particular colour group with just one mood, for example monochromatic as quiet. In fact monochromatic can be very bright, especially when used in a variation of chroma strengths, or supported by black and white.
When using a combination with more than one hue, one of the hues should be dominant, with perhaps more than one variation of that hue with smaller amounts of the others used to support the main colour. For example imagine yellow was the main hue with gold used for the ceiling and pale yellow walls. Soft furnishings could include yellow, green and orange. If orange is used the least it could be the strongest chroma. In the event of more than two hues being used it is often the one that is used the least which has the strongest chroma. This may be used on accessories.
When choosing colours for a room that has colours which are to be retained, identify these colours on the wheel. Try different templates over the colours.
Be aware that most fabrics have a variety of colours in them. Once you identify all the colours in a fabric you will usually find that they fit within one of the colour groups. You may then choose one of these colours as your main hue and use a variety of chroma and values of that hue for the other surfaces.

Colour planning around nature

Have a look around the garden and see how nature uses colour.  Look at figures 14-18.  See how well the colours blend.

Accentuated analogous colours

 

 

 

 

 

 

The analogous combination can be made more interesting by going to the other side of the colour wheel and introducing a small amount of the strongest chroma as an accent colour. This could be the discord.

Double split complementary colours

 

 

 

 

 

 

These are a group of four hues which are on either side of the direct complementary colours. Many fabrics have a number of colours in them even though they appear to be one basic colour. If you study them closely you will often find that they fit within this group. If that is the case with a fabric that is being retained, or one that you have chosen, then select one of these colours as your main colour. Use that colour on your ceiling and walls in the required strengths. Colours for other items in the room can be chosen from that range. Be careful when distributing these colours that you maintain unity.

Split complementary colours

 

 

 

 

 

 

These consist of three hues. The first hue is on one side of the colour wheel with the other two on the opposite side of the wheel with one space between them. This very popular colour group provides a variety of moods according to the strength of colours used. Fabric designers use these colours a great deal.

 Monochromatic colours

 

   

 

 

 

 

This means one hue, but in varying shades and intensities. While this colour group is often used in quiet relaxing environments it can also look fantastic in formal areas such as dining-rooms where strong chroma low value colours may be used.

Split complementary colours

 

 

 

 

 

 

These consist of three hues. The first hue is on one side of the colour wheel with the other two on the opposite side of the wheel with one space between them. This very popular colour group provides a variety of moods according to the strength of colours used. Fabric designers use these colours a great deal.

More Colour groups

 Direct complementary colours

These are any two hues that are opposite each other on the colour wheel. Care must be taken when using these colours to make sure there is a good variation in strength and amounts used. If similar strength colours are used an afterimage problem may occur. The problem is called `swimming of colours’ where the colours appear to move. This is caused by confusion in the brain. As it reacts to one colour, it provides the afterimage of that colour, and then does the same to the other. The result can be terrible.
When using direct complementary colours it is important that the ceiling and walls which make up the bulk of the room are coloured in the same hue, so that they can be supported with a small amount of the other colour.

  Analogous colours

These are the grouping together of hues that are closely related on the colour wheel, for example yellow orange, yellow, yellow green, green. A combination such as this gives a bright and cheery effect suitable for a room such as a family room which is used every day. This combination could be considered friendly and able to accommodate many changing moods. Remember that one of these hues would be the main colour, supported by varying amounts of the other.

 

Triadic colours

This group, which consists of colours evenly spaced on the colour wheel, at first view makes you feel bright and cheery. If the distribution of the colour strengths is used carefully then very pleasant arrangements can be achieved. Once again if you are using more than one hue, then use more of one than the others.