Filed under: Your Home, Projects, Furniture
We've all seen our share of failsafe colors in recent years, and maybe even used them in our homes. Here are some that you'll want to give a rest.Choosing a paint color for your home can be about as overwhelming as naming your first born child. Okay, maybe that's a bit of an exaggeration, but it's a pivotal decision no less. You've got the year's top choices, the classics and the ones inspired by generations (or in this case, homeowners) past to choose from.
To help narrow the scope of this feat, I reached out to San Francisco designer and color expert Kelly Berg for help. For starters, "any color that's used strictly because it's trendy should be tossed out," Berg says. "And sometimes it's not the actual individual color that gets overused, but the color combinations."
Klaus Tiedge/Corbis
I thought Berg was on to something. One color in a home rarely stands on its own after all. The accent, the trim and the furnishings all factor into the scheme as well.
"Greige"
Think gray meets beige for a monochromatic effect, fresh off the pages of a Restoration Hardware catalog. This neutral shade could work wonders for a modern, minimalist home, but if it's overdone, greige can easily turn into "cold, sterile and uninviting," Berg says.
To update it: Give gray a jolt of energy and vitality by pulling in vibrant yellows and grassy greens. If romance and femininity are more your style, infuse the room with playful pinks and smoky violets. And since greys can often absorb more light than other hues, reflective surfaces such as glass and metal are the perfect addition to help bounce light around the room (and add some sparkle).
Colors to try: Kelly's favorite greens of the moment include Benjamin Moore's Bunker Hill Green and Dill Pickle and Pratt & Lambert's Triton Green.
Chocolate Brown and Blue
Cocoa is a natural complement to many hues, but its pairing with Tiffany, turquoise or robin's egg blue has gotten the most attention in recent years -- perhaps too much attention.
To update it: Add in a third color from the warm end of the spectrum. Berg suggests hot pink or coral. Metallics in tones of silver and gold are another great way to freshen up a brown-and-blue palette.
Colors to try: Benjamin Moore's Passion Fruit is the quintessential coral.
Flickr, xJavierx; Apartment Therapy
It's the go-to palette for a rustic, Tuscan-themed home, but it's feeling a bit over.
To update it: When working with any tri-color scheme, Berg suggests keeping the saturation levels similar, but not exactly the same. If you're using a bold cherry red alongside green and gold, for example, play down the green and the gold a bit by graying them up. You also want to avoid using equal portions of all three colors. One hue should be the star of the decor, while the other two play supporting roles. This way, you'll create interest and balance in the overall design.
Breathe new life into this trio by switching out the red for a deep violet. You could also add in a fourth color like turquoise or indigo blue.
Colors to try: Noir by Pratt & Lambert is closer to indigo than black, like a dark pair of denim jeans; California Paints' Purple Potion is not as psychedelic as it sounds, it's a deep violet.
Portola Paint
The All White Kitchen
It has been a design fave "ever since Something's Gotta Give," Berg says. And while the freshness and uncluttered nature that white cabinets, subway tile and carrera marble evoke is undeniable, "there are so many amazing materials available today in so many amazing colors," Berg says.
To update it: Select a hue that is present in an adjacent space, or in your favorite dishes. (White matches just about anything.) You could also look to your favorite flower for inspiration. "Like yellow daisies? Yellow walls it is," Berg says. "Got blue and white Danish dishes on your shelves? Try a deep indigo."
Colors to try: Pratt and Lambert's Days of Sun is creamy with a slight orange undertone that's more like the late afternoon sun than the morning one.
The important thing with any color choice is to use ones that you gravitate to (yes, even if it's that pea green everyone else has deemed hideous) and help you create the environment that you can feel most authentic in.
"Sometimes this means you can go full throttle with a trendy color; sometimes it means you can use that trendy color in small doses; and sometimes this means passing up on trends entirely," Berg says.
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