Using color in your home is a task that is much easier said than done. When it comes down to finalizing a color for your living room, kitchen, bathroom, bedroom, etc, you realize how important your decision is. Sure, you can repaint your space if you hate it, or buy new wallpaper, or return your couch. However, not many people want to go to all that trouble. We’re going to cover how to use colors to evoke emotions.
Emotions and Colors
An important question to ask yourself, why do some colors evoke certain emotions? It’s not necessarily the physical look of the color, but the emotions that you have associated with that color.
A basic example: black is often associated with a somber or sad feeling because of funerals. Yellow is often associated with happiness or warmth because of the sun. These feelings can differ for everyone because different people have a different feeling associated with each color. This is the most basic approach to understand why colors make you feel a certain way. Check out this resource to read a little more about the science of colors.
Which Emotions are Evoked by Which Colors?
Your next question is which emotions are often evoked by colors? There are common feelings that people associate with certain colors. Here’s a quick rundown from California College San Diego that explains what we’re feeling when we see certain colors.
Blue
Blue is calming. It puts you into a peaceful state that is easy to be in for an extended period of time. It’s often used in study areas and bedrooms to make them comfortable. The calming influence helps people become more productive in their environments.
Red
Red has the opposite effect. It stimulates a quick pulse and increases your breathing rate. It can inspire romance or violence. Wearing it can make people confrontational, or easy to excite. It pushes people to act. It’s warm and radiant to a point that your mind can’t ignore it. It’s true even in the darkest forms.
Yellow
Yellow is the epitome of happiness. It helps people be more optimistic. It is joyful and also pushes people to act. In oppressive quantities, it can cause babies to cry and make people lose their cool faster.
Green
Similar to blue, green is also calming. It’s a natural color that you see everywhere in nature. It refreshes the viewer. It’s difficult to get upset in such an environment.
Purple
You know purple is royal. Since before the industrial revolution, purple has been associated with royalty, because it was rare. Rare things are expensive and only kings could afford them. Hence, purple is royal. That meaning still sticks.
Black
There’s an argument circulating around that black isn’t really a color. That argument is merely a distraction, whether or not it’s true, because black very much exists in fashion and in design. It evokes the feeling of authority and power. It’s thinning in clothing and never goes out of style. It screams “Cool” to people, too. Many technological gizmos come in black because it’s awe-inspiring and sophisticated. Why do you think it was the flagship color of all Apple products for so long? Use black to evoke those emotions.
White
Just because black is the opposite of white, the meaning for white isn’t the direct opposite of black. It simply shows innocence and purity. It’s a happy color that makes you feel free.
Just pretend there’s a picture here.
Decorating Your Home With Color
Now that you have an understanding of how color affects your emotions, you can apply that knowledge to decorating your home. It’s important to utilize the appropriate color for the room based on how you want you and your guests to feel while you’re spending time in that space.
Bedroom
Finding the perfect color for your bedroom is one of the most important, and hardest decisions you’ll make while decorating your home. You’ll want to choose a color that makes you feel relaxed, at peace, and ready for sleep.
According to House Beautiful, blue is one of the best colors for promoting sleep and relaxation. Since blue is associated with calmness and lowering your heart rate, it’s the perfect color for getting a great night’s sleep.
Yellow and green are also great color options for bedrooms. They both promote relaxation and a sense of calm, which is perfect for your bedroom. You don’t have to paint your walls these colors to benefit from the positive effects. A white bedroom with calming colorful accent pieces will be just as effective.
There are a couple of colors you’ll want to avoid when decorating your bedroom. Red and purple are the two biggest culprits of disrupting sleep. Red is an intense, powerful, and energizing color that has a tendency to raise your heart rate, which is the last thing you want when you’re trying to get a good night’s sleep. Purple is a color you should avoid because it’s mentally stimulating and you’ll find yourself struggling to get to sleep.
Of course, color isn’t going to be the only thing that helps you sleep. Finding the perfect bed for your space is going to do wonders for you. At Platform Beds Online, you can browse through an awesome selection of beds.
Kitchen
When you’re decorating the kitchen, you’ll want to utilize colors that promote happiness, energy, and productivity. We recommend using colors as accents in the kitchen. White or gray walls is a way to accomplish a modern kitchen look, and then adding pops of energizing colors will make your kitchen one of a kind.
Living Room
Your living room is another space where you want to feel relaxed and calm. If you refer back to the top of the page and look at the colors and emotions, you’ll be able to pick out the colors that promote the feeling you want.
Yellow and green are great choices for a casual and laid back vibe for your living room. Lighter shades of these two colors are going to be great for beach house/farmhouse decorations and architecture. If you’re going for a more formal look for your living room, utilizing black, silver, and gold accents will help your living room stand out from the rest.
As we mentioned before, everyone has different emotions attached to colors. The best way for you to find the perfect color for your space is to test it out! Go to your local paint store and pick up some color swatches that you think you’d like. Even try painting portions of the wall! You’re sure to find something that will be perfect for your home.
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