Choose a colour palette
Set your intentions and mood
The starting point for any design and styling is always the intention, what do you want to achieve? Same goes for choosing your colour palette. How do you want the room to feel? What mood do you want to set? For example, if you want a space to feel cosy, moody or sophisticated you may want to consider adding some deeper darker colours to your palette. And when you are more of a fan of fresh, airy, calming colours then a lighter palette might be for you. This is not to say that any of these styles cancel each other out but you get what I’m trying to say. Once you have determined the feel of the mood you can move on to the next step which is looking at some actual examples of colour combinations and how they work together.
Understand the colour theory
Now you don’t need to be an expert to understand how a colour wheel works and don’t worry I am not going to get technical or complicated, but it is very helpful to have a little idea about things like colour temperature, complimentary colours, analogous colours, tints, tones and shades. The best and easiest example for anyone is the colour wheel on Canva which explains all of the things I have just mentioned. Color wheel - color theory and calculator | Canva Colors
Consider your fixed finishes
Another important thing to remember are your fixed finishes such as floors, any large furniture and metal finishes. These things are no doubt going to have an impact on choosing your colour scheme. Natural materials may come in a warm or cool tone which is important to note when choosing complimentary colours. Creating a mood board with pictures of all the different finishes and colours that you have chosen can be helpful as you can see if all the elements would work together.
Find your inspiration
I should have probably mentioned that choosing a colour palette doesn't only mean choosing paint colours, it also includes choosing colours for your furniture, soft furnishing and decor. This way you can achieve a cohesive, more well-designed look. There are many places to take inspiration from but if you are stuck on where to look here are some ideas. Look for a piece of art or fabric that you may like. It doesn't need to be in your home, perhaps in your favourite homeware shop. You may want to get inspired by nature or holidays. And after all there is always Pinterest where you can search for any specific colour schemes you may like.
Test your lighting
Lighting in your space is an important factor because it changes throughout the day which will result in mood also changing. That is why it is important to get samples of your colours and place them in the areas of the room where the light changes the most. You can either get sample pots and paint straight on the wall or paint a large piece of cardboard and stick it to the wall or some paint places offer large rectangular wall stickers for this purpose. This way you can watch over a few days as the light changes and see which colour you like the most.
Build your colour palette
So how many colours does one actually need? There is no right answer. To start with I recommend sticking with neutrals for the main colours and go bolder with the accent colours. For example, choose 3-5 main colours, 1 should be neutral, 1 should be a shade of white and one darker contrasting colour. You can add another colour or two as a complimentary colour to your darker contrasting colour if you like. You can also use different tones and shades of these colours to add more depth and layers to the overall style.
