What are the best colour paints to use in a north facing room.?

Question

My livingroom is quite small and north facing. Its obviously quite a dark room with only one patio window. I would like to know what would be the best colours to use in such a room to brighten it up. I am a little bored with the creams and beiges. Any suggestions?

Answer 1

This kind of Q comes up so often here and I answer pretty much the same way every time.

It's your space,,, experiment and enjoy the process. No answers here will be right or wrong; just personal opinions. What works for one might not work for another.

Lighter shades of anything might give the appearance of lighter and larger? Open up any drapes or blinds on any windows, color one wall, use better/more artificial lighting. Add accessories that will animate the space and draw focus away from what seems to be major issues for you.

The good news is that paint, can be painted over.

Rev. Steven

I've applied thousands of gallons of paint and the fact is the customer is always "right" even when they aren't.

Answer 2

Of course you can, as long as you're not renting. I think there are computer programs that you can try out a color choice before you actually apply it. Of course, I don't know where this might be.... Using the dark blue as a complement isn't a possibility? I painted a very small bathroom (north side) a navy blue on all sides. Then I tripled the size of the mirror , installed a new light fixture and put up a white curtain. It looks fab.

Answer 3

As it's a north facing room it probably won't receive much natural light during the day. You should go for light colours which will brighten the room up.

Answer 4

If you're in Europe or North America you'll look for warming colours like reds, russets and oranges, with yellows and whites for brightness. In the southern hemisphere's temperate zones you'll be happier with cooling blues, pale or deep, and occasional use of dark colours like purples. These colours are mentioned in the plural because there are limitless variations of each, of course. Consider floorcoverings' and furniture's colours, textures and patterns as well as the walls and woodwork. Happy decorating!

Answer 5

You would need a colour that would add brightness
... A pale yellow with white trim would give plenty of light.
Or if you are more daring...a salmon or tangerine orange colour with contrasting furniture (Salmon goes well with pale greens and light blues : turquise, aqua, etc. Or with a soft comfortable brown)
Tangerine goes well with leafy greens, or beige and browns.
Or really daring would be gammas of pale orange to deep reds for accent colours...
Blues and greens are cold colours, good for relaxing, like in a bedroom, or a room that has too much light (which evidently is not your problem)
Reds, oranges and yellows are warm colours...good for adding light to rooms, opening the appetite (red is great in a kitchen)
White is the origin of light itself, and reflects light. This is one of the reasons houses are most often painted white especially in hot countries.
Black is darkness, it "swallows" heat and light and does not reflect it..

Answer 6

I suggest using a warm sunny yellow to brighten it up. You can accent yellow with loads of other colours depending on how daring you want to be - red, blue, purple, green, etc.

My livingroom and diningroom both face north and there's yellow. It makes the rooms inviting and gives the appearance of light. My trim is a creamy white - Benjamin Moore's cloud white.

Answer 7

Apple pale green, same as this Yahoo! Answers background's green. Alternatively, pale purple might do the trick. Add a large mirror and a few family photos too.

Answer 8

my dining room is north facing i have painted it 3 walls pale terracotta and one wall dark terracotta it seems to work but it is quite a large room.

Answer 9

why not do white and then get some nice curtains and cushions in nice colours and other accessories ...hope this helps?

Answer 10

anything apart from red and this will easily bleach with the sun over time!