What colors should I use?

Question

Is it better to use darker colors on walls, and lighter colors for trim and accents, or vice versa? My living room has teal carpet (more blue than green) and I was thinking of very light blue walls, but now I'm second guessing myself trying to think of what kind of window accents to use. Should those be lighter or darker than the walls and carpet? Should I use a rug to cover up the carpet that's there? I'm not good at visualizing these things, and the sherwin williams site doesn't have anything close to my living room, and you can't change the color of the floors. Help!

Answer 1

The first problem here is that you are second guessing yourself. go with what you like and think will look good. Light blue walls would look good. Lighter or darker for accents and trim is really just a matter of personal preference, so go with what you think looks nice. The question you should ask yourself is, "Do I like this carpet?" If the answer is no then replace it and you don't have to base your colors on anything, you can start fresh. If you do like it, then keep it and keep going where you were going with it in the first place.

If you don't like it, but can't afford to replace it and want to buy one of those giant room size rugs, then you can afford it. Those giant rugs are expensive. I re-carpeted my sons room using a remnant. They sell those real cheap.

Good luck to ya. I know it will turn out great.

Answer 2

If you have blue carpet already, I'd say the light blue would be nice on the walls. If you do paint the woodwork, stick with white. It will be difficult to find a blue window treatment that matches perfectly, so for those I'd suggest something white or in a very obviously different shade of blue (lighter). If you do use a rug, make sure it's the right size for the room. Too small, it'll look like it's floating there for no reason. Too big, you may as well match your walls to the rug and not the carpet, hahaha.
Good luck with this project! :)

Answer 3

I would consider a color that I would call silver grey. You tint white paint with a just enough raw umber to get it grayish, then put just a few drops (5-10) of blue tint. It won't look like much in the can but after it dries on the wall you will see the silvery grey color.

Lighter colors on walls is almost always preferred. Light colors give the perception of openness, while dark colors make a room seem smaller albeit more nesting to some people. I personally find dark colors suffocating.

The trim should almost always be even lighter than the walls, it just looks cleaner, neater. To choose a floor covering, try putting pieces of clothing on the floor and imagine it is a rug.

Answer 4

Use a chocolate brown or a gray color to contrast with your carpet and accent with silver/chrome accessories and other shades of blue that are in your carpet. It might help more to find drapery at a store to pick out wall colors that will closely match your carpet color. Go lighter on the accents if you're going dark on the walls--everything will pop then.

Answer 5

Don't go with blue. It will clash with the carpet and will stick out like a sore thumb. I had a seafoam green carpet. It was very pretty...I picked it when we built the house. The walls were originally painted white...yuk. I painted the living room a light creamy yellow and the dining room a soft green. The kitchen was the same green; the floor in the kitchen was white with diamonds the same color as the carpet. My sofa was floral, the chair was burgandy...it looked great. It went with all colors. One bedroom was a yellow and then I painted it a green (which I was not fond of)...my hubby picked out that color. The spare bedroom was another shade of green and my daughters room was pink....it blended very well with the carpet...we eventually put Berber in...which I HATED! Dark colors will make the room appear small. I would go with Bright White trim. Pull a color out of your sofa or bedding and use window treaments in those colors...you can mix and match all kinds of designs. An area rug would look great...I had one als. Don't be afraid to use color...don't go blah. Have fun and go for it. Accent with pillows, pretty window treaments( I prefer toppers or scarves w/blinds.) I use old books stacked to decorate with. I stack 3 of them and sit picture frames, knick knacks, etc. on them. I also use hat boxes, bird cages, etc.
Have fun!!!! Check out HGTV.com for ideas.

Answer 6

u can get rid of the carpet but if u decide 2 keep it cause it's teal u can use cool colours like different types of green ,blues. use lightings (wall,Ceiling) 2 make it brighter& larger.u use lighter colours 2 make a space bigger & lighting u can use 1 dark colour on a wall & a lighter colour on the other walls(white)different light colours ask 4 interior decoraters 4 advbice or someone who really good with interior decorating u can 2 hgtv.com 4 more advice

Answer 7

i agree you shouldn't use blue on the walls. maybe peach or rose would work and you could have some teal accents in the room to tie it all together. i do my window trim the same as my walls and add more colour with pictures an ornaments.
don't panic. take one step at a time and it will all come together. good luck and have fun .

Answer 8

Definitely use a lighter color for the walls, and white or ivory for trim.
Suggest aqua for walls; and drapes the color of upholstry, the walls, or combo [ print ] of all of them.
Windows treatments are usually a light or medium shade, not dark, in a room where you already have a dark [ teal.]
Then add throw pillows in the drape color[s], the wall color, and/or a contrasting color [ peach/orange ].

Answer 9

lighter color walls make the room loom more lively and bigger

I think a light seafoam would look good with a teal carpet

Answer 10

colour, gray, mom - purely how i became into taught. In grade college we had "colour" on the spelling attempt. mom had a e book no longer from here and that they spelled it shade - so on the attempt it extremely is the way I spelled it - and have been given it incorrect. no longer honest I say.