Category — Living Room

designer: Sara Gilbane

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photo: Summer Thornton

photo: Pierce Allen

Pictures Of Living Room Reading Nook

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Painting gives a new life to your living room, it makes the room fresh, new and clean, But we all know one of the most difficult decorating tasks is choosing a color scheme. Are you still thinking about a color for those walls for your important living room? Oyster White, Navajo White, Cielo Blanco, Off White are but a few variations that builders use when painting the interior of most homes. That while these colors look clean and crisp when we first move in, it doesn’t take long before we tire of the look and want something with a bit more pizazz. Having said that, most people are a little afraid to step out of the standard for fear of not liking their color choice and having to re-do the process back to its original, boring Off White. 

The most fashionable color today is still the various tone of white or off-white because it makes the room look very large and also makes small pieces, like lamps and tables, look larger. White also adds light to your living room while helping to keep it cooler in the summer months. However, too many rooms with white walls tend to make your home look sterile or generic, not to mention the time you’ll have keeping your walls clean.

Color scheme for living room

A living room color scheme is simply a coordinated effort amongst all the colors in the room to create a group, or scheme that is noticeable from a distance. Think about the stripes on a traditional prison uniform, the color scheme of that is easily identifiable as black, and white. Some rooms have single color schemes like brown, or red, or white. While most have multiple color schemes.

A great idea would be to add hints of colors to complement your white walls. You can use a little tan for your trim some tones in light green or blue, or a tan or taupe accent wall.

Brown: There is nothing like the shades of brown to bring out warmth and blend in nicely with just about everything. But be cautious to use brown colors in a small living room as it may dominate the room, oppressing the colors of your furniture and accents. Shades of Tan or taupe will work, although.

Yellow: Yellow is a difficult color to use. While it can brighten up a dark room it has also been found to increase anxiety in the elderly and the very young. On the other hand, it encourages conversation so is an excellent choice for a living room. Choosing the right intensity is the key to success when using yellow. A deep Tuscan gold looks wonderful next to all your dark woodwork. A creamy white with yellow undertones is more appealing than a stark white wall.

Reds: The color Red is a classic shade because they are so bold, vivacious and daring. Reds work especially well with light colored furniture, making it stand out even more. Still, people like to use red as an accent color with just a hint of that shade, more than a main wall color. But nowadays, a few people dare t o paint their walls red too.

Blues: Blues are cool and most often related with French country, Victorian or marine designs. In the more traditional uses, blue is great for expressing formality due to its consoling nature. Nonetheless, blue suggests countless different hues that can change outlook as well as atmosphere.

Learn from what you have read and got the basic ideas from different places and start experimenting. There are several excellent professionals who also provide color consultations to their customers. Hopefully, these few tips will help you find your own living room paint colors and get you on your way to creating the living room of your dreams.

Color Painting Ideas For Living Room

Painting your living rooms with more artistic ways can change the look and feel of your home completely. When you plan to paint your living room, you have to decide which color scheme you will use. You have to keep in mind to color coordinate with the color theme of your furniture, upholstery, furnishing accessories, floor covering, carpets, etc.

However, when you go to your local home improvement store you will be faced with a sea of color swatches – hundreds of versions of basic beige and gray to choose from. So before you go, consider these steps to choosing the right color for you.

Now when you head on over to your local paint store or home improvement center you can become overwhelmed with all the variations of creme and gray. There can be hundreds of each. So before you go, take a good look around the room your going to repaint. See if you can’t find a light color somewhere in the room that you can take with you. Such as a color in the background of a piece of fabric on say a couch cushion or lampshade. If you like the feel of a warm and cozy room – think of fireplaces, brown leather and sunsets – then you’ll want to start with a beige tone.

Now, consider your furniture and accessories. What colors do you see? If you have a lot of black or navy you may wish to choose a beige with orange or pink undertones to keep the look warm. If you have browns or reds in your furniture, select a cooler beige with ashy tones to avoid ‘overheating’ your room.

If you prefer a cooler, airy look – chrome, glass and shades of icy blue – then select gray tones. Some stores will have a ‘true gray’ color swatch which you can use to compare with their designer selections. On comparison you will notice that each gray has undertones. Some will have blue or lavender tones, others may have green or even a hint of pink.

Using the same guide as stated above, identify the main colors of furniture and accessories in the room. Use green or pink toned greys with cool toned furnishings to avoid it from feeling like an ice box. Use blue or lavender undertones in rooms with warmer colored furnishings.

If you are really torn between beige or gray, than the easiest color to work with is green. Keeping it in a muted tone will make it very easy to live with, and will work with most color palates.

Now, If all of the above guidelines only further confuse you, you can simply go to the paint store and pick up as many different color chips as you like, bring them home and make your decision there. I know it’s an added trip you’ll have to make but what better location to make your decision than from the comfort of home?

Picking and painting your living room with your choice of color will bring you the results your looking for and a sense of accomplishment when you see the finished product. Remembering that you’ll get this makeover for less than the cost of a good meal at your favorite eating place.

Preparation and Calculation for your living room before painting

Painting your living room requires a great deal of preparation and calculation. After you have selected the themes and colors for the room or rooms you are painting, you will need to ensure your rooms are adequately prepared before you begin painting. Even the cleanest rooms and walls will need the surfaces to be prepared before you begin the painting stage.

For living room walls, it is best to use latex or water based paint that dries up quickly and can be washed using soap and water but it is better to use oil-based alkyd paint for doors and windows as it penetrated wood better does not stick when the doors and windows are shut for longer periods of time, especially during winters. To calculate the amount of paint you will need for you living room, measure the perimeter of the living room walls by adding up their widths and the multiply it with the height of wall from floor to ceiling. Subtract the area of open areas from it such as doors, windows and archways to known the wall area that needs to be painted. Some paint types and colors may need more than one coat so take the number of coats you need to cover the walls into account too. Usually, a gallon of flat paint color covers 400 square feet but you may take paint manufacturer’s instructions as your guideline.

You first want to take off all of the switch plates from the walls and conduct a thorough dusting of your living room. Use a feather duster or broom to sweep out every corner from ceiling to floor and then vacuum the room thoroughly.

Look for any holes or cracks in the wall surfaces and patch them up with spackling paste or wall plaster. Once you have patched any holes, you will then need to sand over the patching or spackling to ensure the patch you have created is flush with the wall. This will ensure a flat even coat of paint on your wall. Once you have done this, you will have to dust and vacuum again as sanding will create a large amount of dust. Ensure you dust and vacuum not only your floors, but the walls as well. Sanding will leave dust particles that may not be visible to the naked eye, and your paint will find those dust particles if you don’t leaving unsightly bumps on your walls.

Your next step before you begin living room painting will be to wash your walls thoroughly. You can use a mop to reach the corners and higher areas, but you need to wash and rinse your walls of any cleaning residue. Once your walls have dried from the washing, you are ready to begin your interior house painting. Use painters tape to mark off door ways, baseboards, and ceilings so that your paint applications are smooth and even.

Color has tremendous power if used correctly and,  Professional decorators make full use of the range of colors to achieve a contrast or a color match that enhances any scheme they are promoting. Look at these beautiful living room, with fashion colors.

Living room color schemes, 2009 color trends

The best way to begin choosing the right paint color for your living room is to let fabric lead the way. Fabric provides inspiration for a room’s color scheme. It’s also a more prudent starting point since painting your living room is much easier and costs a lot less than to change furniture and window treatments.

Wall art for living room (wall decor)

How to place your art on the wall is a improtant work in your living room improvement, different arrange, different effect. When you place your art, make sure the art piece is visible to people sitting in the living room. If possible, have the sofa set arranged to face the art piece such that each person seated will have a good view of it. A good place to hang the art could be above the fireplace. One large art piece hanging above the fireplace would really make a statement and draw attention. If you want your art piece to be the focal point of the whole room, place it in a strategic location where visitors will be able to see it first thing when they step into the room. If there is a wall directly facing the front entrance of your home, hanging a large art piece or tapestry there would really catch your visitor’s attention.

Simon Watson

The Selby

Sköna hem

If the sofa is placed against a wall, hanging art pieces on that wall is also fine, but note that you should hang it high enough such that a person seated on the sofa and leaning his head against the wall will not come in contact with the art piece and dislodge it. Try using several different art pieces and group them cleverly to add a more balanced effect. The size of the art pieces should be chosen based on the size of the sitting area and the distance between the viewer’s eyes and the art. If the living area is small and the viewers are within close proximity of the art piece, you can choose pieces which are smaller in size but contain finer detail so that they can be better appreciated at a closer distance. (via)

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Hang the art  above the fireplace is a good idea

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