One of the main reasons professional interior designers and interior decorators get hired is because people are afraid of making a bad paint color selection, especially if they are hiring painters or are painting a room with very tall ceilings and only want to paint once.
Picking a color that is not too dark or light, not too bright or dull, and not too exciting or boring can be tricky.
Here are a few tips for picking a paint color like a pro.
photo courtesy of United Soybean Board flickr.com/photos/unitedsoybean/10481728754/Research
Look online and in magazines for rooms that you like.
Look for rooms of a similar size and ceiling height, have a similar amount of natural light, are in a similar style, and have similar furniture.
Darker colored walls tend to make a room feel more cozy while lighter colored walls make a room feel bigger and cheerier.
Decide what paint colors work best in your home.
Come up with several color schemes that you want to consider for your walls.
Samples
Once you have an idea of what color families you want (buttery yellow, dark green, or some sort of gray, etc) get paint samples.
You can visit a paint store, a hardware store, or a super center to get free paper paint samples.
Select many paint samples in the color family you want - don't shy away from taking 20 or more.
Select some lighter than you think you want, some darker than you think you want, some brighter than you think you want, and some more dull than you think you want.
Keep in mind that the lighting in these stores is very different than the lighting in your home, so get more samples than you think you need.
Do not buy your paint yet. Bring all of your paper samples home.
Eliminate Colors
Attach all of your paper paint samples to the wall of your home that will be painted using painter's tape.
You should immediately discover that you dislike some, so remove those from your wall.
Move the remaining samples to other locations that will be painted the same color.
Once again, remove the colors you do not like. Keep checking the paint colors in different locations throughout the day.
Light emits different colors, so you need to look at the paint colors in different lighting.
Morning daylight is a different color than evening light.
Different light fixtures in your home may also emit different colors, so look at your paint samples with those lights on and off.
Try to imagine that little paint sample color on the entire wall.
Will that cheerful color make you want to wear sunglasses when entering the room?
Will that dark color make your room feel like a cave?
Will that white color be dull and boring?
Is that beige color the same color as most of the homes on your street?
Color Decision
After a while, you should be left with 1 paint sample that you like the best.
If you are not totally sure of your paint selection or are trying to decide between 2 or 3 colors, purchase a small tester paint sample in the color(s) you selected and paint a portion of your wall in that color.
After the color has totally dried (don't judge a paint color before it is totally dry), look at it during different times of day.
If you like the color, then you are ready to paint. If you do not love the color, then start over with obtaining paint samples again.