HAVE YOU EVER WONDER HOW TO SELECT CONTRASTING COLOURS SCHEMES?

IN this blog we will dive into how to select a design scheme and what colours work together to create a beautiful home

Picking a contrasting colour scheme is a great way to inject your personality into each room, but how do you go about picking a colour scheme that works perfectly? While harmonious colour schemes create a sense of tranquillity, engagement and comfort into your home, clashing colours can make a space look unorganised, unloved and chaotic. Because of this, choosing a colour scheme can be a daunting task, but not to worry, Mabel Fox is here with some key tips to help you when selecting an exciting yet soothing colour palette for your home. We really understand how important it is to feel comfortable and relaxed in your home environment and take pride in helping to create homes that do just that. In this blog, we will delve into the art of designing with contrasting colours, exploring how to select the perfect colour palette and create spaces that are gloriously captivating and beautifully balanced.

1. Understanding Contrasting Colours

Contrasting colours sit opposite each other on the colour wheel. These pairs create a strong visual impact as they intensify each other when placed together. The primary contrasting colour combinations are:

Red and Green

Blue and Orange

Yellow and Purple

These pairs, when combined thoughtfully, can add energy and depth to any space

Mabel Fox, Client Project, Children’s Bunk Bed Room

2. Selecting Contrasting Colours

Although contrasting colour schemes are often the means behind some of the most appealing interior spaces, it is also the easiest road to a colour clash and can make a room entirely off balance. The way we select gorgeous contrasting colours for our interiors and steer clear of unappealing colour clashes is to carefully consider the tone. A safe bet when starting out, is to work with delightful but muted tints and tones (tints being colours with white added and tones being colours with black and white added). Our top tip for this, whether using vibrant colours or more muted variations, try and select two colours with a similar amount of saturation. Opting for two colours with vastly differing saturation will make the scheme unbalanced. (Saturation is the depth of pigment, so low saturation makes the colour look more faded, high saturation makes the colour feel more intense).

3. Establishing Focal Points

In interior design, focal points draw the eye and set the tone for a space. Contrasting colours provide an excellent opportunity to establish powerful focal points. For example in a predominately white or monochrome room, the areas you add colour is where your eye will be drawn to first. Therefore when adding colour, make sure to do so in the areas of the room you favour. If you have a brand new sofa you want to be the focal point in your living room, add some interesting, perhaps vibrant, cushions to make it the most distinctive area in the room.

Mabel Fox, Client Project, Master Bedroom

4. Emphasize Architecture

Bold colours can also be employed to emphasise a room's architectural features. For example, intricately designed crown moulding, doors, or window frames, could be painted in colour to make them stand out, though remember to keep a neutral or monochrome pallet elsewhere to prevent this from becoming overbearing. Other architectural features you can consider drawing attention to include; chimney breast, alcoves and panelling.

5. The Rule Of Three

When using contrasting colours, the rule of three is a valuable guideline. Limiting the palette to three colours ensures a cohesive and balanced look. One colour should dominate (often a neutral), while another two colours (often from opposing sides of the colour wheel) support and accentuate the design. When using a bolder colour as your dominant colour, it would usually be best to just have one other bold supporting colour within the design, backed up by a more neutral third colour. Straying beyond one neutral and two strong colours might create chaos, so sticking to this rule is best when starting out.

6. Balance & Harmony

Achieving balance with contrasting colours is crucial. One way to do this is by distributing the contrasting colours evenly throughout the room. This can be achieved through accessories, rugs, artwork, or pieces of furniture. Using varying shades and tones of the contrasting colours can help create a harmonious blend, preventing the colours from overpowering each other. On the other hand, as mentioned earlier, you can use colour to highlight focal points or key features in the room, intentionally creating an imbalance. This can look just as appealing as a balanced room, however, take time in ensuring the section of the room you are adding colour to is the correct focal point and worth the emphasis the colour will provide.

7. Consider Sunpath

The colours you select will be majorly impacted by how much natural light is available in the room. So essentially, how light or dark the room is. If the space you are decorating receives direct sunlight for a large period of the day (south facing in the uk), the room will look glorious in cooler colours or more muted shades. This is because the sunlight will add warmth and light to the colours selected for the room. These cool or muted colours can be quite dark if you like, as the room can take it. Alternatively, colours look darker in rooms that receive less sunlight (north facing in the UK), the common misconception is that this therefore means you should use shades of white or lighter colours to make the room feel brighter. This can in fact accentuate the lack of natural light even further… Another top tip from Mabel fox - When dealing with dimmer rooms, use warm and saturated colours to make the room feel cosy and inviting, you won’t regret it.

https://www.mabelfox.com/design-gallery/countryside-grand-design — Mabel Fox, Client Project, Guest Bedroom

8. Understanding What Colours You Feel Comfortable Around

At Mabel Fox it is our job to push you to think a little outside the box with colour so we can design a space that you not only love, but continue to love for years to come without tiring of the aesthetic. People tend to feel most comfortable in the colour palette that suits their complexion. Think about the clothes you wear, most likely you feel comfortable in the colours that go well with your eye, skin and hair colour? This is more often than not, translated into your home. Our advice is to use this as a starting point, if you wear a lot of blue and green the chances are you would feel comfortable around this in your home. However, to avoid tiring of the design too quickly, try pushing yourself slightly outside your comfort zone by selecting a slightly darker, bolder shade for the dominate colour (typically your wall colour) than you initially select. Also consider adding a contrasting accent colour to make the interior more dynamic.

9. Cohesive Design - One Last Top Tip from us at Mabel Fox

Last but definitely not least. Make sure to consider your entire property when designing. What really sets a house apart from the rest is whether it is designed as a whole or as lots of separate iterations. At Mabel Fox we help our clients come up with a set colour palette of a set amount of colours that all work together and then decorate their entire homes to this scheme. Each room is vastly different as there is an endless combination of shade, tones and tints to a pallet of just 3 or 4 key colours. However sticking to these key colours throughout allows the home to work as a whole cohesive design and be a calming and inviting place to return to. Using too many different colours throughout a property can make it feel chaotic and out of tune. This is why it is so important to really nail your colour palette before decorating rooms willy nilly, and also why so many of our clients reach out and ask for out help. Together we can find a colour pallet that works for you by looking at the existing colours of furniture you want to keep, rooms you already love and what colours just tickle your fancy.

Conclusion

Designing with contrasting colours is a fantastic way to inject energy, and personality into any space. By understanding the principles of colour theory, creating focal points, maintaining balance and understanding your preferences, you can confidently experiment with bold colour combinations to create stunning and visually arresting rooms. So, don't be afraid to step outside the comfort zone of safe colour palettes and embrace the power of contrasting colours to make your interior design truly stand out!

Selecting a Contrasting Colour Scheme for your Home