Designing your home can be fun and exciting, and knowing your design goals can make the process easier. Most people want their home to be haven, a calm place to relax after a busy workday. If you want your home to be relaxing, a place that invites you to put your feet up and forget about life’s stress for a bit, using calming colors in your home is an easy way to get a jumpstart on a relaxing home.
When choosing paint colors, home décor accessories and window coverings, knowing the psychology behind different colors can help. Fortunately, may colors can be used to create calm – even yellow! Read on to see tips on using a variety of colors in your calming design.
Green
Choosing the right calming colors will depend on what you typically find relaxing. If you find nature and the outdoors bring you a sense of calm and relaxation, various shades of green might be the right calming color for your home.
People who enjoy the outdoors are said to be balanced and filled with life. Choosing greens, especially deep earthy tones, can be a great way to encourage a sense of calm in your home.
Even if you choose a different paint color for your room, incorporating green plants, décor, throws and even furniture can add a sense of natural calm to your home.
Blue
If you’re out for a walk and you see clear blue skies, chances are you’ll instantly feel a sense of calm. If you’re at the beach, near a stream or by a fresh mountain lake, the blue water is often naturally calming.
Using blue in a room can create a calming theme. Because of its calming effect, blue makes a wonderful color for bedrooms. Whether you’re painting the room blue or choosing blue shades or curtains, adding blue is a simple way to encourage a sense of calm.
Purple
There’s something great about walking into a room and feeling instantly relaxed. Purple can be surprisingly calming. Not everyone wants an entire room or large wall purple, but there are plenty of ways to incorporate a bit of relaxing purple.
A small wall, such as between cabinets, can be painted purple to add a touch of calm. When choosing curtains or shades, some enjoy using coverings for a pop of color in a room and choose noticeable colors like purple.
A bit of purple décor such as fresh lavender, paintings, pillows, etc., can also be a great way to incorporate purple into a room.
Brown
Various shades of brown tend to remind us of nature. For many people, nature is calming. Browns, like other earthy tones, tend to be very neutral and easy to incorporate into any room.
If you’re designing a room and want to add some natural brown elements, wooden blinds or shutters can be an easy way to add naturally calming browns. Browns also work well for wall colors, curtains, furniture and flooring.
White
The color white can create a cool and refreshing feeling which leads to feeling calm. It’s an easy to find and neutral wall paint color making it simple to match with. If white walls aren’t your thing, there’s still plenty of ways to incorporate the calming and refreshing properties of white.
White colored shades, blinds and shutters can brighten up a room in a clean and refreshing way. Others enjoy white trim, furniture, or other home décor. Whether you choose white as a primary color in your home or just as an accent, it’s easy to incorporate for a bit of extra calm.
Yellow
Yellow can be bright, energizing and refreshing. While that sounds like the opposite of calm, it can lead to a calm feeling. Yellow reminds us of bright sunny days, sunrises and sunsets all of which can bring a sense of calm and peace.
Starting your day with a cup of coffee in a room with energizing yellows can give you a refreshing start to your day. Returning after a long workday to relax with dinner around a warm yellow can provide a sense of peace as if you were out watching a beautiful sunset.
Yellow can make an excellent paint color depending on the space you’re working with. Some prefer using it more for accents through home décor or window covers, such as yellow shades or curtains.
If you want even more ideas for creating a calm, peaceful atmosphere, check out Designing a Peaceful Home Atmosphere and make sure your lighting is correct as well with Psychology of Light in Your Home.