To fi nd out more or book a free Resene colour consultation, visit resene.co.nz
W
hetherit’sforanewbuild,
arenovationorjustaroom
makeover,choosingpaintcolours
canbeadauntingexercise.
Herearesomequestionstoaskyourself:
1.Whatistheroomgoingtobe
usedfor?
Differentcoloursevokedifferentemotions,soa
roomthat’sgoingtobeusedforrelaxingwillsuit
asoothingpalette,whereaspopsofbrightcolour
mightbemoresuitableforabusyplayroom.
2.Howbigorsmallistheroom?
Colourthatlookslightandairypaintedonthe
wallsinalargeroommaylookdifferentina
smallroom,wherethewallsreflectontoone
another,makingthecolourappearmoreintense.
3.Howlightordarkistheroom?
Lightchangesourperceptionofcoloursothe
samepaintmaylookdifferentindifferent
rooms.Inanorthfacingroomthelightis
brighter,sodarkercolourswillappearbrighter.
Inasouthfacingroomthelightislessintense
anddarkerhuesmaylookevendarker.Sevenessentialquestionstoaskyourselfwhenchoosingpaintcolours.
4.Whenwilltheroombeused?
Becausethelightinaroomvariesatdifferent
timesoftheday,sodoestheappearanceof
colour.TryyourcolouroutusingaResene
testpotandmoveitaroundtheroomatvarious
timesofthedaytomakesureyoustilllikeit.
5.Whatothercoloursarenearby?
Colourisaffectedbythecoloursnexttoit,so
ifyourroomhasalotofwooddetailing,an
intenselycolouredcarpetoralushgreenview
outside,takethisintoaccountwhenchoosing
yourcolours.6.Whatfinishwilllookbest?
Glossyfinishesarehighlyreflective,sothe
colourandroomseemlighterandbrighter.
Mattorflatsurfacesabsorbthelight,sothe
colourandroomwillfeeldeeperanddarker
thanglossysurfaces.
7.What’syourpersonaltaste?
Createamoodboard,scrapbookorPinterest
pageshowingcolourschemesthatyoulike.Look
forrecurringthemesintheimagesandusethem
asthestartingpointforyourcolourscheme.HOW TO BRING YOUR
HOME ALIVE WITH COLOUR
EXPERT TIP:
Colour viewed under a store’s artifi cial
lighting may look completely di erent
when you get it home, so always try it out
in the room you’re painting. Resene colour
consultant Sarah Gregory suggests short-
listing a few colours, then taking Resene
testpots home to try them out in the room.
“But don’t paint them on the wall, paint
them onto a large piece of card. That way
you can move it around the room, because
colour will look di erent where the light
hits it.” When painting the test card, Sarah
suggests leaving a white border around
the edge of it. “That’s so you don’t get total
colour combination going on with the wall
colour that’s already there. When you put
colours together they change each other.”
Test cardboard for painting is available
from your local Resene ColorShop in A4
and A2 size, but Sarah suggests using the
larger size. “Colours can seem to change,
the more of them there is, so the bigger
the sample the be er idea you’ll get as to
what it’s actually going to look like when
the whole room is painted.”Cabinetry in Resene Tuna provides a
striking contrast against walls in Resene
Silver Chalice and trim in Resene Half
Bianca. Photo by Angela Keoghan