A skilled designer saves the customer a lot of money by using paint instead of expensive decor. And the inept is able to reduce any budget to a cacophony. We deal with the Houzz.ru home improvement portal, how to be like the first one.
Fall into white spaces
White walls are a trend that came along with the fashion for minimalism and Scandinavian style. White is a universal color, it expands any room, adding light and air to it. Carried away by this color, you can easily find yourself in a lifeless interior that requires constant cleaning. Do not abuse: either White background or white accents. Colored details, furniture, accessories, natural textures will dilute the void and fill it with life.
Consider that a beige background is good
Insecure people subconsciously tend to compromise when choosing a color. Hence the popularity of "beige": light (but not white), warm and discreet. The color, which seems universal, makes the interior dull, devoid of character, giving off an office and a hotel. Design stylish interior in beige tones it is difficult, you will need to choose bright - red, yellow, blue - accents for a specific shade and depth of beige. Tip: the more modest the palette, the richer and more varied the textures should be.
Confusing "white" with white
Snow-white interiors look cold even with bright details. And if there is not enough sun, then it is also gray - not at all like in the picture in the magazine. In interior design, “white” means about a dozen shades: “cream”, “baked milk”, “ivory”, “arctic snow”, etc. They differ in admixtures of other colors. For example, in traditional Scandinavian interior walls are painted not in boiling white, but in "Stockholm white" (Stockholmsvit), where a little gray and yellow pigment is mixed. The result is a warmer shade.
Consider that the ceiling and white are synonyms
If you paint the ceiling the same color as the walls, you can visually expand the room, as the boundaries of space dissolve. In the case of dark tones, this technique will create the feeling of a cozy box. This technique requires caution only with bright colors: closed space strongly affects the psyche. You can even paint the ceiling in a contrasting or bright color with neutral walls, especially if you end up with a room with disproportionately high ceilings.
Create an interior in different shades of the same color
By relying on monochrome, you deprive the space of volume, depth and pleasant complexity. The exception is the magical gray color, but even that is not for everybody. Try to keep variety. Place contrasting accents. Play with the undertones of your favorite color: combine a heavily washed-out pastel shade with a rich dark or expressive bright.
Operate on the principle of "everything is equal"
The opposite mistake is to choose good color combinations and saturate the space with them in equally. As a result - diversity instead of harmony. Stick to the percentage of 60/30/10 for the main color, secondary and others.
Use one contrasting thing
If you got a beautiful bright red sofa for the pale blue walls, add a few more small orange accessories to the rest of the room, otherwise the sofa will fall out of context, look alien and out of place. This is called "maintain color". It is better to break up the color spot itself with small details of other colors, primary or secondary: this way it will fit better into the environment.
Use solid colors in contrasts
Using contrasting combinations is a win-win option. Red will always look expressive with green, yellow with purple, and blue with orange. But the contrast itself is such an expressive technique that it can easily tire. Let one of the colors be more saturated than the second, bleached or darkened. This will soften the effect and help avoid obsession.
Neglect the color of the floor
Thinking through the color palette of the interior, many people forget about the floor. And in vain: it accounts for about a quarter of the space that we see. This is especially true for large rooms.
Ignore lighting
The same apartment in Valencia and Murmansk will need completely different color schemes. Northern lovers of Provence suffer the most from this injustice. Soft pastel colors, so gentle and refreshing in bright sunlight, become faded, cold and dull without it. There is only one rule here: the more cloudy the region, the warmer and richer the colors in the interior.
Treat red as warm and blue as cool
Common errors are also associated with an incorrect assessment of the warmth of the color. Reds, yellows, and oranges are definitely on the warm end of the spectrum, while blues, purples, and greens are considered cool. Everything is more difficult. Each color has warm and cool versions. Red with an admixture of purple - blackberry, berry, magenta - colder, and close to orange tones - scarlet, cinnabar - much warmer. The same with traditional cold blue: turquoise and color sea wave warmer than heavenly and steel shades. Green is generally a multifaceted color, easily turning into both warm and cold shades.
Mix warm and cold shades of the same color
More precisely, it is possible to do this, but it is difficult: you need to take into account the proportions, combinations of each shade with other colors. In most cases, disharmony results. If there is any doubt that a thing falls into the right color temperature, it is better not to risk it and choose a contrasting or neutral color. This solution will definitely be more successful than, for example, grassy green against the background of cold mint shades.
Abuse pure colors
The purer the color, the more intrusive it is. Voiced bright colors are good in the nursery, in the kitchen and in the bathroom - and then in a reasonable dosage. In other cases, it is better to prefer complex mixed colors with the addition of black or gray (darkened, dusted) and white (bleached, pastel). This interior looks more noble and mature. A clean, bright color usually calls for a neutral background and a clean, minimalist setting.
Make large areas bright
It's easy to overdo it here and slide into a carnival: bright colors will soon begin to tire you and will greatly oblige you in the future. It is more appropriate to choose softer, muted shades for large objects and entire walls, and add rich ones with accessories that can be easily replaced if desired. In non-residential areas (bathroom, corridor, hallway), color therapy can be used without fear. You don't spend much time in these rooms.
afraid of dark colors
It is gloomy, not for small spaces, narrows the space - these are the main misconceptions associated with dark colors. Yes, they seem closer than the light ones. But dark shades also envelop, give depth, nobility and comfort. A small room will not look cramped if you avoid contrasting solutions and do not clutter up the interior with details. The space is made cramped by the color turmoil and passion for decor.
Bright accents in the interior of a small apartment: 4 best options
The presence of bright accents in the interior can play decisive role in creating the illusion of space. In our selection - examples of excellent design solutions for apartments with an area of less than 50 sq. meters.
Interior design by Yana Osipenko
The apartment of a young Kyiv couple came to life thanks to the balanced combination of shades of gray in the decor. But the space does not look monochromatic and overly minimalist at all. A bright flash of green transforms it. The composition of plants in the center of the room recalls the years of the youth of the owners.
Copper pendant lamps harmonize with wooden cabinets and a cream kitchen apron. Warm shades create a pleasant contrast with green plants in the living room.
raw wooden frame mirrors, shelf and wall decoration bring chic to white interior hallway. Graceful natural elements add elegance to the interior, as opposed to the urban design of the rest of the rooms.
The original design in the form of a snow-white cube, the main function of which is, forms a place for a bedroom and an office. Sliding doors hide unused parts, making the interior spacious and bright.
The bathroom has a special charm. Wooden panels decorate the floor and wall behind a deep freestanding bathtub. The remaining areas are lined with light tiles. Thus, a modest room, decorated with living plants, is visually lengthened.
Warm accents by Francisco Marchisio
This small apartment has only one window, because bright colors yellow, making the interior more cheerful, seem especially relevant. To wooden coverings did not absorb much light, the designer opted for a slightly reflective satin finish. Behind sliding bookshelves hides the bedroom.
The overall plan allows you to appreciate the thoughtfulness and compactness of the design: many drawer cabinets and sliding panels makes it possible to place everything you need.
Apartment decoration from Pavel Alekseev
The studio, designed for a young Muscovite, is replete with gray shades and bright splashes of rich yellow. The author was not afraid to add catchy patterns and textures to the design. It turned out spectacular!
An annular chandelier and a triangular side table break up the design's set of geometric shapes, which are based on rectangles. White edging glazed sliding doors the sleeping area also contributes to the structuring of the interior.
The color scheme of the dining room, based on a combination of straw color with dark shades, supports the overall concept. Dinner table by Isamu Noguchi creates an industrial feel. Complements the image of a set of four chairs by Roberto Lazzeroni.
The bedroom is designed in more sensual colors - bright blue, purple and coffee.
The compact kitchen contains everything you need, including plenty of roomy cabinets. From this point, spectacular transitions between dark marble tiles and ash gray are well visualized. flooring from wood.
The workspace is decorated in classic colors - black, white and gray. Peacefulness is added by a blue tint in the decor of the wall, covered with plaster in the Venetian style. Velvety, with an interesting texture, it has become a focal element of this zone.
Brick walls in the interior by Viktor Kanishchev
Thanks to successful planning This apartment has an area of 35 sq. meters, the designer got the freedom to choose a theme for its design. As a result of the implementation of his plan, parquet and rough brickwork remained unchanged, and a large red sofa and contrasting blue-steel elements appeared as catchy accents.
The original chandelier, reminiscent of models from designer Lindsey Adelman, is an extensive modular design.
A small office settled in an open sunny room. The table, partitioning off the narrow space between two walls, is designed in such a way that two people can comfortably sit behind it.
The bedroom is enclosed in a perimeter gray walls, one of which is almost completely glazed and fitted with curtains for privacy.
on steel kitchen table you can cook and eat. The absence of bulky structures allows a room with one window to remain quite bright.
Apartment design
It has long been known that even a small amount of bright color can enliven the environment, giving general view interest, attraction, effect. This technique works great for almost any interior, as well as for the landscape, and for the appearance of a person. For example, a bright tie transforms a man with a formal suit, and bright accent scarves and bags - women with neutral clothes. Even a small flower bed is enough to make the whole garden even more beautiful. By adding not a large number of bright accents, we bring some freshness to the interior.
Putting bright accents for the interior is not so easy as it seems at first glance. The main problems arise during the definition of an accent color and the choice of its quantity. If, for example, there are too many color accents, then the room will become overly bright. Yes, and the effect of the accent may be completely lost, since the accent color will dissolve in the surrounding motley space and turn into an auxiliary one. And vice versa, if there are few accents, we will not be able to achieve the desired result.
Bright accents in the interior. Color selection
Color accents for the interior are elements that have a color different from the colors of the main surfaces that prevail in the room. For example, furniture, textiles, decor and accessories in a pale blue room - this is color accents. But the light blue elements for the same room are in addition to the main color. For a purple-beige room, green accessories will be accents, and lilac, lavender or cream will complement. For a beige room, they will be accents, and pale brown will be complementary.
So, the basic rule of color accenting is: if you need to add bright accents, then you need to choose a different color, and not a different shade. But what? The choice will depend on the desired effect.
1. Option "Cold-warm". If you need to emphasize the “sultryness” of a room in which warm tones prevail (orange, apricot, yellow, terracotta, red, etc.), a cold spectrum is better for accent. For example, it can be shades of purple,. In addition to the fact that cool accents will emphasize the warmth of the room, they will cool its ardor a little more.
And by analogy: if you like a cool environment created with fresh, light, or slightly gloomy tones, then its coolness can be highlighted by contrast with warm color accents. To do this, you need to apply accents of honey, yellow, orange, terracotta shades.
2. Option "Similar". If you need to create an atmosphere of calm, the accent should be taken on the color located on color wheel next to the secondary or primary.
For example, if the room is made in blue tones, then it is better to take pale purple (lavender, lilac) or green accents. The apricot room will be refreshed by bright red accents of berry shades.
With this accentuation option, harmony and peace reign in the interior. As a result, such a scheme is better suited for rest rooms, bedrooms, offices, etc.
3. Option "Additional". In order to add more energy, life and color to the interior, they use another option - “additional”. For this scheme, a color is used for accentuation, which is additional to the main or secondary.
Complementary colors are colors that are opposite each other on the color wheel.
For example, if the room is the main one, then for additional accents you need to select shades of blue or blue, and vice versa. In a room of green tones, purple or red accents are placed in the same way.
The "Additional" option is quite complicated - it creates a powerful energy supply to the interior. As a result, this scheme is recommended to be used only in dining rooms, living rooms, playrooms, etc.
4. Bright accents for a neutral interior. Suppose there are only neutral tones in the room, for example, black, white, beige, gray, brown, then any existing color can be used as an accent. In addition, there can be many such colors.
The neutral interior is good because you can change the accents in it according to your mood. Or, let's say, taking the time of year as a basis. IN winter time- in blue and blue tones; in autumn - red-orange colors; in summer - green tones; in spring - delicate floral shades.
Neutral interiors in very light tones can bring in several different colors at once, no matter where they are on the color wheel in relation to each other. But it is desirable that these accent colors harmonize with each other in terms of brightness and saturation. For example, light blue can easily get along with pistachio, lilac, pink, but not with dark purple, jade or burgundy.
A bright accent obtained with the help of a sofa. Yellow accents in the interior
Bright accents in the interior. Balance
There is a classical axiom. Or rather, even a certain formula. It looks like this: 60-30-10. How to decipher it?
60% is the main interior color
30% is a secondary color (optional) or color shades main in the interior
10% is the accent color of the interior
This formula is completely true for the image of a person in classic clothes. It looks something like this: 60% is a classic suit, 30% is a shirt, 10% is a tie, which is an accent.
Here is an example for the interior. Suppose the walls of the room are painted with beige paint, and the TV stand, shelving and flooring have a wood texture. As a result, the brown-beige gamma prevails, accounting for approximately 60%. Let's say that upholstered furniture and textiles in this room are in purple flowers. in this case - is the secondary color, approximately occupying 30%. Yellow, green or blue can act as accents, it all depends on the intended effect. About 10% should remain on them: it can be, for example, a small carpet in front of the sofa, an ottoman, several sofa cushions, a cape on an armchair and a floor vase.
Next example. Cushioned furniture and wall structures are made in blue and blue colors (60%). Furniture and flooring - gray colors (30%). Accents - orange color (10%).
These figures are, of course, rather conditional and approximate. You just need to understand that the main color should not take much more than half. Secondary colors (or adjacent to the main tone) are almost half the size of the main one. And the accent color is about one tenth of the main one.
Since wood color is a neutral color, it may not be included in our formula. That is, you can not take wooden floors for calculation, but the carpet located on the floor is a must. You can do the same with white ceilings and walls, wooden or white doors and window frames, a section of wall lined with stone, a fireplace lined with bricks, etc.
If your interior is monochrome and it does not have a secondary color, then accents can take up not much more than 10%.
Sometimes, one bright accent in the interior is enough. But it must be either very spectacular or large. For a monochrome interior, it can be, for example, stunning or. Single accents can make the interior of the room very impressive. Comparisons pop up in my head: a completely white snow-covered forest with one blood-red rowan bush or a completely black cat with green eyes.
The smaller the accent color, the more it stands out, attracting attention to itself, and to everything that is around it.
Bright accents in the interior. Location
To create a color accent for any interior, various decorative elements are usually used: figurines, vases, photo frames, sofa cushions, blankets, carpets. Although works of art, pieces of furniture, and surfaces can act as accents.
With regards to furniture, poufs and armchairs, sometimes sofas, often make accents. For the interior of the bedroom, the head of the bed can be an accent. In the kitchen - some of the facades kitchen set and chairs.
The accent can be the entire wall or part of it. For example, the area behind the TV, behind the head of the bed or behind the sofa. In the kitchen, it is logical to make an accent. In this case, you must always remember the rule of 10%.
Curtains, like other textiles, can also be accented: napkins, chair covers, bed covers, tablecloths.
Today, the use of accent lamps is popular, for example, in the kitchen and dining room.
Of course, not everywhere and not always necessary.. Not bright two-tone or monochrome interiors are beautiful in themselves. But you can always, if desired, sprinkle a small amount of color into them, since this does not need to spend a large amount Money and radically change the situation. The interior will be able to change and sparkle with new colors!
When thinking about renovating your kitchen interior before the summer comes, it is worth remembering a few colors that perfectly combine understated elegance and bright luxury. It's gray and yellow. Despite the huge popularity of gray in last years, their combination is still still unusual in the kitchen. The interior of the kitchen can be decorated exclusively in two colors, or use their combination to enhance the overall atmosphere.
Fun summer charm
Yellow is a shade that is perfect for conveying the joyful atmosphere of summer, especially when it comes to a light melon tone or a cold pastel background. Kitchen in rustic style combines a magical yellow and practical dark gray backsplash and table top. Flow sunlight only enhances the playful mood.
In the kitchen, gray can be used as the main color, and yellow is limited as a decoration. This mainly concerns the restrained modern interiors. Gray can serve as decoration for white cabinets, and it will look spectacular, even if there is very little of it.
There are many ways to use gray and yellow. This only reminds that color is not a panacea. Gray can be used only for work surfaces, and using yellow to create a general warm atmosphere.
splashes of yellow
Gray-yellow cuisine is not only a spring-summer choice. This option will look great. all year round. The gray background, including the wallpapered ceiling, allows bright lights to illuminate the entire space. Another advantage of such an interior is that you can change the lampshade (and flowers) and add completely different shades, such as bright red, blue or copper - and each option will be amazing.
Shades of gray and yellow in existing interior can be entered with just a few changes. It is absolutely not necessary to decorate the kitchen only in two-tone colors. It can be brick-lined tiles, which will create an atmosphere of the middle of the last century in a modern kitchen.
The amount of gray and yellow can be adjusted depending on the existing color palette in the kitchen. Just a dozen lemon-colored tiles combined with gray and white can radically change the mood of the interior.
Styles, shades, synergy
Some kitchens look amazing with just the yellow color, others benefit from the leading role of gray, and it is best to find harmony between the two and create a dream kitchen. Yellow perfect for different styles, from rustic and rustic to Mediterranean and artisan. Gray, on the other hand, brings the sophistication of modern and transitional styles, pairing perfectly with industrial elements. Often it is the choice of style that determines the use of colors in the kitchen.
modern kitchen should be both beautiful and practical. Color. Contrast. Hard work and strategies. A little creativity. All these elements should be taken into account when planning a kitchen space. We offer
Bright interior items can transform the most boring room. But such accents are rather capricious. With excessive use of bright objects, the design of the room will look ridiculous. With insufficient - monotonously. How to find the "golden mean" and place the accents in the right quantity and the desired order? Designers recommend not to overdo it with colors and shades. To prevent the room from looking like a clown's dressing room, it is better to use two primary colors and two or three shades. This will saturate the room with color and not cross the border of color saturation.
Choosing a color palette
Before you start arranging the bright details in the room, you need to decide on colors. What, in fact, are the accents in the interior? These are ordinary household items, which, in addition to their functional value, carry a decorative load. For example, if the background of the room is made in white and blue tones, then decorative pillows, lamps and curtains in orange, will play the role of color accents, as shown in the photo. On this stage, the main task choose the right designer color combination. If the room is decorated in light lilac tones with hints of beige, the best option elements of green color will become. If the design is dominated by beige shades, the additions should be pink. Colorful accents in the beige interior attract interest, but do not distract from the beauty of the setting.
Basic Rules
It is quite difficult to pick up color elements if there are no design skills. But today, this is not a problem. Experts are happy to share the secrets of their work. So, if the living room is made in warm colors, the details of green, blue, purple colors will help to emphasize the warmth of the interior. Bright accents in the interior of the living room can be made in the form of sofa cushions, carpeting, original paintings hung on the walls. A white interior with bright accents is similarly equipped. Since white creates a feeling of sterility, you can dilute it with yellow, black, red details. In general, white perfect color for wall decoration in a small living room. Against such a background, all the details of bright, saturated colors in the photo will look great.
If the interior of the kitchen or bedroom requires energetic notes, it is also worth using additional colors. For a bedroom decorated in beige colors, additional elements should be cornflower blue or sky blue. Purple and red additions will perfectly fit into the design of the kitchen in a light green design. Although the last option is rather capricious, since this color combination carries a powerful energy. The combination of light green, purple and scarlet details is not recommended for bedrooms, nurseries and offices.
When decorating an office, a study, a bedroom or a cozy living room, you can use the details of companion flowers. So, for an interior design made in a blue palette, bright accents can be lavender, purple or lilac. A peach bright room with bright accents will look great if the details are berry or scarlet color scheme.
The easiest way to pick up details is if the design is brown and gray with bright additions. For example, sofa cushions, bedspreads, napkins and furniture covers can be light green in summer, yellow-orange in autumn, blue-blue in winter. Changing color accents and choosing color solution according to the season, you will not only decorate the room, but also create a special mood.
Number of accents
Choosing a color palette that matches perfectly with the main color scheme of the living room, kitchen or office does not mean that the design of the room is complete. It is important that bright details do not overload the space.
- Main color palette should occupy 60% of the total space of the bedroom, living room, kitchen.
- 30% of the area is reserved for the use of the companion color.
- 10% should be occupied by accents.
