Colours set the mood for any interior. Getting the colour combinations right for the walls, floor and ceiling is the first challenge and involves serious decision-making.
Colour selection is a reflection of how one feels and experiences the space. By mixing the colours of the walls, ceiling and floor, one can make a room seem larger, smaller, wider, narrower, deeper, higher, lighter and warmer.
Australia’s leading flooring specialist, Quick-Step offers a set of tips that highlight the importance of choosing the right colour combinations and how colour, light and space are interconnected.
A room with a light floor and light walls will appear extra wide. Too many pale colours will make it cool and impersonal. Dark walls in a room with a light floor and ceiling tend to emphasise the horizontal lines. A dark floor and lighter ceiling with dark walls will give it a sort of basement effect as the light is only coming from above.
A light floor and ceiling with dark walls make a space seem narrower, deeper and taller while a dark floor and dark ceiling with light walls make the space feel wider and lower.
By choosing skirting that is the same colour as the floor, one can create the illusion of spaciousness. On the other hand, a floor appears to be smaller when the skirting is the same colour as the walls.
Combining colours of the furniture and the floor is also critical in getting the mood and balance just right. The colour of the floor should be either two shades lighter or a lot darker than the colour of the furniture. A floor and furniture in the same colour and wood is only possible if the carpet is in a different contrasting colour between them.
A neutral colour flooring such as varnished oak can be combined with furniture made of very dark wood such as walnut or very light furniture in white. Furniture in light wood combined with pale walls and a light floor may create a calm ambience in the home, though it may look a bit dull and monotonous.
Combining bright floors with walls and furniture may also be tricky. Keep the walls warm and neutral as they create an attractive contrast with the floor. However, it is advised not to overdo the contrast effects and use a maximum of one or two different highlight colours. Colours in dim lighting can create a different feeling than the same colours in bright sunlight or artificial lighting.
Remember, light colours reflect light and dark colours absorb light.
Premium Floors is a leading Australian wholesale distributor of timber, bamboo, laminate and cork flooring.
