As neutral paint colors rise in popularity, paint manufacturers are continually adding new nuances to their neutral palettes and making it easier than ever for you to give your home a literally one-of-a-kind signature look.
What is a neutral color?
Designers and paint specialists have their own, often complex definitions of what constitutes a neutral color or shade, but in simple terms, neutral means colors that aren’t bright and stark. Neutrals don’t have to be light in shade, but most do head in that direction. Because of their color-subtlety, neutrals are easy to match with “standard” paint colors from many color families.
Traditionally, neutrals fall into the black, beige, gray/blue and white families, as you can see on the Sherwin-Williams neutral family of paint colors web page. Benjamin Moore also has a page of neutral paint colors you can use to gather ideas.
Neutral paint works great in any area of the home, but it’s especially appropriate for large spaces such as walls and ceilings and is therefore a perfect choice for most living rooms and bedrooms.
Why neutral paint colors work well in living rooms and bedrooms
Neutral paint on walls and ceilings sets a mood for the whole room. These shades are relaxing and settling rather than exciting and distracting. When painting a living room or bedroom, you can start with a tan, light-gray, cream-white or other neutral on the walls and then let other items in the room add contrasting colors.
Furnishings, wall decorations, window treatments and more will stand out and be noticed much more with a neutral backdrop than if you painted the walls fire-engine red, fluorescent green or some other dominant color. A neutral color scheme for walls and ceilings in living rooms and bedrooms makes everything else in the room sharper and clearer – which is good, because you want to accent those things. Except in certain elaborate room designs, you normally don’t want to make the walls and ceilings the main points of focus.
Matching accent paint to neutral colors
One of the many cool things about neutral paint colors is how easy they are to match with accent paint. For example, if you paint the walls and ceiling of your room Grecian Ivory, a lovely light shade in the tan family developed by Sherwin-Williams, it will be simple to match it with a wide range of more vivid accent colors for baseboards, trim, molding, doors and the like.
This versatility allows you to lay your foundation and then let your artistic flair come alive when filling in all the accent areas with the special colors you love most. If you’ve decided on a great color scheme and would like to have professionals make it unforgettable, Franklin Painting of Farmington, CT, is here to help. We specialize in transforming rooms and entire homes with a painting process that will amaze you and delight you for many years to come. For help with your next interior or exterior painting project, give us a call at (877) 646-7774.