A Shade Above The Rest
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Color Selection:
- Need help choosing a color, we can help you make that big decision.
- Many years of working with color helps us to aid you in picking a color.
- Contact us for a Free Estimate.
Wouldn't it be great to preview color combinations on your house, before spending a lot of money on paint? You can, with digital painting tools. Just point and click to see rooms, furnishings, and house exteriors in many different colors. The software and online tools listed here are inexpensive, and most are FREE!
Keep in mind, however, that your monitor cannot render colors precisely. Use these digital painting tools to explore possibilities, then test spot your chosen paints in a small area.
- Benjamin Moore Color Viewer
Try thousands of Benjamin Moore paint colors. Use the free online tool to view colors on sample photos showing interior and exterior views. Or, buy the $10 CD and try Benjamin Moore colors on photos of your own house. Available for Windows and Mac. - Resene EzyPaint
Use the easy, free version on EzyPaint online, or pay to download the more sophisticated version which includes a drawing and mapping tool that lets you fine tune the areas you want to color. The Ezypaint programs are available for PC or Mac, and will let you view thousands of colors manufactured by the New Zealand paint company, Resene. - American Traditions Virtual Painter
Select from a palette of National Trust approved American Tradition® colors from Lowes. Try your chosen colors on several online photos of interior and exterior views. Easy to use, but the selection of images is limited. Free. - Sherwin-Williams Painting Images Color Simulator
Sherwin-williams Color Visulizer
Select a photograph that most closely resembles the style of your house, then choose the Sherwin-William palette to experiment with color combinations. Free. - Bob Vila's Paint Designer
Home repair guru Bob Vila lets you view his Signature Collection paint colors on several different house styles. You can't import your own photos, but the free interactive Web page includes a color wheel for easy color selection and a handy estimator tool that calculates how much paint to buy. - CBN Selector™
Here's a complex and powerful tool that lets you visualize the appearance of thousands of colors on a variety of surfaces including stucco and concrete. Once you've selected your colors, you'll have a precise CBN Code that will let you order the color mix you want from your local dealer. You can download this software and try it out for 30 days for free. - Better Homes & Gardens Color-A-Home
Register for a free log-in, then use the free online tools to view different color combinations on a variety of house styles. - Photo-Editing Programs
Chances are, you already have a photo-editing program on your computer. While not specifically designed to work with house painting, most photo-editing programs include tools that can help you in the color selection process. This page from Microsoft Windows XP shows how to do this using Microsoft Digital Image Suite. Other programs work in similar ways.
The psychology of color:
Psychologists, Physiologists, Decorators, and Architects have been studying the use of color and how it affects people’s biological chemistry and moods. By knowing how colors affect moods you can determine what kind of atmosphere you would like to create in each room of your home or business.
- White
White is symbolic of purity and innocence. It creates feeling of cleanliness, comfort, and freedom. Its neutrality makes it popular in decorating. White can also make smaller rooms have a larger open feeling; however, too much white can make a room feel cold and isolated. Light, Reverence, purity, snow, peace, innocence, cleanliness, simplicity, security, humility, sterility, winter, coldness, criticism, surrender, cowardice, fearfulness, unimaginative, air, fire, death (Eastern cultures), hope, bland, empty and unfriendly(interior), celebration.
Note: Black and white are not colors they are shades. - Black
The effect of the color black is contradictory. Black can give the feeling of power and authority or a feeling of submission and silence. Black can appear bad to some people (hence why villains wear black) or can appear protective and comforting like being enveloped in a blanket. It can make a room feel vast like the night sky or closed in.
Absence, modernity, power, sophistication, formality, elegance, wealth, mystery, style, evil, death (Western cultures), fear, anonymity, anger, sadness, remorse, mourning, unhappiness, sex, seriousness, conventionality, rebellion, anarchism, unity, sorrow, life, rebirth (ancient Egypt), slimming quality (fashion).
Note: Black and white are not colors they are shades. - Gray
Gray is usually thought of in a negative light, since it is neither black nor white, it can seem noncommittal, unrevealing, and isolated. However, gray is also the color of independence and self-reliance and has become more popular in modern decorating.
Understanding:
Elegance, humility, respect, reverence, stability, subtlety, wisdom, old age, anachronism, boredom, decay, decrepitude, dullness, dust, entanglement, pollution, urban sprawl, strong emotions, balance, neutrality, mourning and formality. - Red
The color of love, red actually stimulates stamina and vitality. Red also can increase heartbeat, blood pressure, appetite and breathing. Red draws the eye and gets attention. Typically it is used as an accent color in decorating to add a touch of excitement and liveliness to a room.
Understanding:
Passion, strength, energy, fire, love, sex, excitement, speed, heat, arrogance, ambition, leadership, masculinity, power, danger, gaudiness, blood, war, anger, revolution, radicalism, socialism, communism, aggression, summer, autumn, stop, Mars (planet), respect, Aries (star sign), December, the Roman Catholic Church, martyrs, the Holy Spirit, conservatism (U.S. politics), wealth (China).
Studies show that red can have a physical effect, increasing the rate of respiration and raising blood pressure; red also is said to make people hungry; the red ruby is the traditional 40th wedding anniversary gift. - Blue
Blue creates the opposite reaction of red. Blue has shown to decrease blood pressure and aid in relaxation. Due to the tranquil affect of the color blue, it is often used in bedrooms and has even proven to help people with insomnia. Blue also has been shown to increase productivity and aid in thought processing which makes it a great color for an office or kitchen where people want to remain relaxed but productive.
Understanding:
Seas, productive, skies, peace, unity, harmony, tranquility, calmness, coolness, confidence, conservatism, water, ice, loyalty, dependability, cleanliness, technology, winter, depression, coldness, idealism, obscenity, tackiness, air, wisdom, royalty, nobility, Earth,, strength, steadfastness, light, friendliness, peace, mourning (Iran), truthfulness, love, sadness, aloofness, the Virgin Mary, liberalism (U.S. politics). - Green
Green with its connection to nature creates feelings of relaxation and laziness. Waiting rooms & hospitals often use the color green because it relaxes people. The color green has shown to aid in muscle relaxation and to slow breathing. Currently, it is the one of the most popular color in decorating
Understanding:
Great intelligence, life, nature, spring, fertility, youth, environment, wealth, money, good luck, vigor, generosity, go, grass, aggression, inexperience, envy, misfortune, coldness, jealousy, disgrace (China), illness, greed, corruption (North Africa), life eternal, air, earth (classical element), sincerity, hope, renewal, natural abundance, growth, health, balance, harmony, stability, calming, creative and intelligence..
Green is believed to be the luckiest of colors in some western countries including, Britain, Ireland, and the U.S. - Yellow
Like red, yellow is also an attention getter. Thought of as a cheerful and optimistic color, yellow has proven to stimulate the brain, enhance concentration, and speed metabolism. It is associated with better decision-making, memory, self-esteem and clear thinking. The color yellow can make a room look cheerful and welcoming; however, yellow is the hardest color for the eye to perceive, so without soothing colors to off-set the stimulation, it can be overpowering and create tension. Babies have been shown to cry more in yellow rooms, and people lose their tempers more in yellow rooms.
Understanding:
Sunlight, joy, happiness, earth, optimism, intelligence, idealism, wealth (gold), summer, hope, air, liberalism, cowardice, hazards, dishonesty, avarice, weakness, greed, femininity, gladness, sociability, summer, friendship and hazard signs.
Yellow ribbons were worn during times of warfare as a sign of hope as women waited for their men to return. - Purple
The color purple is associated with luxury, wealth, romance, creativity & sensitivity to beauty. It has a peaceful and soothing effect on emotions. Purples are sometimes used to aid nervous disorders by creating peace and balance in the mind. The color purple appears to ease obsessions and fears. One caution is that purple may appear fake or artificial due to its infrequency in nature.
Understanding:
Envy, Sensuality, bisexuality, spirituality, creativity, wealth, royalty, nobility, ceremony, mystery, wisdom, enlightenment, arrogance, flamboyance, gaudiness, mourning, profanity, exaggeration, confusion, pride, riches, romanticism (light purple), delicacy (light purple), penance.
Purple is the color of mourning for widows in Thailand, favorite color of Egypt's Cleopatra, and the Purple Hearts are given to soldiers who have been wounded during warfare. - Orange
The color orange is an antidepressant. It enhances self esteem by relieving feelings of self pity and lack of self worth. This color has shown to aid the digestive and immune systems. The combination of pink and orange excites people and places them on edge, which is why pink and orange are often used in the fast food industry. The feelings of excitement and being on edge allows for faster eating and higher customer turnover.
Understanding:
Happiness, energy, balance, heat, fire, enthusiasm, flamboyance, playfulness, aggression, arrogance, gaudiness, overemotional, warning, danger and, desire..
Orange has less intensity or aggression than red and is calmed by the cheerfulness of yellow. - Brown
Brown, the color of earth, creates feelings of security & reliability but can also be associated with sadness and retreating from the world. Brown is often favored by men more so than women.
Understanding:
Calm, boldness, depth, natural organisms, nature, richness, rustics, stability, tradition, anachronism, fascism, boorishness, dirt, dullness, filth, heaviness, poverty, roughness and earth.
Brown can stimulate the appetite, wholesomeness, steadfastness, simplicity, friendliness, and dependability. - Pink
Even though pink is a lighter shade of red, it has the opposite effect. Pink aids in muscle relaxation. It creates feelings of tranquility, protection, and nurturing. Children’s hospitals often paint the walls bubble-gum pink due to its comforting effect on children. Locker rooms of the opposing team are often painted pink so their opponents will lose stamina.
Understanding:
Gratitude, appreciation, admiration, sympathy, femininity, health, love, marriage and joy.
What ever your mood you would like to set.
Splash Painting LLC is here for you!
Don't let choosing a color be the reason for not sprucing up that Special room!