House Beautiful magazine asked Ten Top Designers what they would say
is their Number One Paint Color Mistake, and here are their Ten Different
Answers:
Ceiling Paint
"I never paint a ceiling dead white because all white paint
has a bit of gray in it, and it takes the room down. Paint the ceiling a cream
shade." –Athalie Derse
Matching Shades
"You never want to match your walls to a color in one of your
fabrics. It will be too strong. Find a grayed-out version of the color." –Sallie Giordano
Neutral Balance
"The biggest mistake people make when they're trying to be
colorful and exciting is to forget that you need to balance it with neutrals –
otherwise it ends up looking like a color wheel." –Todd Klein
Continuity
"Even when I don't use the same colors everywhere, I still
like the rooms to feel connected. The bedroom should never feel like it's in a
completely different house from the living room – the whole house has to make
sense as one." –Mona Ross Berman
Contrast
"One of the biggest mistakes people make with neutrals is not
using enough contrast. A room of creams and beiges needs something stark and
shiny white. And something black. You have to interject elements that add
intense personality. Make it gutsy, or else it's boring." –Betsy Brown
Don't Go Overboard
"When any color scheme is taken too seriously, it loses its
power. You need to know when to pull back. A two-color scheme can be great, but
there has to be some relief, or it comes across as too pat and makes everything
seem stiff." –Tom Scheerer
Picture Yourself in the Space
"People don't take into account how they'll look in a room
when choosing a color. I just did an apartment where the woman has blue eyes
with a bit of a purple tint them, so everything is lavender to purple. She
simply glows." –Stan Topol
Let the Room Evolve
"When it comes to color, I say, 'Go big or go home.' You have
to trust yourself. But you don't have to commit to color all at once — you can
play with it as the rooms evolve. Start with one palette and then mix things
in." –Ashley Whittaker
Choose the Right Finish
"Darker colors in general can read very flat, so use a
high-luster finish. Good prep is key to any high-luster paint finish, so
skim-coating the walls really helps. If the walls are well prepared, you can
get a deep, rich gloss without going to the expense of lacquering." –Meg Braff
Depth
"Deep colors contain many other hues, and you have to be just
as concerned about the secondary shades that are blended in. Colors that have
no depth are oddly fluorescent. They will leap out at you, rather than pull you
in. It's a subtle difference, but failure to recognize it is what sometimes
makes people afraid of using color." –Suzanne Kasler