Many home owners find that choosing interior paint colors can be an intimidating task. There is always the fear that the paint color you choose just does not look as you expected once it has been applied to the walls. It’s a reasonable fear and it does happen, sometimes. But it does not need to be that intimidating and choosing great colors can be simpler than it seams.

Get Inspired Before You Pick Your Interior Paint Colors

Pick up a few copies of home decorating magazines. The featured homes, and even those in the advertisements, will often be painted with the current trends in colors.

Make note of the pages with colors you’re interested in, or tear them out, so you can easily compare them. Hold them next to your major pieces of furniture, and your flooring, to get a sense for if they will match with your decor.

Take these color inspirations to your local paint store where you can pick the paint chips with similar colors. These chips will have a range, from light to dark, of each color. Bring the color chips home and take some time to consider them. The chips will help you decide the exact tone of color you want.

Hire a Professional Decorator

Most interior decorators charge only a small fee for a color consultation. They are of course knowledgeable on the current trends in color. They also have a great understanding of color and how it will tie into your overall decor.

A decorator can help you pick the perfect paint colors for you home and you can feel confident the colors will look great before you apply paint to the walls.

Ask Your Painter about Colors

If you’re going to be hiring a professional interior painter many can help you with selecting colors. When they come to see your house and give you a quote on painting they will often bring a color pallet from the paint supplier they use.

If you already have a few ideas on interior paint colors you can use their pallet to select the paint color code that best matches the colors you’ve chosen. Ask the painter for their opinions. They see a lot of houses and various colors and their experience can help you to confidently make the final decision.

Dark vs. Light Paint Colors

The size and shape of your room can influence the interior paint colors you choose. Dark colors can make a room appear smaller while lighter colors can make it seem bigger. Bigger rooms can easily handle deeper darker colors while a small room should usually avoid them.

Longer narrow rooms can use this principle to make it appear wider. Select a darker shade to use on the narrow walls. Applying a lighter shade on the longer walls will help open up the room.