Friend going to redo my bedroom.... what color to paint?

[Mom31]

Not sure where to post this.

We have lived here a year and my bedroom has wall paper on it that is half torn down over paneling. It's time to get it done and I can't do it myself. So a friend has offered to do it at a very very fair price.

:)

What color do you think looks nice in a bedroom? I was thinking amethyst. Like a purple...I am a single mom so it can be girly.

[ChristyMarie]

I just did my guest room in a deep amethyst purple - I love it.  I say go for it.

However, a word of advice, invest in one of those small testers and put a big patch of it on the wall and live with it for a few days first.  There is a very fine line between "wow that is a beautiful purple" and "a jar of grape jelly exploded in here"

Not that I had to repaint after my first color choice or anything.....  ;)

[Mom31]

:) Oh no! Yes- thats what I was worried about. My living room is yellow and It s not the yellow i wanted.... feels like a school bus or something... learning to like it tho

[Lovesong]

When I was sixteen, I wallpapered my bedroom in a warm amethyst. The kind of colour you would get if you took some blueberry jam and mixed it with milk until it was neither a dark nor a light colour. It looked really good with white borders, and barn red doors and surprisingly didn't clash with my burnt orange bed nor my green desk (remember, I was sixteen).

During the night, it was a really good colour, since it gave the room a calm, cosy, enveloping feeling. With a few lights placed at the right places, to spread a warm glow over my favourite reading chair, over the bed etc. I don't think any bedroom could become much more inviting than that. However, it was not a good daytime colour because the same qualities that at night made it feel calming and enveloping, made it kind of drab and boring during the day. It sort of absorbed light during the day, if that makes sense? Making the room feel grey.

I really started craving a warm, golden glow living in that amethyst greyness. And one day I caved in to it and bought myself a can of the most beautiful yellow colour you can ever imagine. It is this strong cantaloupe yellow, like liquid sunshine or perhaps a glass of orange juice, but tempered with undertones of beige sand. So even if it is a strong yellow, it is a very neutral colour. Which sounds strange, but because of the undertones in the yellow it changes colour from this beige golden sand, moving towards yellow honey as the sun starts to filter through the curtains, and then to a warm cantaloupe towards the evening when my room grows darker. Really, the perfect yellow.

So, depending on how you use your bedroom, keep in mind that different colours will look different during different hours of the day. Also consider when you might want to repaint again, and if you are a person who are influenced by the season with regards to which colours you are drawn to. I very much am, so when I want to redo a room during spring, I am drawn towards light pastels. During the autumn, to warm earthy colours. I am aware of this in myself, and therefore when I paint a room (something I don't want to do more than perhaps every 5 years or so) I always try to keep the colour somewhat season neutral.

So, consider not only if the colour will look great right now, but how it will work with you and the kind of decorator you are during a year or more.

[Mom31]

Originally Posted by ChristyMarie 

I just did my guest room in a deep amethyst purple - I love it.  I say go for it.

Could you tell me what the exact color is you picked that did not look like grape jelly ? lol.

I am so excited to be getting this done. What accent colors did you use?

[Mom31]

Lovesong... awesome reply! Thanks! I never go in my room during the day and there is only one window in there... not sure if that matters. So it stays pretty dark in there anyhow. So night is what matters to me... that s when i go in there to read and sleep. Who knows if i get it nice and pretty I will prob spend more time in there tho.

[mkksmom]

I'd go with purple that has some gray to it. I am on a big gray kick right now, though.

[philomom]

Originally Posted by Emilie2 

:) Oh no! Yes- thats what I was worried about. My living room is yellow and It s not the yellow i wanted.... feels like a school bus or something... learning to like it tho

Yellows must be hard to mix. I can't tell you how many times I've tried to get a warm Tuscan yellow... only to get the school bus look. Sigh.

[Katie T]

How big is your room? 

I have a very large bedroom (17ft x 15ft) so I needed a way to warm it up. I have 3 large windows on one wall as well. I did a khaki green/mossy color on 2 walls opposite each other and a khaki tanish color on the other 2 walls. It looks warm and inviting at all hours. 

You don't have to use the colors mentioned above (I love earthy colors lol) But think of lighting through out the day, the size of the room and not painting all the walls the same color. It totally changes the feel of the room depending on what you paint it. How fun for you!

[Lovesong]

Originally Posted by Emilie2 

Lovesong... awesome reply! Thanks! I never go in my room during the day and there is only one window in there... not sure if that matters. So it stays pretty dark in there anyhow. So night is what matters to me... that s when i go in there to read and sleep. Who knows if i get it nice and pretty I will prob spend more time in there tho.

I also only have one window in my bedroom. As long as you remember the importance of good and varied light sources in the room it shouldn't be a problem. In my case, I have a reading lamp by my bed, a ceiling lamp, and then ambience lightning to light in the evening, before going to bed, to make the bedroom seem more inviting.

Originally Posted by philomom 



Yellows must be hard to mix. I can't tell you how many times I've tried to get a warm Tuscan yellow... only to get the school bus look. Sigh.

Try a yellow that almost leans a little towards peach/pink or one that definitely seems orange and you should have better luck. Pure yellow is a very difficult colour on the walls, but excellent for accessories. This is my bedroom vanity area, the yellow colour does look a little green in this picture because of the green dresser reflecting but otherwise, it is a very warm, nice, tuscan kind of yellow.

[Mom31]

beautiful room.:) thanks for the advice. I am lost when it comes to this stuff.

[ChristyMarie]

Pittsburgh Paint "Silverado"

http://www.color-swatches.com/pittsburgh-paints/silverado/542-6/swatch.html

Do not use Behr "Vintage Grape"  Just saying....

[*bejeweled*]

Pick out the color that you love and then go lighter. I try to find restaurants or shops whose colors I love and then ask them for the name of the paint color they used.

Definitely check out some of the rooms on ohdeedoh.com and apartmenttherapy.com. They list the colors they use.

[ChristyMarie]

Oh, to answer your other question...   I did a green ceiling, green closet, metallic green bathroom and creamy white trim throughout.  I also did a metallic purple stripe on the walls.

Fabric in there is a black & white comforter with white table lamps.

I love that the room is darker - very soothing at night and also during the day. 

[sunnysandiegan]

I convinced my DH to go with a blue-violet color in our master bedroom. It is LOVELY at all times of the day! It is a medium-dark shade and the room is large (12x15ish) with a LARGE West-facing window (4ft x 6ft) and an entire wall of mirrored closet doors (trimmed in white). We have a white ceiling and white trim and white textured blinds. The furniture is an eclectic mix of natural woods. The carpet is cut-pile berber in an oatmeal color with many colored flecks (very soft and not too light nor dark). I have accents of green throughout the room (very small touches).

The adjacent bathroom is two shades lighter than the bedroom walls with white trim and counters/cabinets/shower/etc. The bathroom has no natural light and the bedroom has a ton, so the walls look somewhat similar except the bathroom has a semi-gloss finish and the bedroom is an eggshell finish. Both are easy to clean, but the bathroom resists mildew and any water beads right up.

With the wood furniture in various shades, it is a warm and inviting and grounding room. Very restful at all times of the day. I meditate in this room. I also mix up my healing potions (herbal concoctions and flower essences and essential oil beauty remedies, etc) in here and do my makeup in here, etc. I adore our master bedroom now!!! (It has been a few years, but I was not a fan when it was all "swiss coffee" aka off-white.)

We have simple white linens on the bed now, but I have plans to make a quilt-inspired duvet in multiple colors of fabric for our "winter" look to visually liven it up -- just my personality. I plan to create a simple white/cream duvet out of the high thread count sheet we currently just throw on top for our "summer" look to keep it cool looking in our hot weather (and to keep the cat hair off our down comforter/blanket).

Something to ponder...

In color theory/therapy, it is strongly advised to have sleeping rooms be painted in cool colors to promote resting and accents in warm colors for balance. Real wood promotes grounding. In active rooms, such as living rooms and kitchens, the reverse is best. I have a very close friend who studied all this for years in Ireland and I have found it to be extremely helpful and true in our house. YMMV...