As Fall and cloudy days approach our summertime energy will be zapped with the cold weather. Want to keep your mood vibrant? Of course you do! Paint a few rooms in your home a color that with keep happy even during the most gloomy days! Our friends at thisoldhouse.com gave use the secret to a happy home 365 days a year. Happy painting!
1. Get Friendly with Red
Conventional wisdom says to use red as an accent color because it’s too intense and attention grabbing in large amounts. But choose a softer hue, and it’s great for spaces where the family gathers.
This sitting room and library are painted with an ochre shade, Benjamin Moore‘s Claret Rose, that’s cheerful without being overwhelming. Trim painted Benjamin Moore‘s Guilford Green, the shade opposite red on the color wheel—creates a convivial atmosphere.
3. Flatter Your Complexion with Apricot
Here’s a color that’s sweet, but not cloying. Benjamin Moore‘s August Morning, a shade of orange, is stimulating, like red, but less intensely so. Instead of being energetic and empowering, it’s balancing and grounding. The color also flatters almost every skin tone and lifts the mood. What more could you want?
2. Go for Gutsy with Pink
Benjamin Moore‘s Peony, an uninhibited hot pink, makes this parlor positively vibrate—especially against the crisp white molding. Mellow accents such as the faded paisley upholstery and the sandy-hued natural coir rug keep it from descending into Barbie’s dream house madness.
4. Liven Up with Bright Yellow
Nothing beats sunny joyful rays in the kitchen or breakfast room, here in Benjamin Moore‘s St. Elmo’s Fire. We’re drawn to yellow because it represents the sun’s power to sustain life. So use it in rooms where family and friends congregate. One caution: if you’re prone to anxiety avoid its more intense iterations.
5. Chill Out with a Blue Accent
If the effect of painting a whole room a vibrant blue hue leaves you reaching for the Xanex, try just a small dose (of color, that is). Finishing one wall in an otherwise white or cream-colored room with a saturated shade, such as Behr‘s Deep Blue Sea, can actually create a soothing focal point.
