Tips for Using Colour in Interior Design
I know that re-designing your home can be a costly and time consuming process so here are some of my tips for using colour to transform your space.
Tip 1: Colour for babies and kids: learning stimulation
From 2 months old, babies start to fully see and distinguish different colours. A lot of research into Colour Theory has proven that having bright colours around your baby can be an excellent stimulant for them. It has also been proven that multicolours and different shapes and textures provide an exciting learning environment for children. Our Bubbles and After Matisse rugs have been hugely popular for children's rooms for this reason.
Paint the walls white, then add splashes of colour: You want your child to be enticed by the colours, but you also want to avoid the room being too noisy. Having plain walls but with statement colour accessories can achieve this: add a bright rug with matching cushions, or a vibrant art piece.
2. Use Colour to change the perception of size of a room
Cool colours to make a small room appear larger: Of all the colours, white reflects the most light, so mix in your cool colour with white to create a reflective effect in the smaller rooms in your house. Painting the ceiling a lighter colour than the walls will make it seem higher, making the room feel more spacious.
Warm colours to make a large room appear cosier: Painting the walls of a large room in shades of orange and yellow will make the space feel cosier, creating the illusion of pulling the walls closer together. Pair this with warm as opposed to white lighting can bring a feel of warmth and comfort.
Adding a large rug in warm colours increases considerably the sense of comfort and intimacy in a modern interior with hard surfaces and cold floors.
3. Colour to change the shape of an interior
If you have a long, narrow space, such as a hallway, paint both end walls (the shorter ones) a shade or two darker than the other walls. This makes the end walls feel closer to you. As a result, the room appears to be more of a square shape. Hallways are often described as the most boring room in the house, however I have recently launched a bright new runner called Magic Stepping Stones, that invites you to walk along and explore how colours interact. Placed in a hallway, this colourful design can create an inviting link between space, certain to transform the usually neutral transition between rooms into an unforgettable journey.
If there are some shapes in your room that are necessary, but are displeasing to the eye, such as heating or AC vents, you can paint these the same colour as the walls so they blend in and become less noticeable.
Hallway with colour and without:
Hallways are often described as the most boring room in the house. I disagree. Our Magic Stepping Stones Runner recently launched at The London Design Festival, is an exciting and explorative piece of art for your floor. Instead of the dullness that tends to come from a hallway, this rug invites you to walk along and explore how colours interact. Using vibrant colours in your hallway can create an inviting link between space - turn the usual neutral transition between rooms into an unforgettable journey.
4. Colour to change your mood
Colours act in three basic ways: active, passive and neutral.
I have explored these effects through my different designs. Red and orange are known to make you feel alert and active. Red raises the energy level of a room, it pumps the adrenaline like no other hue. It is a good choice for stirring up excitement. Blues are calming and give a room a tranquil mood.
A bit more about the Guest Author, Sonya Winners
I have always been fascinated by colour I think it must be in my DNA!
My grandfather was one of the pioneers of colour lithographic printing all the collectable cigarette cards and Lyons Tea House posters collaborating with artists such as Lowry, John Nash, John Piper and John Minton.
Whilst taking a degree in graphic design I loved experimenting with colour and design and after working for large design consultancy I set up my own graphic design business which kept me busy for 15 years, then when my daughters were small I had the idea for a number of non fiction books which I produced and sold to publishing houses. From there I morphed into a photographer for 8 years and finally decided to produce my own range rugs.
When I saw my first colourful design woven into a rug I was surprised how the colours combined with the design totally transformed my home - the rug literally changed my mood making me smile every time I saw it! This revelation prompted me to set up my rug business in 2011 from my spare room. That year, I launched my first collection of rugs at London Design Festival, including my statement design The After Matisse - due to the show’s advance publicity 450,000 visitors came to our website in one day- from that point the business took off. Enquiries and orders started coming in from our website around the globe. Fast forward 8 years and we now currently sell to over 30 countries directly from our design studio - showroom. Colour really does transform interiors and people of over the world were ready for my crazy coloured and shaped creations. Now we have over 30 designs but the original After Matisse rug is still one of our best selling designs!
Our rugs are all hand made in rural communities keeping alive the 2000 year old traditions within weaving families. Alongside these traditions they also embrace some modern developments for example the use of Swiss Azo free dyes that are more fade resistant than natural dyes and provide beautiful bright colours of every imaginable shade!
Also our weavers all belong to Good Weave meaning that there are no children weaving our rugs and we support educational programmes for weavers and their families.
Rug making is a SLOW art form with many hand process stages from dying the yarn, hand weaving, washing, carving and binding - every rug is slightly different to the next and beautiful in its own right.
Sonya has recently opened her design studio and showroom by Hampstead Heath at: Sonya Winner Rug Studio 14 York Rise London NW51ST enquiry@sonyawinner.com Tel: 0203 283 8776 www.sonyawinner.com Free parking outside after 12 noon.
Sonya Winner Studio Ltd • 14 York Rise, London NW5 1ST United Kingdom • Tel: +44 (0) 20 3283 8776 • Email: info@sonyawinner.com Registered Office: 5 Harley Place, London, England, W1G 8QD. Registered in England and Wales. Company No. 03166803