How to Choose Colors

You have decided to give your home a facelift with a new paint job. This is where the hard decisions begin. How do you choose the right painting company? What paint should you use? And sometimes the most daunting question of all: What should the colors be?

Many people need help wading through the infinite shades of possibility that exist in the world of color. You may need someone to interpret your own preferences, taste and personality; translating it all into the one scheme that is "Just Right" for you.

But before you pick up the phone and make an appointment with a color consultant, give it a shot on your own by taking stock of your surroundings and utilizing basic concepts of color theory: unlock the colorist within.

Look around, note what your street looks like. What are the predominant colors? Do you like them? Do you want your house to stand out or to blend in? What is the spirit of your house: inviting, cozy, secret, jubilant, reserved?

The color wheel is a basic tool anyone can use to help think about color. The circle of colors represents the color spectrum. The wheel is based on three primary colors (a triad): red, blue and yellow. Mixed primary colors create a secondary triad of orange, green and violet (purple).

The simplest schemes can include three balanced complimentary colors, while more sophisticated combinations vary the proportion or weight of each color.

The Holy Trinity Church on the corner of Van Ness and Green Street in San Francisco is an example of how Modamas, in association with Philip Going, the general contractor, developed a successful color scheme.

We were given a free reign with choosing colors, but from the start there were serious aesthetic constraints involving the blue and copper green roof and the gold leaf crosses.

While the roof color and the gold crosses are obviously symbolic (blue=heaven, gold=sanctity, untarnished purity), colors also have strong psychological effects: blue is the color of calm, mystery, foreboding: think about the deep blue sky, or the dark blue ocean. Yellow and orange (gold) evoke energy, excitement, warmth, fire, the sun.

Copper green is present simply because copper is a traditional roofing material. Nevertheless, it seems almost organic in this context. Look around the church, how it is framed by verdant shrubbery and trees. Thus it is not surprising that we based our color scheme on yellow-greens.

A heavy, earthy dark green foundation anchors the structure. A very light green trim bridges the light walls and dark stained glass windows. The blue-violet rooftops complement the yellow-greens.

They oppose each other on the color wheel, creating harmony and providing just enough accent to create a sense of movement.

You will lose a lot of people if they don't get it. On the other hand, it would be cool if it worked. Test this on innocent bystanders, and tweak the illustration and relevant instructions/description so that at least half of the public will get it. Color theory can be cool.

The copper green on the rest of the roof contains reds and greens, completing the color circle and the scheme. We hope you agree that the result enhances the stately and harmonious aura of this historic and beautiful building.

An example of a much simpler but still elegant and proportionate color arrangement is a family home at Washington Street near Clay. The cool gray-blues are accented with just enough yellow and gold to attract visitors looking for San Francisco Victorians. Come and see what you think.

If you would like the assistance of an objective, experienced eye to help you pick the most appealing colors for your project, please consider one of the following color consultants.

Jeff Bennett
Call Modamas (415) 472 4683
Email: wwwcontact@modamas.com

Bob Buckter
(415) 922-7444
Email: DrColor@DrColor.com