Colors Can Affect the Size of a Room

Color by the Size

Color is the least expensive way to remodel a room to fit any lifestyle. Before beginning any interior painting project, size up the room — don’t just measure the area to be painted — but decide if the space should feel expansive or cozy.

Color is a subtle, yet fundamental, design element. When used properly it changes the room from a space to an experience. Color and harmony enhance the aesthetics of the home and provide cohesion of design. Color schemes can be generalized in a few categories: geographic location, area of the house, room style, mood, and light.

Color choices can alter a room’s proportions.

COOL COLORS

Blues and greens recede, because walls painted in cool colors appear more distant than they really are. Cool colors can make a small room seem larger.

WARM COLORS

Reds and yellows advance a room. Walls covered in warm colors seem to move inward making a large room appear smaller.

LIGHT COLORS

The lighter palette reflects more light and makes a room feel more expansive.

DARK COLORS

The darker hues can make the same room intimate.

To create the illusion of raising a low ceiling, select a paint color that is lighter than the walls. Conversely, a high ceiling can be lowered by not only selecting a tone that is darker than the walls, but painting it down to either picture or plate rail height.

To make a large floor surface seem smaller, paint or select a floor covering that is darker than the room’s walls. The floor color will define the boundaries of the room moving the eye downward.

If you need to shorten a narrow room or a long hallway, paint the end walls in a warmer or darker color than the side walls. The distance between the end walls will appear to decrease. To widen a room or hallway, use light colors on the walls, ceiling, and floor.

To make a square room seem more interesting, paint one wall a focal or accent color. A single dark wall will create the illusion of moving into the room; a single light-colored wall will push outward. Window walls will appear darker because they receive only reflected light.

A paint’s finish will also influence the proportions of a room. A matte or flat finish will reflect the least amount of light making a room seem slightly smaller. While high gloss paint is the most durable and reflects the most light, it is seldom used to make a room look larger because it also highlights surface imperfections. In a small room, eggshell and satin finishes are often selected. Consider the paint color in the context of the room’s lighting. Incandescent light emphasizes the yellow and red spectrum making those colors more intense. Fluorescent lights that are not color corrected to mimic daylight will have a cold, blue effect on color. Daylight will influence color depending on the time of day.

A room with southern exposure will feel cooler and larger when painted in re-freshing blues and greens. A room with southern exposure painted in warm colors will appear warmer and smaller. A space with northern exposure will appear warmer and smaller painted in yellows and reds.

Finally, keep in mind that the color on a paint chip will seem less intense or lighter than the color applied to a whole wall.

Paulette Rossi is a Certified Master Recycler living in Portland, OR.