How to Combine Warm + Cool Colors like an Expert in Your Home
Putting color in your home can be a big commitment, but that doesn’t mean you should stick to all-beige-everything. To choose the perfect colors for your home, you only need to know two things: There are warm and cool colors. Warm colors are stimulating and work really well in the social rooms of your house, such as the living room, dining room, and kitchen. Cool colors are more calming and work best in private rooms where concentration, tranquility and rest are most important, like the bedroom, office, and nursery. Check out these examples of warm and cool color rooms, and soon you’ll be combining color like a pro.
1. Periwinkle Cool: Purple is technically a cool color, but a lighter shade evokes a cozy feeling in this plant-filled living room. (via Brittany Makes)
2. White Wall Warm: You don’t have to paint every wall orange to create a warm color palette. This light and bright entryway have a warm palette thanks to wooden floors, warm wood furniture and gold accents, and an orange rug. (via Studio McGee)
3. Warm Accents: Even though this bedroom is mostly neutral, the bed boasts a fabulous pillow display. The orange and browns work together with the bright chair, thanks to all the warm undertones. (via Getty)
4. Rosy Shades: Not ready to commit to painting your walls? Introducing rosy hues like pinks and peaches brings extra warmth to a neutral space. (via 204 Park)
5. Sing the Blues: Bright blues combined with neutral whites are calming, focusing and soothing, which make them perfect paint colors. (via Getty)
6. Earth Tones: You don’t need pops of color to indicate your room is warm or cool. Subtle earth tones of brass, taupe and cognac brown create a warm room without a bit of red or orange. (via SF Girl by the Bay)
7. Blue Kitchen: In this kitchen, deep blue walls and tiled floors create a cool mood. (via Houseful of Handmade)
8. Royal Blue: Deep blues and greens give this bedroom an air of serious sophistication and elegance. (via Front + Main)
MORE IDEAS TO CONSIDER:
9. Either Way: Some colors — like this mint green — can go either warm or cold depending on what other colors and textures you add to it. This kitchen keeps things warm with a solid wooden island and gold accessories. (via House Beautiful)
10. Modern Look: Cool colors tend be associated with a modern style, while warmer colors are more often used when creating a traditional, country or rustic home. (via Domaine Home)
11. Green and Gray: Two unlikely colors work together beautifully when they share a warm undertone. Here, a deep green and pale gray create a calm and natural feel. (via Lucyina Moodie)
12. All-White Warmth: Gold accents add sizzle while wood and a fur blanket add warmth to this all-white bathroom. (via Lonny)
13. Mixing Colors: When you think about tone, you can combine two colors on the opposite side of the temperature scale for even more variety. This pretty bathroom uses cool pinks to balance out the blues and lavender. The pop of red adds some warmth for balance. (via Domaine Home)
14. Check the Undertones: A gray kitchen can go either warm or cool, depending on the undertones in your paint. Make sure to consider your kitchen accessories and any colored appliances when you’re picking a new paint color. (via Style Me Pretty)
Which color palettes do you prefer: cool and modern or warm and cozy? Tell us @BritandCo!
