picking a color palette

November 7, 2011 8 Comments by Maddie

Decorating an apartment sounds like good, clean fun, but in reality, it involves a lot of sweat equity. There are walls to tape off and paint, furniture to refinish (more on that soon!), and—inevitably—way too many Ikea purchases to weld together.

In my opinion, the best part of the decorating process comes before the big move: picking out a color scheme! In our previous abode, I made the mistake of winging it when it came to the color palette, and those random stylistic decisions never came together as a cohesive whole. This time, I vowed to be more strategic about the whole process.

Here, my friends, is the result:

After living with blue walls that were just slightly too vivid in our old place, I knew I’d go for neutral paint this time. Enter: light gray, which is more fun than beige but just as low-key. A sane wall color would allow for pops of cheerful pigment elsewhere in red, gold, and navy—a modified primary color scheme. Against this palette, I figured that bright white trim and deep mahogany wood pieces would make for especially crisp accents.

An equally important consideration in choosing this color palette was the opinion of my roommate (the boyfriend, not the kitten). Ted is pretty chill about most things, design included, but I wanted to keep the aura boy-friendly. Honestly, I could’ve gotten away with painting the walls Pepto-Bismol pink, but this place is supposed to feel like a refuge for both of us. Thus, the modified primary color scheme: red, blue, and yellow feel masculine together, but this particular red has orange undertones—evoking a pretty tube of lipstick—and the yellow component became a sparkly metallic. The result? A perfect compromise between masculine and feminine.

I’m excited to share more details soon! Till then, tell me about how you use color in your homes, and how you compromise on decor with the wonderful people you live with.

Related Posts Plugin for WordPress, Blogger...
  • http://www.happyjackeats.com Jacqui

    We have a nice black leather couch that Murdo got several years ago when he still had a bachelor pad. When he first got it, I was like, “hey, whatever, that’s a nice couch for a good deal!” But then we moved in together, and suddenly I had this big, black, masculine couch and feared that only big, black masculine things would match it. BUT with some colorful throw pillows and a white accent chair, turns out black leather furniture doesn’t have to be so manly, after all. :)

    Also – love the idea of light gray walls. I know it’s weird, but I think gray is one of my favorite colors.

  • http://www.alittleginger.com Maddie

    I love that you re-accessorized the couch to make it match the style of your home together. We can’t always afford to throw out an imperfect piece of furniture to replace with our dream fill-in-the-blank. But being short on funds forces you to be more creative, and I think that’s a great thing.

    I hope my friend Anna reads your comment, too; she just moved in with a guy and his red plaid couch.  :)  May the force be with her!

  • http://www.christytylerphotography.com Christy

    Can’t wait to see it all come together! Isn’t it fun making deliberate decisions instead of just putting it together piecemeal? 

  • http://profiles.google.com/emitzner Emily Mitzner

    Our blue walls are a testament to compromise- left to my own devices, I would always tend to go way too pastel, and Kim would’ve gone much grey/greener. Miraculously, we found a mid-point light blue that is bright in the right light and grey enough to be almost neutral, and works with the cream walls that we left unpainted.

    Koko doesn’t get a say?

  • http://www.alittleginger.com Maddie

    It is fun—and I’ll definitely be sharing the putting-it-all-together process! I hope the end result is as nice as some of the new apartment pics you’ve shared.

  • http://www.alittleginger.com Maddie

    So happy that you and Kim are able to meet in the middle on these things. I seem to remember your place in DC having an awesome accent wall, and I can’t wait to visit in NYC and see what you’ve cooked up there!

    (Also: If Koko had a say in decorating, there would be salmon taped to the walls. So no, Koko doesn’t get a say.)

  • Dana

    I love the colors with the wood. Dark mahogany is a classical and beautiful choice. 

  • http://www.alittleginger.com Maddie

    Thanks so much, Dana!