Design Experts
Q&A: What Colour Do I Paint My Walls?
Photo courtesy Farrow & Ball
Design Experts
Q&A: What Colour Do I Paint My Walls?
You’ve got design questions. We’ve got the answers. Designer and Style at Home contributor Karl Lohnes solves your decorating challenges.
Question:
I have 10-foot ceilings in my small townhouse. I love the current look of deep, dark colours (I have darker wood floors and love them), but I’m afraid to paint the walls a dark colour. Won’t it make my rooms look like tall boxes? Is there another way to incorporate deeper tones?—Nathalie D., via email
Answer:
Here are a few ways to incorporate darker colours into smaller spaces or rooms with high ceilings.
- Choose one room and paint everything in the same deep tone. By painting the ceiling, walls and trim in the same colour, the room will seem larger because your gaze won’t get stuck on high-contrast elements like white trim. Tip: Cool tones, such as cooler blues, greys and greens, recede, further helping to visually expand a small space.
- Visually lower a high ceiling by painting it a dark colour. Choose a tone that’s one shade lighter than the floors.
- If your style is casual, add painted wainscotting that’s five to eight feet high. Paint the wainscotting in a similar tone to the flooring; then paint both the upper walls and the ceiling in a lighter colour than the wainscotting.
Question:
My condo has medium-tone walnut laminate floors. I’d like to repaint the walls white. How do I choose the correct white with- out them looking pink or blueish.—Jill K., via email
Answer:
All white colours come from a base colour, so they have an undertone. To find the perfect white that will work with wood floors use this method: First, match the colour of the wood finish to a paint colour on a card with different shades of the same colour, from light to dark; then choose the lightest (white) version for the walls. I think Benjamin Moore’s Vintage Taupe 2110-70 is a great choice that will blend with the warm caramel colours in your walnut floors.
We’d love to help solve your decorating questions! Email us at askus@styleathome.com.
Paint colours of 2024
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