Get confident with colour with Earthborn Paints

When it comes to decorating your home the choice of paint colour for your walls is the most important, and hardest, decision to make. We’ve enlisted the help of Cathryn Sanders, Head of Creative for Earthborn Paints - the designer paint company that is both kinder to the environment and to you - to help give you the confidence and the tools to pick the perfect colour. Here she tells us how to get comfy and confident with colour….

Have a clear goal

The first step is to think about what you would like to achieve. The right paint colour can make a small room feel bigger or a large room more cosy, whilst also helping lighten a dark room. Having a clear goal from the start means you won’t lose your way in the kaleidoscope of colour charts!

You want to pick a colour scheme you will love and enjoy, so think about the colours you like and how you feel when you see them. A good place to start is by looking inside your double wardrobe or wooden chest of drawers - are your clothes mostly neutral colours or do you have a soft spot for delicate pastels? Maybe rich rustic tones are more your thing?

Take it to the board

The best way to get all your thoughts and ideas together is with a mood board. These are fun to create and are especially helpful if you’re struggling to decide between a choice of colours. Create a board for each scheme, including images of the furniture you have or would like to place in the room. For example, if you have a beautiful reclaimed wood dining table, include this on your board, or if you have your eye on a rustic coffee table for your living room, stick this on too.

Once you have all the colour and elements on a board you will start to see which scheme is the right one for you.

The right combo

You may want to include a combination of colours for a room and the best way to get this right is with a colour wheel. Here you can experiment with different colours and ideas and work out if they go together or not. Simply select a combination of three or four colours and put them in a circle together to see how well they work. As with the mood board, the colour wheel is a good tool to use with existing items, such as carpet or a sofa.

Can you feel it?

I truly believe that the secret to getting the colour of a room right is to understand how you want to feel when you’re in that room. At Earthborn we have created a mood picker that selects a choice of shades to match your chosen mood. It’s a good way to test the colours you like the look of and to get inspiration.

In harmony or a cool contrast

Once you have the colours you know you’ll love, think next on how you want to use or combine them. We’ve created three colour schemes to consider…

Monochromatic - good for a modern space, this scheme selects different tones of the same colour. For example, select three similar colours and use the darkest on the skirting board, the mid-tone on the wall and the lightest shade on the ceiling.

Harmonious - this scheme uses different colours that work next to each other on the colour wheel, such as a dusty pink with a warm white or a rusty orange with a soft yellow.

Contrast - as it suggests, this scheme is for colours that sit opposite each other on the colour wheel and perfect if you’re looking for something bold and dramatic.

Earthborn Paints is dedicated to creating paints that are better for the planet, your home and your health. Founded in 2002, it created a true eco-alternative to conventional paints long before anyone had started using the word eco with its high quality and high performance water-based paints free from acrylic, oils and nasty smells.

Its new signature palette, The Earth Collection, comprises five new shades inspired by the natural world and formulated to strict environmental standards. The new muted collection of soft blues, pinks and beige are the perfect palette for complementing reclaimed wood furniture or rustic furniture - a great way to help create a more environmentally friendly home.

For more information and inspiration from Earthborn Paints visit www.earthbornpaints.co.uk or @earthbornpaints.

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