Changing your paint color is an easy way to make your house a home
By Nikki Luttmann

With the onset of chilly weather and longer nights, our thoughts immediately turn to the comforts of home. We spend more time indoors during the fall and winter months, and making our homes warm and secure becomes much higher on our priority list.

It’s easier than you might think to spruce up your home. One of the easiest and cheapest ways to update and personalize your home is by changing your paint color. Painting is a simple solution that people often avoid because they think it is much more complicated than it really is. The problem is that paint companies offer so many paint brands and colors that consumers often feel overwhelmed.

Walk into any home improvement super-store and you’ll immediately know what I mean. Walls and walls of paint chips in very imaginable color crowd the paint section, making even the bravest “Do-it-yourselfer” shake in their boots at the thought of choosing just one hue. Fifty years ago, paint companies offered just a handful of colors, making decisions easy. You had your choice of cotton white, baby blue, or sunshine yellow.

Choosing the right color can still be that easy. First, establish the kind of mood you want to create in the room you are painting. Red tones create a feeling of warmth, yellows energize, greens and blues calm and sooth, while whites feel clean and refreshing. Neutrals are always a good choice and allow other elements in a room, such as furnishings or a spectacular view to take center stage.

When choosing a color such as red or blue, make sure that there is a bit of a neutral color in the tint, such as brown for red, or gray for blue. This will keep the color from becoming overwhelming when placed on the walls.

After you have chosen a color that you think might work, get an actual sample of the paint to take home with you to try. This is a very important step, so don’t skip it! Paint a large swatch on each wall of the room you intend to paint. Every wall in your home reflects light differently at different times during the day, so it is imperative to see how the color you have chosen looks in your unique setting.

After you have applied the color swatches to your wall, live with it for at least twenty-four hours. If you love it, great - it’s time to paint! If not, it’s back to the drawing board. Pick another color and start the process again.

After you’ve finalized your color selections, the painting itself is easy. Cut in first with a good-quality brush. Then choose a roller that has the right kind of nap for your wall finish – they should specify smooth wall, medium or high texture right on the label.

Another consideration in the world of paint selection is to find a low VOC (volatile organic compound) paint. This means that your paint emits a lower quantity of toxins not only as you apply it to the wall, but even long after it has dried.

The right paint colors will help your home feel like a true haven for you and your loved ones, and it to become a reflection of your unique tastes and style.

Nikki Luttmann is an interiors specialist at the Sandpoint Furniture Carpet One in the Ponderay Design Center.