by Simon Temprell

Created on: April 26, 2008   Last Updated: April 30, 2008

If you are planning the re-decoration of a room any time in the near future you might want to take a tip from an expert and first create a color-board. This is something that I do for all my clients as part of the initial blueprint' stage when we are choosing fabrics, floor coverings, wallpaper and paint.

A color-board is a collection of swatches mounted on to a piece of board or paper which can help you visualize the finished outcome of your decorating scheme. It can also be a useful tool when shopping for accessories as it makes a convenient, portable reference for you to match up colors and textures.

When beginning your color scheme you will start with any existing elements in your room and from those you will take your guidance. If, for instance, you have a Persian carpet with a busy pattern of burgundy and navy blue then it would be inadvisable to choose yellow paint or a busy floral fabric for your sofa! Yes, pattern can be mixed very successfully but it can also be a disaster if not done correctly so stick to this simple rule: patterned carpet, solid upholstery and vice versa. You can always bring more pattern in to the room with your window treatments or throw-pillows.

As a convenient illustration of how to create a color-board I will use a hypothetical example and start with a living room that has a patterned carpet of green, cranberry and gold. The predominant colors in the carpet are green and cranberry. My first consideration is a fabric for the window treatments so I take the carpet sample with me to the design center and I choose a taffeta stripe in green and gold for the curtains. A stripe is a good way of combining the two main colors from your busy carpet design without overwhelming the room with kaleidoscopic pattern.

Next I want an upholstery fabric for a very large sofa and (being a designer, and clever with these things) I choose a heavy tapestry fabric with all the colors from the carpet incorporated in the design. Scale is important here and because the main design of the carpet is fairly small I choose a much bolder pattern for the sofa. On to this sofa I would throw a lot of solid colored pillows with appropriate fringe and braiding. And then, for secondary upholstered chairs and ottomans I would choose various textural fabrics in solid colors or with very small pattern repeats.

Texture is another important factor when using solid colors because it can add interest to each individual piece. In this case I choose a tight texture of green

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