by Pamela Kay

Created on: June 10, 2009   Last Updated: December 18, 2011

Color is amazing. It can change our mood as easily as it can change the look of a room from small and cramped to large and spacious, from quite and serene to a rockers paradise. Your choice of paint for the walls, ceilings and even floors will set the mood for the furniture, window dressings and accessories to create that perfect room.

*Change Any Room From Shabby To Chic

Smart decorators try to find shades on the color palette that complement each other, even when they are very different.To give a shabby out dated room a new life, choose colors that blend with those in adjoining rooms and don't think you have to paint the whole room one color. Painting one wall in a dramatic shade gives a rich and dramatic look to your space.

Choosing the colors of nature is a sure way to avoid going wrong. Muted greens, soft tawny browns and subtle blue-grays will allow the room to show instead of the walls and a fresh coat of white on cornice and baseboards as well as windows and doors will add richness to your room.

*Change Living Rooms From Small To Large

Change that cramped little space into a wide open space by painting the ceiling and walls one color. You could even paint the floor the same color and use a large carpet in the center of the room. Remember, the fewer stopping places for the eye, the larger a space will appear.

*Change Bedrooms From Large To Cozy

Large rooms are great for family gatherings but what if the large room is your bedroom? You can draw the walls in by using a dark color such as cranberry or forest green. Paint the ceiling in the same color and make the room even smaller by using contrasting paint on the furniture, cornice and baseboards as well as window casings and doors.

*Change Bathrooms From Icky To Stylish

Tired of the tile in your bathroom? Hate that icky shade? You can change it by simply painting your walls. White will make the tile appear shades darker, dark paint will make it appear more pastel and staining or painting the grout will give it a whole new look.

No tile, just a tired old bathroom? It's paint to the rescue again! Paint the bathroom in shades of the sea or of a meadow. Make it monochromatic with different shades of the same color, paint a mural on the wall or paint it with gold metallic paint and use Egyptian decor.

*Change Kitchens From Blah To Dynamite

If your kitchen makes you feel blah, all you need is to punch it up with some color. Change that same ole, same ole kitchen by painting the walls a bright color and the ceiling too. Try a bright red ceiling with school bus yellow walls or daffodil yellow on the walls and cobalt blue on the ceiling and paint your table and chairs to match the ceiling.

Use two bright colors to paint stripes on the walls and paint your cupboards to match one of the colors. If you want something more contemporary, try cobalt walls with white ceiling, furniture and trim. All you need to liven up the room is some paint and imagination.

Colors, we use them to describe our moods and feelings just as we use them in our homes to create comfortable spaces. If we think of what a color says to us, we can then understand how paint can change the look of a room from small and cramped to large and spacious, from quite and serene to a rockers paradise.

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