A skilled designer saves the customer a lot of money by using paint instead of expensive decor. And the inept is able to reduce any budget to a cacophony. We deal with the Houzz.ru home improvement portal, how to be like the first one.

Fall into white spaces

White walls are a trend that came along with the fashion for minimalism and Scandinavian style. White is a universal color, it expands any room, adding light and air to it. Carried away by this color, you can easily find yourself in a lifeless interior that requires constant cleaning. Do not abuse: either a white background or white accents. Colored details, furniture, accessories, natural textures will dilute the void and fill it with life.

Consider that a beige background is good

Insecure people subconsciously tend to compromise when choosing a color. Hence the popularity of "beige": light (but not white), warm and discreet. The color, which seems universal, makes the interior dull, devoid of character, giving off an office and a hotel. Design stylish interior in beige tones it is difficult, you will need to choose bright - red, yellow, blue - accents for a specific shade and depth of beige. Tip: the more modest the palette, the richer and more varied the textures should be.

Confusing "white" with white

Snow-white interiors look cold even with bright details. And if there is not enough sun, then it is also gray - not at all like in the picture in the magazine. In interior design, “white” means a dozen shades: “cream”, “ baked milk”, “ivory”, “arctic snow”, etc. They differ in impurities of other colors. For example, in traditional Scandinavian interior walls are painted not in boiling white, but in "Stockholm white" (Stockholmsvit), where a little gray and yellow pigment is mixed. The result is a warmer shade.

Consider that the ceiling and white are synonyms

If you paint the ceiling the same color as the walls, you can visually expand the room, as the boundaries of space dissolve. In the case of dark tones, this technique will create the feeling of a cozy box. This technique requires caution only with bright colors: a closed space has a strong effect on the psyche. You can even paint the ceiling in a contrasting or bright color with neutral walls, especially if you end up with a room with disproportionately high ceilings.

Create an interior in different shades of the same color

By relying on monochrome, you deprive the space of volume, depth and pleasant complexity. The exception is the magical gray color, but even that is not for everyone. Try to keep variety. Place contrasting accents. Play with the undertones of your favorite color: combine a heavily washed-out pastel shade with a rich dark or expressive bright.

Operate on the principle of "everything is equal"

The opposite mistake is to choose good color combinations and saturate the space with them equally. As a result - diversity instead of harmony. Stick to the percentage of 60/30/10 for the main color, secondary and others.

Use one contrasting thing

If you got a beautiful bright red sofa for the pale blue walls, add a few more small orange accessories to the rest of the room, otherwise the sofa will fall out of context, look alien and out of place. This is called "maintain color". It is better to break up the color spot itself with small details of other colors, primary or secondary: this way it will fit better into the environment.

Use solid colors in contrasts

Using contrasting combinations is a win-win option. Red will always look expressive with green, yellow with purple, and blue with orange. But the contrast itself is such an expressive technique that it can easily tire. Let one of the colors be more saturated than the second, bleached or darkened. This will soften the effect and help avoid obsession.

Neglect the color of the floor

Thinking through the color palette of the interior, many people forget about the floor. And in vain: it accounts for about a quarter of the space that we see. This is especially true for large rooms.

Ignore lighting

The same apartment in Valencia and Murmansk will need completely different color solutions. Northern lovers of Provence suffer the most from this injustice. Soft pastel colors, so gentle and refreshing in bright sunlight, become faded, cold and dull without it. There is only one rule here: the more cloudy the region, the warmer and richer the colors in the interior.

Treat red as warm and blue as cool

Common errors are also associated with an incorrect assessment of the warmth of the color. Reds, yellows, and oranges are definitely on the warm end of the spectrum, while blues, purples, and greens are considered cool. Everything is more difficult. Each color has warm and cool versions. Red with an admixture of purple - blackberry, berry, magenta - colder, and close to orange tones - scarlet, cinnabar - much warmer. The same with traditional cold blue: turquoise and color sea ​​wave warmer than heavenly and steel shades. Green is generally a multifaceted color, easily turning into both warm and cold shades.

Mix warm and cold shades of the same color

More precisely, it is possible to do this, but it is difficult: you need to take into account the proportions, combinations of each shade with other colors. In most cases, disharmony results. If there is any doubt that a thing falls into the right color temperature, it is better not to risk it and choose a contrasting or neutral color. This solution will definitely be more successful than, for example, grassy green against the background of cold mint shades.

Abuse pure colors

The purer the color, the more intrusive it is. Voiced bright colors are good in the nursery, in the kitchen and in the bathroom - and then in a reasonable dosage. In other cases, it is better to prefer complex mixed colors with the addition of black or gray (darkened, dusted) and white (bleached, pastel). This interior looks more noble and mature. A clean, bright color usually calls for a neutral background and a clean, minimalist setting.

Make large areas bright

It's easy to overdo it here and slide into a carnival: bright colors will soon begin to tire you and will greatly oblige you in the future. It is more appropriate to choose softer, muted shades for large objects and entire walls, and add rich ones with accessories that can be easily replaced if desired. In non-residential areas (bathroom, corridor, hallway), color therapy can be used without fear. You don't spend much time in these rooms.

afraid of dark colors

It is gloomy, not for small spaces, narrows the space - these are the main misconceptions associated with dark colors. Yes, they seem closer than the light ones. But dark shades also envelop, give depth, nobility and comfort. A small room will not look cramped if you avoid contrasting solutions and do not clutter up the interior with details. The space is made cramped by the color turmoil and passion for decor.

Let's splash paint!

It is known that even a small blotch of bright color can revive the picture, making general form more interesting, more attractive, more effective. This technique works flawlessly for interiors, and for the landscape, and for the external image of a person. So, for example, bright ties transform men in formal suits, and accent bags and scarves - women in neutral outfits. Even one blooming flower bed is enough to make the garden many times more beautiful. By adding a few bright "spots", we will bring a "sparkle of life" into the interior.

Arranging bright accents in the interior is not as easy as it seems at first glance. Difficulties arise at the stage of selecting an accent color and determining its quantity. If there are a lot of color accents, the room will turn out to be excessively bright. Yes, and the effect of the accent will be lost, since the accent color will “wash out” in space and turn into an auxiliary one. If there are not enough accents, the desired result will not be achieved.

Accents in the interior: choose a color

Color accents in the interior are called objects that have a color different from the main colors that prevail in the room. For example, orange textiles, furniture, accessories and decor in a blue and white room are color accents. But the light blue objects in the same room are an addition to the main color. In a lilac-beige room, green items will be accents, while purple, cream or lavender will complement. In a beige room, pink items will be accents, while light brown items will complement.

Add-ons

So, the first rule of color accenting: if you want to introduce bright accents, you need to choose not a different shade, but a different color. But what? The choice should depend on the desired effect.

1. Scheme "Heat-cold". If you want to emphasize the warmth of the room, which is dominated by "sultry" tones (yellow, orange, apricot, terracotta, red, etc.), you should choose a cold color as an accent. It can be shades of blue, green, purple. Cool accents will not only emphasize the warmth of the room, but also slightly cool its ardor.

Blue accents in a warm interior

And vice versa: if you like a cool atmosphere created with light, fresh or slightly gloomy tones, you can emphasize its coldness by contrasting with warm accents. To do this, use accents in orange, terracotta, honey shades.

2. Scheme "Additional". To bring a lot of life, energy and color into the interior, they use a different scheme - “additional”. In this case, for emphasis, a color is used that is additional to the main or secondary.

Complementary - these are colors located opposite each other on the color wheel.

For example, if the room is dominated by Orange color, additional accents should be in one of the shades of blue or blue, and vice versa. In a green room, red or purple accents are placed according to this scheme.

The "Additional" scheme is quite complex - it charges the interior with powerful energy. Therefore, this option is recommended to be used only in living rooms, dining rooms, playrooms, etc.

3. Scheme "Similar". If you want to create a calm atmosphere, as an accent, you need to choose a color located on the color wheel next to the primary or secondary.

So, if the room is dominated by blue, the accents can be green or light purple (lilac, lavender). Peach room will be refreshed by accents of red berry shades.

With such an accentuation scheme, peace and harmony reign in the interior. Therefore, this option is preferable for bedrooms, recreation rooms, libraries, etc.

4. Accents in a neutral interior. If only neutral tones are present in the room, such as white, black, beige and, any existing color can be accented. Moreover, there can be several accent colors.

A neutral interior is good because accents can be changed according to mood. Or, for example, by time of year. In autumn - in orange-red tones; in winter - in blue and blue; in spring - in delicate florals; in summer - in green.

In very light neutral interiors, many different colors can be introduced at once, no matter what place they occupy in relation to each other on the color wheel. However, it is desirable that these accent colors are combined with each other in saturation and brightness. For example, pale blue can coexist with pink, lilac, pistachio, but not with burgundy, jade or dark purple.

How to maintain balance by placing bright accents in the interior?

There is a classic rule. Or rather, a formula. It looks like this: 60-30-10. What does this mean?

60% - main color
30% - additional (secondary) color or shades of the primary color
10% - accent color

Yellow: main color

Green: secondary color

Blue: accent color

This formula is also valid for classic clothes. It goes something like this: 60% is a suit, 30% is a shirt, 10% is a tie, that is, an accent.

Consider an example with the interior. Let's say the walls are painted beige, and the floors, shelving, and TV stand are wood. Thus, the beige-brown gamma prevails, accounting for approximately 60%. Let's assume that the curtains and cushioned furniture in this room - in purple. Violet in this case is a secondary color, occupying approximately 30%. Accents can be yellow, green or blue depending on the desired effect. They should account for about 10%: for example, a small carpet on the floor, a pouffe, four sofa cushions, a blanket on one of the chairs and two.

Second example. Walls and upholstered furniture - in blue and blue shades (60%). Floors and furniture - gray (30%). Accents - orange (10%).

Of course, the figures are very approximate and conditional. You just need to strive to ensure that the main color takes a little more than half. The secondary color (or shades close to the main one) is half the size of the main one. Accent - about one tenth of the main.

The color of the wood is neutral and may not be taken into account in the formula. That is, wooden floors can be ignored, but a rug lying on the floor is a must. You can also ignore white ceilings and walls, wooden or white doors, and window frames, a part of the wall lined with stone, a lined fireplace, etc.

If the interior is monochrome and there is no secondary color, accents can take up a little more than 10%.

Sometimes it's enough one bright accent in room. But it must be either large or very spectacular. It can be, for example, an accent sofa in a monochrome interior or a stunning chandelier. Single accents make the interior impressive. Comparisons come to mind: a completely black cat with emerald eyes or a white winter forest with one red rowan bush.

The less accent color - the more it stands out, drawing attention to itself and to everything that surrounds it.

Bright accents in the interior: what and where to place?

For color accenting in the interior, various decor items are most often used: vases, figurines, cushions, photo frames, carpets, rugs. However, surfaces, pieces of furniture, and works of art can also be accents.

As for furniture, armchairs and, less often, sofas often make accents. In the bedroom, it can be accent. In the kitchen - chairs and part of the facades of kitchen furniture.

The accent can be a wall or part of a wall. For example, at the head of the bed, behind the TV, behind the sofa. In the kitchen, an apron is accentuated working area. You should always keep the 10% rule in mind.

Curtains are also accented, like other textiles: chair covers, bedspreads.

The use of accent lights is in fashion, especially in kitchens and dining rooms.

Of course, not always and not everywhere you need bright accents in the interior. Calm monochrome or two-tone interiors are beautiful on their own. But if you wish, you can always “splash” a little color, since for this you don’t need to radically change anything and spend a lot of money. The interior will sparkle with new colors, transform and come to life!

We offer a selection of interiors with bright accents. Get inspired!

Hot pink and red accents: a win-win for neutral interiors



Violet accents give the interior a veil of mystery

Green accents: create a feeling of freshness and lightness



Yellow accents: in black and white and gray interiors shine like light bulbs or sunlight

Blue accents: not so spectacular, but calm, restrained, elegant



This article uses images from the Depositphotos.com stock photo bank.

The look of anyone who enters the room necessarily stops at something extraordinary, contrasting, expressive. And all because bright accents in the interior always stand out, whether it be multi-colored pillows on the sofa, an unusual design chandelier, a lurid rug by the bed.

Quite simple means in the arsenal, like bright colored textiles - and white interior rooms will be completely transformed. But most importantly, the details are correctly selected and dispersed in space! Too many accents will give the room excessive variegation, bordering on bad taste.

The only place in the house where the diversity of a parrot is appropriate is for children. For the bedroom, living room, kitchen and other rooms, it is important to observe a sense of proportion, as bright elements can quickly tire the psyche, and one accent will simply be lost in the interior.



Rules that always work

What then to do without the skills of a designer? Use their own formula:

60 + 30 + 10 = 100

  • 60 (%) of the main color should be in the interior,
  • 30 (%) required for additional tone,
  • 10 (%) should be items with bright accents to create a harmonious atmosphere.

The formula seems simple, but here the real difficulties begin. How to choose the right accent and where exactly to add it to the room so that the interior design is harmonious and complete? For this, there is a special scheme:





Subtleties of design art

By the way, placing color accents in the interior is a great way to express yourself. Suppose there is some color that gives a particular person a feeling of joy. Why not create with my own hands an expressive collage or another decorative element - a picture frame, a lampshade, a panel, chair covers that will please the eye and bring psychological pleasure?

Designers are advised to experiment with stripes of various and rich colors. Having painted a battered chest of drawers in multi-colored stripes, and even different forms, you will turn it into an elegant piece of furniture, which is a bright accent in the interior of your room.

It is important to remember that:

  • Blue - soothes;
  • Purple will inspire;
  • The maroon accent used in the interior will add warmth and aristocratic nobility to it;
  • Bright red will work great in a large room;
  • Yellow will make the room feel like it is flooded with sunlight: leave warm yellow accents for the kitchen, and save the "acid" ones for a creative living room or a teenager's room;
  • Saturated green is perfect for an active kitchen, where everything boils, boils and boils;
  • Juicy orange accent goes well in the interior with beige or gray (cream or ivory) and dark tones like chocolate, indigo, slate gray.




One of the most popular and win-win options design - highlight one of the walls with a more contrasting color than the main tones of the room. So, bright interior bedrooms in beige will be effectively set off by a cocoa or terracotta wall, and the contrast of blue, turquoise or menthol will enhance the soft blue range of the kitchen.

To visually expand the elongated space, such a technique as an accent on the far wall in the interior of the room, painted in a bright warm color, will help, while the main colors should be pastel or neutral.

Classics are out of fashion, but creativity is for the brave

Another theme in interior design deserves respect - floral prints, patterns, stencils on panels, borders, in the upholstery of chairs, on the lampshade of a floor lamp. It is always beautiful, comfortable and joyful. Sunflowers, poppies, roses, daisies - these popular "inhabitants" of the kitchen will never go out of style. But also in other areas flower arrangements, even if the background is in gray color, are relevant, as they are able to focus attention and even hide the flaws of the room.




In contrast, black can also be a spectacular accent, especially on a white background. Elegant and even sophisticated, a whipped cream-colored bedroom with white furniture will look, where a zebra skin is spread on the floor, and a large black print adorns the bottom of the white curtains. In a home space, black on white is a bold decorative touch that can be applied even to the kitchen, and even more so to the living room.

An openwork black chandelier, black and orange pillows interspersed with striped thoughts, a black fireplace surround and the same candles - all these bright accents will definitely work.

Be creative! Do not be afraid to show imagination where it will be unexpected, bold. Let the bookcase shelves be colorful, and the dining table will transform the space of the kitchen if its legs are painted in cheerful colors. "Play with color palette possible everywhere and in everything. So does color designer Marieke Van Der Bruggen, who recommends using upbeat accents on the wall above the headboard of a bed or sofa in the form of colorful hand-drawn peas.

So, an expressive decorative element is able to change the space, ennobling it, making it more interesting, cozy, habitable. And remember that there should be a sense of proportion in everything, and well-known design techniques and rules will help you decorate any home space in full accordance with your own taste!

An important role in creating a cozy and spacious interior of the apartment is played by bright accents. With the help of some nuances and details, you can not only visually increase its area, but also convey a unique and original design. This is what will be discussed in this article. We will present to your attention some simple, but at the same time original and interesting solutions.

The main rules for placing accents

Now, we will present to your attention the basic, simple and interesting rules that will help you correctly identify and place bright accents in the interior of the apartment:

  • Color balance. Use a color ratio of 6-3-1. 6 - means 60% of the apartment is filled with the main color, 3 - will fall on the additional, 1 - that is, 10% on the accent.
  • Try to use the main color as a neutral. You can also use a complementary color instead.
  • If your apartment is missing the main color, then add another 10% of the color to the accent color.

Important! Do not accentuate the apartment with accent colors. This will affect the overall integrity of the interior in a negative way.

  • If the main colors of your apartment are exclusively white or light colors, then you can dilute the monotony of the interior with several accent colors at once. However, do not overdo it, they should be combined in their saturation and overall brightness.
  • In some cases, it is enough to focus on one or more interior items. For example, on a sofa or a large chandelier.
  • Last rule. The less you use the accent color itself, the more it will grab your attention, and the attention of your guests.

Determining the right color

Complementary scheme of the interior. If you are going to use a few accent colors for your apartment, then this tip is for you. First you need to decide on the main accent color, then choose a complementary color for it. In other words, you need to make a gamut of bright colors that complement each other, pleasing to the eye.

If in your room more have the predominance of warm and saturated colors, then you should focus on cold accent colors. This method will not only emphasize the aristocracy of your apartment, but also add a little “chill” and comfort to it.

If your interior is rich in neutral tones such as white, gray, brown and black, then you can use absolutely any accent colors that are acceptable to you. This will not affect the color of the apartment as a whole. You can also use several additional colors.



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