Interiors
Paint your way to happiness:
Colour psychology expert reveals home decor secrets
How your wall colours affect sleep, productivity, and overall wellbeing
Room-by-room guide to boosting mood and mental health through colour
With more focus today than ever before on physical and mental health, sleep quality, and work-life balance, creating a home environment that supports all of this has become not just desirable, but crucial.
To address this ongoing shift, Homebase, the one-stop shop for all your home needs, has teamed up with Karen Haller, the UK’s leading colour psychology expert, to reveal how the right wall paint choices can dramatically enhance our living and working spaces. Surprisingly, your home could be the key to unlocking better sleep, increased productivity, and a happier you, and a big part of that is down to the colours you use!
"We're seeing a huge surge in customers embracing bold and vibrant colours on their walls as a cost-effective way to transform their homes.
Paige McCallum
What are the best hues to use in each room of the home?
“Colour has the power to change how we think, feel and behave in an instant. Every emotion can be expressed through colour. It can excite and soothe us; it can irritate and overwhelm us, and it can bring us happiness and joy.” Karen Haller explains. According to Karen, homeowners should consider the following colours in specific rooms in the home:
Bedroom
Karen explains “It's important that we get a good night's sleep and colour can help us achieve that. For a relaxing night's sleep, using the theory of colour psychology, look for colours that emotionally soothe, which will be at the lighter end of the spectrum."
Karen recommends soft light blues to soothe the mind, helping people to relax ready for sleep. To soothe on a physical level, choose a soft pink as it helps people to feel like they’re being wrapped in a warm, comforting embrace. It can also help to reduce feelings of anxiety. Soft greens are the best choice to soothe on a holistic level, helping to create a sense of equilibrium and reassurance.
Home office
With many people creating an office space at home, finding the perfect wall colour to enhance the workday and maximise productivity and focus has become a must. Karen suggests dark blue to help aid with focus, concentration, and productivity.
Karen advises the colour red for a "pick-me-up". Adding a splash of red can raise the energy levels to make those important sales calls – just a splash is enough, otherwise people could feel overwhelmed and drained. Yellow is a great choice when you need an injection of optimism and to boost your self-confidence, but again, quantity is important and a small amount is enough, otherwise you can find yourself feeling irritable.
Living room
Your living room’s ambience is vital for relaxation and wall paint colours can have a significant impact on how well this is achieved. Karen recommends brown if you are looking to create feelings of warmth, cosiness, and support and green to feel a sense of balance, peace and reassurance. The green to avoid is lime green, as this can be too invigorating and lively. Orange is a great option if you're looking for a colour to give you a sense of fun, playfulness and joy.
Bathroom
Bathrooms can set you up for the day and help you unwind and cleanse before bed, so it’s important that your choice of paint colour encourages this! Turquoise is a great colour to use to help wake up your body and mind when getting ready in the morning.
For those who aim to create a relaxing spa-like bathroom to help you unwind after your working day Stone or beige are the perfect colours to achieve this and add a sense of luxury to your space at the same time.
Paige McCallum, Home and Decorating Buying Manager at Homebase, comments:
"We're seeing a huge surge in customers embracing bold and vibrant colours on their walls as a cost-effective way to transform their homes. Whether it's creating an energising home office or a calming bedroom retreat, people are really understanding the power of paint and are using it to transform their living spaces. Karen's expert insights offer exciting new possibilities for our customers to express themselves and create homes that truly reflect and support their lifestyles.”
With these expert insights, homeowners can confidently choose colours that not only transform their spaces aesthetically, but also enhance wellbeing. Whether you're looking to boost productivity, improve sleep, or create a more relaxing environment, Homebase offers a wide range of paint colours to help you achieve your goals.
As part of the retailer's bank holiday deal, people can pick up their favourite indoor paint colours and get 20% off until
4th September!
To learn more about paint and home colour trends for 2024, visit the Homebase blog:
https://www.homebase.co.uk/ideas-advice/decorating/2024-paint-colour-trends/
