Hi, I’m
Amy Pottenger!
I know first hand what it’s like to be running a business while raising kids and cultivating a thriving marriage. It’s a lot.
It’s my mission to use my 15+ years of experience to create a lifeline for entrepreneurial mamas, helping them realize the homes of their dreams.
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Secrets to No-Fear Color
One of my favorite ways to change the mood + feel of a home is by using color. Color is often that “missing piece” when your home doesn’t feel quite right. Maybe things feel boring or blah, or too busy and chopped up. Color can be the culprit for both of these. Using color is also one of the things people can be most intimidated by, but don’t worry- we got this! Today I’m sharing easy, practical tips to make color do what you want.
Pick Your Room’s Colors based on the room’s purpose + desired feel. Questions to ask yourself: What happens in this room? What is this room for? Are the colors in this room currently contributing to the feeling I want to create in this space? Intention + function come first (you can always add the “form” or “beauty” after)! Just like our home can be our secret weapon to support us in the lifestyle we want, color can be the secret weapon to supporting your overall home design. The result? Your color choices will add to your overall design look + feel but they will also contribute to the purpose of the space.
When you know the purpose of the room + the desired feel, you can test it- does your room fit with that purpose and feeling? How is it delivering or falling short? If you don’t like the color in the room, why? Does the color remind you of somewhere else you don’t like to be (maybe it has the same color vibes as your stressful former work environment)? Does it provoke an emotion that doesn’t fit the space? For example, if you’re designing your bedroom and you want it to feel calm + peaceful, choose colors for the room that evoke those feelings for you.
(Tip: If you’re really into this, check out color psychology to help you even further. Keep in mind though that while color psychology is helpful, there ARE ways to break the rules when necessary! What really matters is how YOU react to a certain color and this is always a highly personal choice.)
Now, match your desired mood/feeling to the new color for the space.
Homework: Time to do a color evaluation: Make a bullet pointed list of rooms in your home and go through each one, one at a time, to see where color is working, and what needs a color refresh! If this is confusing/overwhelming, go back to the purpose and feel of each room and use that as your guide.
When you have your list of rooms done, pick the room that you use the most, clarify the feeling you want for that space, then consult color psychology to see how to achieve it. For example, if you have a living area that you want to feel relaxed, calm and inviting but the current color in there feels cold and sterile, what might help to change that vibe? Let’s say the room is painted in a stark white with blue undertones, maybe you warm up the walls with a greige neutral that has yellow or green undertones. You’re still keeping things neutral (meaning they work with a lot of different furniture/artwork combos) but it’s now adding in the warm relaxing feeling that says “home” to you. (side note: if you want to learn more about color undertones- check out this site!)
I could go on talking about color for days (and will add to this with more color tips + tricks in the future) but for now, start with clarifying the room’s purpose, decide on the feeling you want to room to convey, and choose your colors to make that come through! Grab this freebie if you want to know some of our favorite paint colors!