What Color is Good for a Living Room?

The living room is likely the room in your home where you spend the most time during the day. It makes sense that you want to paint and decorate it as appealingly as possible.

There is no one-size-fits-all living room color that works for every home. It really depends on the color palette you are working with. Of course, light neutral colors in general are the most timeless and easiest option to work with since you can accent them with almost any other color.

However, you may be looking beyond the obvious choice of white or cream colors and want to give the room a specific mood or atmosphere. Keep in mind that wall color is just one element of a room’s color scheme.

Flooring materials and colors are also important to consider when selecting the color tone. You should also take into account any furniture and accessories in a room when working with a particular color palette.

If you are starting with a new, unfurnished room, you are more flexible. However, if you already have existing furniture, you will need to work with it to find the best solution.

Inventorying the Space

When trying to come up with a color scheme for your living room, think about some of the characteristics of the space. Is it a large or small room? Are there many windows in the room or few to none?

What about the flooring material? Do you have carpet in the room, hardwood floors, or perhaps natural stone? Is the ceiling high or low? Does it have any special features? Is it coffered or are there beams in the ceiling?

What about natural light in the room? Does the room feel airy and well-illuminated? If you already have existing furniture, what colors and materials are they? Are they dark or light materials? Are the sofa fabrics of dark or light color?

What Mood Do You Want to Convey?

Equally important is the mood you want to create. What mood does the room currently convey based on the characteristics you noted? Conversely, what do you want it to convey?

Should it be a relaxed space, an introspective space, calming, inviting? Should it be more cheerful and exciting? Should it be a place of relaxation or a place full of energy?

If the room is very open and has a lot of natural light, you may want to play that up and use colors that reflect light well. If the room is more closed off than open, you may want to create a more intimate atmosphere.

Colors have the ability to create a certain mood in a room. Your choice may depend on personal preferences, but it’s always a good idea to draw inspiration from the existing surroundings.

Bringing It All Together

After inventorying the space, you can start to find a color scheme that works best. For example, if your sofas have a dark color, you probably want to paint the walls in a light color to create contrast.

On the other hand, if you have white or very light furniture, you may want to add more color to the walls to create the same contrast. If you want to achieve a more monochromatic look, you can also choose a light wall color.

If the room lacks windows and natural daylight or is on the smaller side, light wall colors work well to make the space appear larger and more spacious. Light walls reflect light, making rooms feel more open and airy.

However, if the room feels too large or cold, darker and more saturated colors absorb light instead of reflecting it. This can make the room feel somewhat more intimate and cozy.

With that background in mind, let’s look at some of the most commonly used colors and how they can convey a specific mood in a room. You can start narrowing down your color selection based on the mood you want to create and the characteristics of the room.

Light Neutral Tones

Neutrals lack color per strict definition. However, they do have undertones of color that can vary. The simplest light neutral is white. However, there are different shades and hues that can be mixed with white to create a neutral color.

Since they have low to no saturation, neutral colors tend to be calming and provide a relaxing backdrop to a room. They also have the advantage of reflecting light very well, making a room feel more airy and open.

Of all the colors, light neutral tones are probably the easiest to work with. When you paint your walls in a light color, you have much more flexibility in terms of how you decorate the space and what furniture colors you choose.

Blue Provides a Calm Background

Blue has a calming effect. Studies have shown that the color can lower pulse and body temperature. It is associated with serenity, calmness, and stability.

It is a color often found in nature, in the form of a daytime sky and the ocean, lakes, rivers, and other bodies of water. Due to its natural association with water, it is perceived as a cool color.

Especially light blue tones can convey a sense of serenity and tranquility. Darker blues and turquoise tones can provide a bit more energy, while still being cool and calming.

Green Evokes Nature and Renewal

Green, like the color blue, is closely associated with nature. Green represents renewal and creates a sense of calmness in a room. Green is even said to reduce stress and promote healing.

Additionally, the color green is associated with environmental friendliness. When combined with renewable and eco-friendly materials like bamboo, cork, or reclaimed wood, green can help create a sustainable theme.

Lighter shades of green are generally the most calming. However, darker hues can bring a bit more energy. Lime green, which is a combination of green with a bit of yellow, can even create excitement and stimulate a room.

Yellow Brings forth Warmth

Yellow represents warmth and energy. It is associated with sunshine, energy, optimism, positivity, and cheerfulness. It brings feelings of happiness to anyone who enters and is also said to promote communication.

However, since yellow is an attention-grabbing color, it can be overused. Since it reflects a lot of light, yellow can strain the eyes if used excessively in a room or if it is a too bright shade.

It is probably best to stick to very light shades of yellow on the living room walls to not overwhelm your guests. Balance the yellow color on the walls with furniture and accessories that are more neutral or complementary to the color yellow.

Brown is a Relaxing Earth Tone

Brown represents reliability and strength. As an earth tone, brown is associated with natural land, trees, mountains, as well as the fall season. Similar to green, it can also connote “natural” and “organic”.

Brown encourages friends and family to slow down and relax. It gives visitors a sense of belonging. While brown falls in the category of a neutral color, it can be warm depending on the shade mixed with it.

Light brown, beige, tan, or taupe are some of the most commonly used brown tones in living rooms because they are very versatile and easy to work with. Often, brown is mixed with green to create a more earth-friendly color tone.

Gray Provides Serenity and Sophistication

If you are looking for something more subtle, gray is a good option. The color gray conveys a sense of serenity and can be a great alternative if you want something different than white on your walls.

A mixture of white and black, gray is considered a neutral or achromatic color. It is balanced and tends to be cooler rather than warmer. Gray is a conservative color that can convey a sense of sophistication.

Light gray tones are generally the best option as they are easier to work with. However, darker shades can work in situations where the furniture in the room is very light.

Choosing Your Color Scheme

Once you have chosen a color for your walls, you can start using it. I would suggest thinking about the scheme you want to use. If you want a more subtle effect, you can stick to a monochromatic scheme. That means using the same color consistently with different shades, tints, or tones.

On the opposite end of the spectrum is the complementary system. This is a high-contrast scheme that includes colors that are opposite each other on the color wheel. For example, purple with yellow, red with green, and orange with blue. Be careful not to overdo it if you choose this scheme.

A middle ground between these two color schemes is an analogous color scheme. An analogous color scheme involves three adjacent colors on a color wheel. Typically, two of the colors are primary colors, with the third being a mixture of both. Examples would be red, orange, and yellow or similarly red, purple, and blue.

Remember, if you choose either a complementary or an analogous scheme, you can and should mix neutral colors to soften the color palette. Also, try to remember the 60-30-10 rule. That means choosing one color as your dominant hue (60%), another to support the dominant hue (30%), and one to accent the dominant hue (10%).

Final Thoughts

Finding a color scheme for your living room takes some consideration and planning. However, the extra step can really pay off when it comes to making your space look well-thought-out and cohesive.

There are various things to consider, from the mood you want to convey to the existing characteristics of the room. And finally, the scheme you want to use, from subtle contrast to extreme contrast and everything in between.

Also, keep in mind that wall color and furnishings are just the building blocks of the color scheme. The room decor also plays an important role. You want to find a balance between all these elements to achieve a look that is pleasing to the eye and captures the feeling you want to convey in the room.

Share This Post