Tips for Selecting a Full House Interior Color Scheme

With the new home purchase, I’ve been brainstorming design ideas non-stop (shocking, I know). The first thing I’ll need to tackle is our paint colors since I’ll be traveling to St. Pete in two weeks to do as much painting as humanly possible.

A full home color scheme tends to overwhelm clients so today I’m sharing some basic tips to help you along the way if you’re making these kinds of selections on your own.

Start with Inspiration

I’m a designer and I hate selecting colors out of thin air. Without an inspirational starting point, coming up with a color scheme is more difficult and you’ll ultimately end up feeling stuck trying to pair your furnishings with your paint colors. It is much easier to do things the other way around. Start with your area rug or artwork, then select your wall colors.

However, I understand this isn’t always possible, especially when in the process of a new build. For these situations, I still suggest finding some sort of inspiration. This could be something you already own (like a rug or artwork or bedding) or this could be an outfit you love, a beautiful floral arrangement, the sunset, or literally anything else you find appealing.

Beginning with an inspirational reference will help you feel confident in the combination of colors. You’ll know that the colors play well with one another and that those particular colors make you happy. And when design your space, your number one concern should be whether or not you will love it. Trends, what’s happening on instagram, your friends’ opinions… those don’t matter as long as you love it.

Use At Least One Neutral

If you love color and are drawn towards using lots of it, go for it! But I still want to encourage you to pull in a neutral. Just like negative space on a wall can allow your eye to rest and therefore more fully appreciate the decor elements in the space, a neutral color will give your other color selections room to breathe.

Now, if you're more drawn to neutrals in general, you can most definitely carry the same neutral throughout the home. However, to avoid creating a home color scheme that falls flat, you’ll want to lean into adding varieties of texture to create interest and depth. You can also embrace color via accents throughout your spaces. Some of these tips can then be applied to those accent selections.

Don’t Add More Than Six Colors

Look, rules are made to be broken so you can definitely add more color if that’s your vibe. However, if you’re reading this than odds are you don’t feel 100% confident in selecting your home color scheme in which case, don’t select more than six.

More than six colors can become overwhelming and start to feel a bit disjointed. Areas that blend from one space to the next will feel more connected when you allow the paint color to continue on which typically eliminates the need for more than six colors in your home. And honestly, doesn’t one neutral and five colors feel like plenty of variety?

Repeat, Repeat, Repeat

The key to a cohesive home design is repetition. With each color you select for your home, make a plan to repeat the color in a couple other areas. This could be a wall color in one space, a wallpaper in another, and an accent pillow in another. Or a wall color, an area rug, and artwork. The options really are endless, but taking the time to repeat colors throughout a variety of spaces will help the entire home feel thoughtfully planned rather than haphazardly collected.

Below you’ll see my starting color scheme concept for our new home. As you’ll see, each color is already planned to be repeated. I went with one neutral (white), two jewel tones, and three muted colors. Overall I’m sticking to the cool colors (blues/greens) with just a touch of soft pink. These colors should play well with the wood tones I plan to add in to our spaces as well as with the black and brass elements I want to incorporate throughout.

If you want to see how it all comes together, keep following along here and on Instagram. I’ll be arriving to St Pete on 3/31 and will be driving through our new neighborhood and walking through our new home for the first time ever! No pressure, little house.

I plan to share a live video of my real time reactions to the house we will already have purchased. Should be fun so stick around, friends.

Need help planning your home color scheme? Reach out here for more details on how I could partner with you to create a home you love.