Effects You Can Achieve With an Interior Painting Project
While many options are available to renovate a home, not many are so simple and powerful as a fresh coat of paint. Consider the following effects you can achieve with an interior painting project.
Alter the Seeming Age of an Object
One of the most potent aspects of painting is the way you can change how old or new things appear. After the proper prep work, painting walls with crisp contrasts against window frames and trim can make a decades-old home feel much more recent. Conversely, a painter can apply antiquing and distressed effects to give a sense of age and timelessness to furniture and surfaces. If you live in a period home, you could choose hues reminiscent of the era to create an authentic feel. Many paint companies have a list of era-appropriate colours, or your contractor can advise on what's best.
Cover Up Unwanted Aspects
Paint is also a perfect weapon for disguising undesirable aspects of your home. If the walls are in poor condition, matte paint will best make their unevenness less obvious. Shiny finishes do the opposite, emphasising imperfections.
You might also want to cover up features such as old wall radiators and pipes. These can be assimilated into a wall background by painting them the same hue. This works because the eye is drawn to contrast, and minimising differences with the same colour on different surfaces will do the reverse. You're not creating contrast with distinct colours.
Emphasise Features
As well as covering up things you don't want to be seen, paint can help to make things stand out. A room might have a beautiful timber fireplace mantlepiece, which you can highlight to perfection with a unique colour. Blending a stunning architectural feature with the wall hue will render it less noticeable and not do it justice.
Similarly, a room might have built-in bookcases, of which you can make a feature. Your painter could paint the back sections darker than the sides, which will increase the sense of depth and drama. Alternatively, a room might not have a distinctive feature, in which case you could add one yourself by creating an accent wall. Painting the wall several shades darker than the other surfaces will give a more intense effect. Otherwise, you could pick out another hue in the room for the accent wall. Of course, contrasting trim creates visual interest also. Ask your painter for unique colour suggestions.