When it comes to choosing new window blinds there's so many different styles and colours available that it can be difficult to narrow down your shortlist. So let's take a look at the different options available and answer some popular questions.
There really is no “right” colour – just the colour that’s right for the room setting or the look that you’re trying to create, and the colour that makes you happy. Some rooms are thought to be suited to certain colours more than others, such as avoiding bold colours like red in a bedroom for a more peaceful atmosphere, but it’s really down to individual preference.
Ask five interior stylists this question and you’re likely to get five different answers. However, certain colours are associated with certain rooms for reasons other than simple popularity.
Grey and blue never cease in their popularity, particularly for living rooms and the calming atmosphere that the mid shades of both create goes a long way towards that. More formal living rooms benefit from pale greys, bringing a look of elegance that suits the setting very well, and the paler shades of both create a sense of space and expanse. Conversely, if you’re looking to create a more intimate space then dark blue works very well to create a more snug setting.
If your aim is to create the visual impression of space, there are several different options to look at. Firstly, choose paler, cooler colour blinds as this pushes the walls outwards, whereas darker and bold colours have the opposite effect. Consider also the type of blind – you’re looking for a streamlined look, sleek and slim such as one of our specialist blinds, or Roller blinds, rather than the more full Roman blinds or wood Venetian blinds.
Almost every colour can be made to work with any one other colour – the secret is in choosing the right shade of each colour, rather than the colour itself. One of the best ways to do this is by looking at a colour wheel, which illustrates the relationship between colours. This way, you can actually see how the colours interact with each other and understand why. For example, blue and orange are opposite one another, making them complementary colours, likewise yellow/violet and red/green. Strong colours at their brightest shades, but the pairing works well for a modern look, but you need paler shades to make them compliment one another, rather than contrast with each other.
Colours which sit adjacent are analogous – use these to create highlight, or to vary the tone in the room. This is an ideal way to soften bold or bright colours, by simply choosing a shade at the farthest end of the same spectrum – so look to violet or orange-reds to take the heat out of primary shades of red. Once you've got the look you like, it's just a case of transferring this knowledge to window coverings. Nothing says you must have matching blinds either, so be bold; choose colourful blinds, choose different colour blinds, choose what works for you and for your room.
Neutrals are often presumed by the uninitiated as boring but that’s really not the case and there’s a whole host of different ways in which any room can benefit from neutral colours.
Neutrals can be the perfect foil to bold colours, either to contrast, or simply to soften the impact of the colour. Neutrals can pull different shades together to work as a complete room, particularly useful if your sofa, flooring, walls, and soft furnishings are multiple shades of the same colour. And don’t forget that neutral can really apply to just the background colour – you can bring patterns into play with neutrals; choose cream or taupe as a base and use other colours within the room to feature as the pattern colours. Bring natural wood tones into a neutral room and you'll see they work as well as they do in more colourful ones too.
