July 30th, 2013

Zone Out – and In – with Colour

Colour zoning is used by interior designers to define spaces and add impact in a home or commercial interior.

A boutique may zone men’s and women’s clothes with separate colours, for example. A home may mark off a dining area in an open plan living room with a feature wall. Even house exteriors can be zoned with one colour at the front and another at the rear.

There are three principles to consider to avoid a clashing misuse of colour:

• Zones – A good guide is the designer’s rule of 60:30:10. Choose three colours and apply them in that ratio. Your neutral colour should equate to the 60.
• Palettes – Base your colour on the use of the room. Bright for a play room, warm greens and yellows for a calm room, and rich reds or purples for romance.
• Schemes – A colour wheel makes theming easy. Choose opposing colours for a complementary  theme, or choose neighbouring colours or an equilateral triangle of three colours for balance.

A fourth alternative is to use a monochrome that draws on various shades, tints and tones of the one colour for a sophisticated space.

Source: http://designbuildsource.com.au/using-colour-zoning-effectively-changes-made-by-kristen