Cool Room Colors

Cool Colors

• In color theory, green, blue and violet shades comprise the cool side of the primary palette, with red, orange and yellow being regarded as warm colors. Associations include strengths and varieties of emotions. Green is associated with nature and growth but in stable restful forms. Blue suggests spirituality but also distance and emotional coolness. Violet is linked with impulsiveness and playfulness, probably because of its red component; violet is also associated with dreaminess and fantasy.

Colors in Context

• Looking at the natural world suggests the tones of green, blue and violet most likely to be regarded as cool: shadows, mosses, water tones, clouds and the sky all contribute cool tones. Two other elements not included in primary color thinking play a large part in creating the visual temperature of a color: black and white. In general, cool colors become even cooler when largely tempered with black and white. Very pale shades are often described as icy. Stony shades -- gray-blues, gray-greens and even gray-browns -- add natural associations to potentially cool colors.

Complementary Colors

• A cool blue-gray room can be made warmer or cooler by the colors chosen for major furniture pieces and woodwork. Echoing the gray tones in cabinet work, window treatments or furnishings will keep the room cool; moving toward cream tones, warm wood tones and soft yellows or pinks will, on the other hand, make the room feel warmer overall.

Contrast and Accent

• Small touches of accent color tip the final balance of a room toward cool or warm. A blue bedroom accented with pale blue and violet throw pillows will stay cooler than a room with more purple-wine violet and champagne striped pillows. Then again, a single "hot" accent -- a southwestern turquoise birdcage, a hammered brass base for a reading lamp or a bright yellow bamboo plant stand -- reemphasizes the cool nature of the rest of the room decor.

Cool Color Cautions

• The line between restfully cool and unwelcoming chilly is best addressed by expanding the context in which you see your room. The view outside your windows is an important decor element. A room on the shady side of the house, for example, will generally feel cooler than the same decor in a sunny room. Gray winters and gray summers will lower the visual temperature of your room. The natural elements visible from your windows may be of further help. Greens that reflect existing outdoor shade, blues that relate to sky tones, and purple-, brown- and gray-toned rock formations and even the slate or granite pavers you chose to edge the patio give you starting points for choosing cool colors that associate directly with visible nature. Further, colors visible from or close to the cool room can enhance or detract from your intentions. A hallway graced with heavy red accents may provide too abrupt an introduction to your cool bedroom sanctuary. Proceed with caution.