The bedroom above was just one of the rooms in art teacher and painter Ellen Small's home that was featured in this month's issue of Traditional Home.
It's a pretty room with it's light blue walls and breezy bed curtains, but my eyes were immediately drawn to the artwork above the bed. Why? Because our eye is drawn to color and it's the most intense color in the room, in high contrast to the walls. This intense pop of color further establishes the bed/artwork as the focal point of the room. If similar artwork were on other walls in the room (which it may very well be, we just can't tell from this view point), this artwork would lose some of it's impact. That would be fine, too, it's all in what you're trying to accomplish.
THE TIP(s):
- If there is something in the room that you want to highlight or make a *focal point, using contrast and color is one way to make sure it gets noticed.
- In the reverse, if you're not particularly fond of something and don't want people to notice it the minute they walk in the room, neutralize it. Make it blend in with it's surroundings. (For instance, if you had an old and worn chair that you're just not in a position to replace or slipcover yet but it's attracting attention because it's the brightest, most colorful piece in the room, covering it with a throw that was closer to the wall color would help it blend in and instantly become less noticeable. -- Adding more items around the room in that same bold color would be another way to take the focus off of the chair.)
- Lack of contrast is also a trick that can be used in small rooms. If the major furniture pieces are very close to the wall color, the room feels larger because there's no real contrast between the two.
*Want to know more about focal points? I'll be talking about them in an upcoming post.
Photo by Joe Schmelzer
