How to Decide Which Shades To Buy?

The Ultimate Guide to Choosing Wall Shades

Colours are the shortest way to enhance a living space but people are often not clear about which shades to buy for their homes. They tend to go online and look at home inspirations to get a better picture and to help guide their decisions to buy wall colour shade online. However, it can get overwhelming with the colour choices available. Fret not; we are here to make things easy for all. Let’s dive right in.

Tips to pick the right wall shades

1. Decorate before painting

Derive inspiration from existing colours, textures or decor elements like artwork and rugs if you are revamping the existing house or moving into a new one. You can find wall colour inspiration from a single vase in the room or even a striking wall painting. It is easier to finalise a colour based on the colours you see in your existing decor elements than finding fabrics to match your wall colours.

2. Seek out inspiration

Inspiration can come from any corner of the world. Go online and browse through pictures of beautiful homes or interior design magazines. You can also try the website of Berger Paints India to get inspired from the various looks showcased on it.

3. Study the colour wheel

Spend some time with a colour wheel to see what you like. It shows all the colours of the spectrum arranged in a circle and highlights the relationships between them. You may find yourself naturally gravitating to one side of the circle. Choose according to how you are going to use the room and the mood you want to create.

Analogous/Similar: Colours near each other on the colour wheel such as blue and purple, orange and yellow are analogous to each other and will allow one colour to stand out more.

Complementary: Colours opposite each other on the colour wheel such as orange and blue are complementary to one another and will nicely play off each other.

Monochromatic: You can use a monochromatic approach and choose to stay within the same shade. For instance, you can choose different shades of blue to create a soothing ambiance.

4. Lighting plays a powerful role in how colours look

Understanding which direction the room faces is important as the quality of the light that comes in is different depending on whether the room looks north, south, east or west. This can change the appearance of the paint colour once it is applied on the wall.

Different sources of light like LED, halogen and fluorescent affect the way a colour appears on the walls so don’t forget to take this into account to choose colour shade online for your home as well.   

5. Colour choices to make a small room look spacious

To make a small room look larger, paint the walls and ceiling the same colour. That way, the walls seem to flow seamlessly up to the ceiling. When you paint your walls and ceilings in two different colours, the change in colour tends to draw the eye to the ceiling line. That makes your standard ceilings seem to appear lower than they actually are.

Coordinate your drapes and window treatment with your wall colour. This seamless transition tends to create an illusion of space. Keep in mind to mount the drapes as close to the ceiling as possible to make an impression of a soaring space. Opt for bright and airy colours to make small spaces look large.

6. Colour tricks to downsize a room to make it look cosy

If you have a large room and wish to make it more cosy, pick warm colours or darker and more intense hues like forest green, dark brown and maroon. The colour you choose for the walls should not be reflective.   

7. Create a mood with colour

Colour has the ability to affect the mood and the way you perceive the comfort level of a space.  How do you want the room in question to make you feel? Peaceful? Energetic? Motivated? Knowing the answer to this question is a key factor in deciding the room paint colours you pick. Why? You can create a mood with colour. To create an energetic space, pick warm shades. For a calm ambiance, paint it in cool colours. For a touch of royalty and sophistication, you can go with purple in the room. To understand this psychology further before you choose wall colour shade online, check out this article on the specific meanings of colours.

8. Test the colours to make the best choice

Once you have decided which colours you want in your home, test the shades during different times of the day and under different sources of light. Don’t forget to check whether the undertones blend with the decor of the room or not. Take your time, don’t rush it.

You can even order a shade card for Rs.99/- from Berger’s e-commerce platform to check the colour before you fully commit. When you place a follow-on order for the products, Rs.99/- gets reduced*, making the shade card absolutely free!               

Once you have narrowed down your choices to a selection of wall paint colours, it is time to understand paints in depth.  

Picking the relevant types of paint

Choosing the right type of paint means half the game won. There is a basic rule of thumb that you should follow when choosing paint sheen. The higher the sheen, higher the shine while higher the shine, higher the durability.  

For the living room, it is best to choose a satin finish that can stand up to high traffic and have just the perfect amount of shine.

You can opt for a high-gloss/sheen or semi-gloss/sheen paint finish for high-traffic zones like the kitchen and bathroom, thanks to its durability.

For the bedroom, it is a good idea to go for a flat or matte finish which has the least amount of sheen. This finish is suitable as bedroom is a low-traffic area.

 Berger Paints India has exactly the kind of finish you are looking for.

 Knowing why undercoats are important

 Preparation is key when it comes to painting. An undercoat, as its name suggests, is the first layer of coats applied to a clean, dry substrate, before the top finishing coats. Although it might be tempting to cut out this step, it really does make a huge difference. Investing in right undercoats is a wise decision as it provides a layer for the paint to stick to, making the surface flatter to fill in the grain and seal in stains. Putty and primer and 2 major undercoats which need to be applied before the top coats. While full wall putty is necessary on a wall getting painted for the first time, for repainting job only touch-up putty may suffice depending on the condition of the wall. Primer on the other had is necessary for good quality painting. It not only adds a layer of protection to the wall, it also increases adhesion of top coat to the wall, and adds smoothness to the finish of top coat. To look at various options of undercoats, click here.

How Berger’s e-commerce platform makes buying wall shades easy

Berger’s e-commerce platform has two interesting features Shop by Look and Add to Compare.

 You can Shop by Look, taking inspiration from different themes that set a mood, created for a particular room in the house, be it the living room, master bedroom, kids room, kitchen and bathroom. This will help pick the right combination of shades for each room in the house.

Show a snapshot of Berger’s Shop by look

You can use Add to Compare to check the features of two products available on the platform and pick what suits your needs the best. Buying interior and exterior emulsions, waterproofing products, glass coating and wood coating products made easy!

Last but not the least, the e-commerce platform has an AI-powered Chatbot that has been trained by industry experts to assist customers on the e-commerce platform and resolve issues that they may face. It is like having a personal consultant to guide you at every step! Whether you need help choosing the perfect wall shade, have questions about our products, or anything in between, we are here for you. We have simplified the paint shopping experience for you, so make the most of it.  

Painting your home should be fun, exciting and inspiring. Hope you find this blog insightful, giving you the confidence to get started with home painting and choosing the perfect wall shades.