Colour Schemes will enchance your home.
By Brenda Padilla
Colour is one of the simplest and least expensive ways to transform
your Andalusian home into the dwelling of your dreams. And you
might take a tip from the natives and go with Mediterranean favourites
as these have been proven to perform under a strong sun: the sea-inspired
ultramarine, the mustard tones so popular here, deep terracottas,
watermelon and, of course, that brilliant white that promises to
ward off heat as it stands against a sapphire sky.
Very likely you will arrive in southern Spain embedded with a
different colour scheme, one that worked well for you under the
light of another lattitude. Begin to open your mind to new colours
by consciously exploring the new schemes that surround you here.
It is also helpful to invest in a few Spanish home decorating magazines;
even if you don't understand the text, you can absorb much information
from the images. Finally, a brief introduction to the science of
colour combination can help you make sense of what you see and,
eventually, to incorporate it into a home decoration plan that
combines local colour in ways that appeal to your personal taste.
Monochromatic Colour Schemes
One of the simplest formulas for working with colours is the monochromatic,
or single colour, scheme. This is where you look at a colour
wheel - available for consultation at any store where paint is
sold - and choose a single colour that appeals to you. Zeroing
in on this colour, you begin to decorate using a variety of darker
and lighter shades. In Andalusian terms this might involve mustard
yellow - or Seville yellow, as it is known here - for sofas and
chairs. Walls could be painted in a much lighter shade of of
this muted colour, while throw pillows, curtains and other accessories
stand out in darker, almost brown tones.
Monochromatic colour schemes are known by colour psychologists
to be among the most relaxing schemes. However, they can relax
to the point of boredom and this is where help from the next formula
comes in.
Complementary Colour Schemes
Confusingly, complementary colours are actually contrasting colours.
These are colours that stand opposite each other on a colour
wheel, and they can be overwhelming when they are set side by
side at full intensity - bright red and green, for example. However,
when lighter or muted shades of contrasting colours are chosen,
the results can be very complementary indeed.
The is the effect achieved when certain shades of blue are combined
with yellow, one of the most popular colour schemes found in Andalusian
ceramics. Incidentally, this delightful pottery, especially when
blue predominates, looks very nice in a room painted in a light
to medium shade of Seville yellow.
Other Colour Schemes
Using either the mochromatic or complementary formula you can create
any number of ambiences in your home. But there are other ways
to use the colour wheel as well. For example, you can choose
two colours that appear next to each other on the wheel and expand
into an infinite number of shades of each of these if you wish.
Another possibility is to work with two complementary colours
and then factor in a colour that sits next to either of these
on the wheel. And if that isn't enough to inspire, then find
the colour you are wishing to work with and locate the two colours
that sit an equal distance away from it on the colour wheel -
you might find some surprisingly nice companions.
To improve your skill at working with colour, spend time analysing
your favourite home decoration images in books and magazines. Try
to identify the colour scheme used in order to better understand
the dynamics of combining shades from various parts of the colour
wheel. An excellent book to help you further develop your colour
savvy is Colour in Decoration by Annie Sloan and Kate Gwynn.
Always remember though, that the light in southern Spain is especially
intense and will affect the ambience created by the colours you
choose. Therefore, before venturing into new colours - especially
those you don't see commonly used in local decoration - gather
samples of fabric, paint, tile and other materials in order to
live with your potential choice for at least a few days before
deciding whether or not to dive in and start decorating.
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