Bold hues are a beautiful choice for decorating your home. But some people aren’t fond of jewel tones or primary colors, and some homes just don’t seem right for them. Perhaps you live in a natural setting, surrounded by mountains, or maybe you’re a person who feels most content when your indoor environment reminds you of Mother Earth. Nature provides excellent inspiration, but that doesn’t mean you have to opt for drab, muted tones. Truth is, amidst the pale tones outside, you’ll find gorgeous color that demands attention.

Animal and insect life are great resources for how to effortlessly combine bold with natural. In this example we’ll rely on the stunning Peacock Butterfly and the adorable Red Panda. The most important color in this scheme is the russet red-brown seen on the wings and fur. It’s warm, and when used for wood furniture and fine fabrics it adds a sense of luxury. Further, the richness of the color provides balance for the other lively colors, such as the blue and yellow. The blue is what is known as the “pop color,” and the yellow adds brightness and cheer.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Note that the green in the photo is quite present as well in the form of plant life. You can certainly rely on plants in the home, but you can also incorporate the green with a few small accessories as well. The neutrals in the color pallet are black, and two additional browns, as shown in the example squares. Utilizing more than one neutral brown is critical. If you use only the bold pop colors, the room won’t feel like a nod to the outdoors. There you’ll find infinite combinations of neutral colors serving as a backdrop for the impressive animal and insect kingdom. Who knew? An indoor version of the outdoors can be vivid and fun! If you love this idea, let us know by suggesting an insect and mammal combo that would accomplish the same effect!

In all societies throughout the world, purple is generally revered as having deep and numerous meanings. It’s associated with royalty, creativity, mystery, rarity and extravagance, among other things. It’s sometimes considered spiritual and grounding too. If you want to decorate a room that has a definite vibe and impactful energy, comprise several variations of purple. How they feel is entirely up to which ones you choose, and how you combine them.

 

To create our example pallet, we took inspiration from this photo of wood planks stained with various violet tones. We absolutely love the emphasis on red-violet hues, which feel warm, inviting and a tad feminine. How to pull it off, you ask? The most important factor is the division between three light colors and three dark colors, with an emphasis on the light colors. Although your eye may first be drawn to the plum and blue-violet, they only account for 1/3 of the overall scheme. Another 1/6 is true purple. But, the majority of the color scheme is attributable to the light violet and light orchid, with a few slivers of light silver-grey wood peeking through.

The job of the lighter tints is to take the tension out of the darker colors. Vivid hues can sometimes feel as if there’s no rest, kind of like being at a carnival! It’s fun and exciting, but after awhile the enthusiasm turns to fatigue. Purple can be overwhelming in the same way, so including softer tones is critical. Further,
we suggest incorporating more of the silver grey than what is found in our inspiration photo of wood planks. It provides a place for the eye to rest. Use just a little if you want to take the edge off. If you want to add sophistication and a modern aesthetic be more liberal with the use of it, and incorporate silver and nickel hardware into the room. Whether you’re creating the ultimate comfort zone, or setting a royal and refined tone, a combination of five purples and a silver grey will serve your purposes perfectly. Before you get started, tell us, what’s the word or vibe that come to mind for you when you think of purple?

The average DIY home enthusiast isn’t necessarily aware of the detailed facets of the color wheel. There are seemingly infinite combinations and a glance at the wheel might make your eyes cross. However, there are a handful of color combos that are straightforward and easy to use. One of which is called the Split Complimentary. This combination uses a base color, in this case a buttery yellow, and two additional colors. In our example, these are purple-violet and magenta, and both are on either side of purple on the color wheel. This means that they coordinate very well with yellow, because yellow is directly across from purple on the wheel. (This means they are complimentary.)

This pallet works beautifully with just three colors, but all three are rather vivid, which could possibly make your room feel a bit intense. If you’re going for a high energy environment, forge ahead. But, if you want the space to feel a little more harmonious, add in two soft pinks: ballerina pink and true rose pink. They will serve as a backdrop for the bolder hues, as well as soften the pallet over all. Notice they are present in our example and inspiration picture – the horse and sunset graphic.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

A split complimentary color scheme is great for beginners. As long as you stay focused on the three main colors, you can rest assured that the outcome will be successful. If you like our suggestion to add two additional colors to provide balance and harmony, but you’re not interested in two pinks, try another variation. Go for two complimentary versions of the purple-violet. You can use a true light purple tint and a light violet tint. This will require a little guesswork, making it great training ground for developing your eye for color. If that isn’t your goal, stick with our suggested pinks. Or, better yet, make a trip to the art store and buy yourself a color wheel! If you do, we would love for you to revisit this blog post and tell us about a wonderful split complimentary color scheme that you devised on your own!

In our sixth and final installment we will wrap up our advice on how to use your online social accounts to create unique décor for your home. Not only are these fun ways to display your life’s happenings, they are also a great way to demonstrate that you are up to speed with modern times. Have your recently visited a home with an old-school Olan Mills portrait hanging on the wall? Or portraits of people trying to look very serious and formal? They seem way out of date! Put those methods to rest by relying on the candid and natural shots that we most often post online.

Facebook

• Tip – 11 – Go to the photos section of your account and click on the Albums tab. Then locate photos from various holidays. Choose your favorite from each month or season and download them. Send them to a digital printing source and purchase a calendar. (Be sure to order the size that is best for the resolution of the photos. This may mean a smaller than standard calendar format.) Hang it in the kitchen for everyone to enjoy all year long. It will bring to mind how special last year was, and provide great inspiration for this year’s plans. Hint: You can order more than one calendar and send them to friends and family as gifts!

Instagram

• Tip 12 – As mentioned in Part 4 (link) of our series, Instagram posts are best used for printing projects that are conducive to small prints. A very creative use for these is decoupage. If you haven’t heard of it, just Google it to find out what a marvelous DIY technique it is. For purposes of home décor, it can be used on all sorts of household items, such as tables and wooden chests. Imagine a desk covered with all of your awesome Instagram posts – now there’s a conversation piece!

Thanks for reading our six-part series on how to use your social networking accounts to add character and style to your home decorating projects. If you enjoyed the tips in Part 6, don’t forget to go back and read Part 1, Part 2, Part 3, Part 4, and Part 5!

While reading our advice on using your online social accounts to decorate you home, you might have encountered memories of photo display methods from days gone by. Remember those photo albums that required you to place your photo on a page covered with adhesive, then you closed the clear cover sheet over the top. It sure is difficult to peel those photos out of the albums now! That adhesive was strong and has yellowed over time. Here are two more modern day tips on how to avoid those photo albums for good.

Facebook

• Tip 9 – Locate a photo that is extra special. Maybe a moment of great accomplishment, your most romantic encounter, or a special event in the life of your child. If you did not post it as a Life Event on Facebook, repost it as such. (Access the FB help menu if you’re uncertain about Life Event posts.) Facebook will highlight it, making the image more interesting. Screen capture it as displayed on your computer and have it printed on a small canvas. Display it on a wall that is really well suited to a small-scale focal point.

Instagram

• Tip 10 – If you’re savvy, you can use Photoshop to create an Instagram work of art. Simply create a canvas size that is identical to those offered by poster printing services. Gather a multitude of Instagram posts from your account. Capture them all in the same standard square size. Then, create an awesome collage. Save it as one file, then send it to the printer and have a poster made. Voila! You now have a really interesting piece of artwork. You can hang it anywhere in the house, but we suggest that it would look especially good in a family activity room such as a movie room.

 

Next read the sixth and final installment of our series – How to decorate your home using your social networking accounts – Part 6. And don’t forget to go back and read Part 1, Part 2, Part 3, and Part 4!