Color Conversations with Cristina

Color does more than convey a mood or set off a room. Color is a language that continually evolves with the cultures that contribute the shades and tones of meaning each of us sees. Artist and Color Consultant, Cristina Acosta, shares her insights and expertise about the colors in your life – your home – your business.

Afraid of Color? Is it Chromophobia or a Fear of Expensive Mistakes?

Though white isn’t a “color” on the color wheel, it certainly is a paint color, and one that many people love. But if the only reason you have white walls is because you’re afraid of color, you may have a touch of chromophobia or “fear of colors”. Or maybe you just have a fear of making expensive mistakes with paint color. That’s more often the case.

Hiring a Paint Color Consultant

Most people have a lot of questions around hiring a color expert. Just because somebody “loves” color or happens to be standing in a paint store, don’t presume expertise. Remember, anybody can call themselves a color consultant. Do your due diligence and find out about the color consultant’s education and experience.

The Colors Inside Beige, Taupe and Other Neutrals – Dying Suede Shoes with Acrylic Paint

Neutral colors such as beige, taupe and tan can be the result of a surprising blend of colors. This quality is especially important for neutral wall paint colors as they are exposed to different levels and colors of light throughout the day and their base colors can become more or less prominent depending upon the light quality.

Are You Tired of Struggling with Paint Color Choices?

So how does a person pick exterior paint colors? There are a variety of color solutions to this question ranging from the custom to off-the-rack choices. As a color consultant, when I work with a client to choose colors, the process is completely custom. Together we build a color palette that works with their architecture, environmental setting and possibly the local neighborhood association.

Choosing Colors Can be Like Chasing a Rainbow

Color communicates. Any color expert, designer or artist will agree with that statement. But ask those creative types what exactly a color is communicating and the answers you get may have surprisingly little in common. Here’s why: Color is a language that continually evolves with the cultures that contribute the shades and tones of meaning each of us sees. And, each individual brings their personal biases and perceptions to the mix, further complicating things. Consequently, the meaning of a color is a moving target.

Modern Metallics Meld Traditional Surfaces with Contemporary Design

Mixing metallics into your home design can give a small space a stylish vibe. Put the metallic accents on existing cabinetry and your small space can remain clear and uncluttered – both practically and visually. And when those metallics come in a coppery pink tone, the result is gorgeous! Metallic finishes can play up modern architecture like this master bath at the same time they link traditional materials like marble with the contemporary shapes of the home design.
The perfect wall paint color brings together the variety of surfaces with a unified color. With that in mind, choosing the color that works with every color in the bathroom is very important. Helping my clients choose the best color for the room meant first determining a few basic concepts.

When the Color Yellow isn’t Sunny

One of the unexpected changes that can happen to the aging eye includes the color yellow. For some people the lens of the eye becomes increasingly dense and more yellow with age. With that change, contrast sensitivity declines and dark colors can be difficult to distinguish from each other.
The yellowing effect may not be affecting you personally, but if you are a retailer or manufacturer selling products, how your products are being perceived by the older customer with this condition affects your sales.

Matching Pantone Colors to House Paint Colors – Is a Color Match as Good as Buying the Real Thing?

When color consulting clients look at paint color samples the most common question I get from them (after they choose their colors) is this: Do I have to buy “this” brand of paint to get the color I want, or can I buy something cheaper? The answer isn’t simple. There are at least 3 parts to how a latex house paint color looks: Base tint, pigment and sheen. House paint isn’t just white paint with colors added. Depending upon the color, the paint store selling the brand uses a particular (there can be several choices) tinted base color to which they then add measured amounts of their color pigments.

Choosing Room Colors

Creating a paint color scheme blending good color design with the architecture of your home is like putting together a 3-D puzzle. One part of that puzzle changes and everything changes. And change can be complicated. If you’ve ever felt overwhelmed by color, you’re not alone. Putting together entire interior design color schemes can be a lot to think about. But, mixing colors around your home gets a little simpler if you think about those color combinations as a master color plan.

Nature’s Lovers are Colors – Purple and Green Together

Landscape artists often refer to the color combination of violet/purple and green as “Nature’s Lovers”. Not only do purple and green look good together on an artist’s canvas, they can look amazing together in your home. From soft gray violet to deep amethyst purples, painting your walls your favorite shade of purple will go with more colors than you might think.

Seeing Color Through the Eyes of Neuroscience

Visualize “fire engine red” and the color red rushes to mind with or without a vision of the wheels. Seeing color is such a natural condition that we often don’t question why we see colors and we presume that everybody sees the same colors. Though most of us do see the same colors, some people can’t.

Everyone Wishes for Silver and Gold. Is it a Color Trend or Self-Fulfilling Prophecy?

Because silver and white are such popular car colors, car manufacturers will tend to play it safe and make more silver and white colored cars. Is the most popular car color the sign of a trend or a self-fulfilling prophecy?

Color Captures Your Attention – So Think Before You Paint Your Garage Door Trim

Put a red tomato on a white sand beach and your eye will instantly focus on the tomato. The color difference (even if you know nothing about tomatoes) will be enough to capture your attention. Not only does this visual attribute help you find a snack or your socks, it’s an important concept to keep in mind when you’re painting your house.

Blanca, a New Meaning for the Color White

Mother Nature was giving us a lesson in whites along with a reminder that the borders we humans put around our cities, states, territories and countries are invisible to her. During those moments I spent looking at the subtly colored layers of white snow, white became my new “green”.

Color and Design Concepts: The Balance of Repetition and Variation (and a Snake)

Good design snakes our attention. Interesting design of all types, including home interior design is about moving the eye, mind and body throughout the work. Whether that work is architectural, a photograph, painting or product, when the viewer is engaged, the work is a success. That doesn’t mean that good design appeals equally to everyone. That’s not possible. Despite that, there are general concepts or tools that designers and artists of all types use. One of those tools is the balance of design repetition to variation.

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