“What color should I paint the little knee wall that divides my kitchen and living room? Should it be the kitchen color or the living room color? I'm not sure what to do here.”
Many clients get confused with this knee wall. Should you paint it the kitchen color since it faces in the kitchen? Should you paint it the living room color since the other side faces in the living room? There are actually several options here.
If you can paint one side the kitchen color and the other side the living room color what color do you paint the outer edger? Tricky isn't it?
This is why it's imperative to choose colors that really complement each other when you have a home with an open floor plan. In the case of this kitchen, I choose Stoneware for the kitchen and Butter Cookie, a coordinating color for the living room. Since kitchen walls are mainly taken up by appliances and cabinetry, there really isn't that much wall to work with, I try to get as much color in there as possible. Since Stoneware is so light and neutral, I chose to use Butter Cookie and have it face into the kitchen. Butter Cookie will go on all sides of the knee wall and the outer edge. These two colors look amazing next to each other as you can see from the picture.
Could I have put Stoneware on the knee wall as well? Yes but the reason I didn't was as follows. On the other side of the knee wall, facing in towards the living room, is a sofa. If I put Stoneware there, you wouldn't really see to much of it because most of it would be blocked by the sofa. Even though these two colors can be put together, I think it would look strange for just a little bit of Stoneware peeking out from the sides of the sofa.
When I design a color palette for a home, I design the colors in a way that they can be mixed and matched together. Even though each color is chosen specifically for the decor and lighting conditions of that room, they still have be used in various parts of the home. Keep in mind that since the homes have open floor plans, they really need to transition perfectly and nonchalantly from room to room.
My husband and I have always felt comfortable to pick what we like...so every room is a unique color. We have quite the palette. It's refreshing to hear you encouraging others to do the same!
ReplyDeleteWell - it's all fine and dandy to pick the colors you love as long as all the colors work well together otherwise - you're home will look like a patchwork quilt. That's fine to, if you like quilts. The best thing about painting your home is that if you don't like the way the color looks - you can just repaint it!
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