If Walls Could Talk, What Would Yours Be Saying To You?

Learning to Choose Colours in the Bathroom That Make A Statement

(ARA) - Listen closely ... do you hear what your walls are saying? They might not actually talk, but the colours you choose for your bathroom do say something about the space and how it "feels." Are they lively and stimulating, quietly neutral or calming and relaxing? The colours you choose play a large part in the overall statement your room conveys.

In addition, colour can have a functional role in the bath, making a small room look larger, a low ceiling look higher, bringing cohesiveness with an adjoining room such as the master bedroom or quickly adding a touch of class to the showpiece powder room. With a minimal investment and a few quick colour changes, a bath with a case of the "blahs" can become your favourite retreat. And, with colour doing so much to affect the feel of a room, the key is learning to use colour correctly.

"Because there are so many home magazines and decorating guidebooks on the market today, people are more comfortable with using colour," said Jay de Sibour, president of the Colour Marketing Group and a sales and marketing executive at Material ConneXion in New York. "Television and computers have further empowered consumers to make colour decisions. In addition, travelling has exposed consumers to other influences and provided a wider colour palette. Hence we are seeing a broader and more confident use of colour."

Great Bathroom Colours

What colours in particular are well suited to the bathroom? There is a wealth of information dealing with colour from the Colour Marketing Group, a nonprofit Virginia-based association that identifies and forecasts colour trends, and from many Internet sites dealing with home decorating.

Because of its calming effect and ties to water, blue is a top colour to consider for the bathroom. Blue emphasizes the bath as the room of relaxation and retreat. And blue comes in so many shades, consumers can create a whole different look depending on whether they choose a pastel or a more dramatic hue.

According to the Colour Marketing Group, blue is also the dominant colour for 2003, including new tones such as "cinder blue" (a gray or silver-type blue), "blue aire" (a retro '60s turquoise blue), "deep arctic" (dusty navy) and "ocean cruise" (a tropical pastel blue).

"Colours produce both physical and emotional responses," said de Sibour. "Blue is associated with the sky and sea, so it evokes thoughts of the environment. Psychologically, it has a calming effect. Because of these attributes, it will continue to be the most universally popular colour, though you will start seeing many mixtures of blue and green becoming popular." In addition, blue is a colour to use if your goal is to make a bath appear larger.

According to information compiled on the Better Homes & Gardens web site at bhg.com, peach is also a great colour for the bath because it provides good reflection for the skin -- which is important in a room where applying makeup and shaving are everyday occurrences. Peach and other warm colours such as yellows, creams and apricots also provide comfort. These colours invite a person into the room with warmth and cosiness. The only caution: the cosy feelings these colours create can make a small room look even smaller. When using warm colours, be sure to intersperse whites and neutrals to tone down some of their intensity.

For a quiet, restful space, the experts at bhg.com suggest green as a soothing background colour. Also found in the "cool" family of colours, today's greens are available in neutral tones that are understated and can be used as a colourful alternative to more traditional neutrals.

"Neutrals today are no longer the off-whites and beiges of just a few years ago. Today consumers are flocking to tinted neutrals that have casts of rose, blue or green," explained de Sibour. "It is not an elimination of neutrals, but using toned neutrals."

The Colour Marketing Group predicts that natural colours such as yellows, greens and browns will dominate home décor in upcoming months. "We see a trend toward nature with less bright, more sophisticated colours coming into play as well as an overall softening of the palette," noted de Sibour. "Also, people are looking for ways to make colour more interesting by incorporating pearlescences, metallics, and translucences that add a sense of space and dimension."

The group also forecasts the return of violet and mauve, the latter taking on a dusty rose appearance. Other colours that we will be seeing in the home in coming months include berry tones like raspberry, pink-reds and "currant" (a brown violet). Accent colours include peach, orange and lemon-golds.

How to Add Colour

Once you've decided on the colours that you want to add to your bath, consumers must know how to add these most effectively.

What mood do you want to set? All neutrals in a room provide for a calm, quiet environment, while related colours make for a relaxing effect. On the opposite end of the spectrum, strong contrasting colours create a lively, stimulating mood.

When decorating, use a minimum of three and a maximum of six colours. According to the web site, homefurnish.com, it is best to choose a light colour, a medium colour and an accent. The accent colour should be the darkest or brightest of the colours chosen and should be used in at least three places within the room. Two to three colours when blended in a room properly can really bring out a dramatic look, but adding too many colours can be overwhelming and change the otherwise positive use of colour.

But where do you place these colours in the room? Here are some suggestions:

Floors

To "ground" the room, you will want to choose a flooring colour that is a bit darker than walls and ceiling.

Cabinets and Vanity

Just like cool colours can make a small room appear larger, white cabinets can have this same effect. Dark cabinets should only be used in bathrooms that have plenty of light.

Countertops

Avoid using dark colored countertops in the bath since they tend to show marks. Lighter countertops including neutral colours usually work best.

Faucets

Once only available in chrome and polished brass, today's faucets are offering homeowners a dramatic break from the ordinary and a definite way to add a colourful statement in the bath. Moen's new Asceri Accents line is composed of 10 designs infused with colour, including blues, greens, purples, a black and white combination as well as neutrals. In addition to colour, these faucets offer interesting designs such as an animal print (Safari), florals (Hawaii and Watercolour), the popular look of blue glass (Chinois), a colourful mosaic (Terrazzo), plus many others.

"These Accents were inspired by a variety of style trends, natural materials and international influences," said Linda Mayer, Moen senior vice president marketing and product development. "These unique and very different patterns allow consumers to truly express themselves. We consider them jewellery for the bath and another area to apply colour."

Walls

Paint is the perfect place to start experimenting with colour. It's easy to apply, inexpensive and can easily be repainted if the colour is not what you envisioned. Bathroom remodelers shouldn't let the fear factor stop them from using a colour they really like. Start by painting a small strip of a wall and a piece of trim. Live with those colours in your bath for a few days to see if you really like them in the different lights before painting the entire room.

Other Places to Add Colour

Use the secondary (or medium) colour chosen for your palette for areas such as sink skirts, window treatments, and shower curtains. Then, choose the darkest and most dramatic colour for towels, rugs and small accessories to spice up the room. "A good rule of thumb is to decorate large surfaces with softer, neutral colours and use brighter, stronger colours for accents. You can also more easily change the look of the room by just changing the accent colours, plus neutrals are usually easier to live with," said de Sibour.

Final Tips

Make sure as you shop for different elements of the room you bring fabric samples and colour swatches home. A colour under the fluorescent lighting in a store may look very different in your home's incandescents.

Although it requires some work, one tip that may help you in the design process is to create a swatch board of all the fabrics for the room and coordinate it with your paint colours. This will help you to see all the colours in the room at a glance and be able to decide whether or not they work together.

By following these tips and colour suggestions, you should be able to use colour to make a style statement in your bath. So if your walls can talk … they will convey the message that you want!

For more information about remodelling projects or Moen products, contact Moen Incorporated at 25300 Al Moen Drive, North Olmsted, Ohio 44070-8022, call toll free (800) BUY MOEN (800) 289-6636 or visit its web site at www.moen.com.

Courtesy of ARA Content



EDITORS NOTE: For more information contact Ginny Long, director of public affairs, Moen Incorporated at (800) 321-8809, ext. 2019 or Chris R. Lynch, Robert Falls & Co. Public Relations, (216) 696-0229.

Moen Incorporated is one of the world's largest producers of residential and commercial plumbing products. Moen is the #1 brand of faucets in North America. The company manufactures a complete line of single and two-handle faucets in a wide assortment of styles and finishes. It is also a leading producer of residential and commercial sinks, a variety of shower accessories, bathroom accessories and a complete line of plumbing parts and accessories (sold under the brands Moen, Cleveland Faucet Group, Creative Specialties International, Dearborn Brass, Hoov-R-Line and Wrightway).

Moen Incorporated is an operating company of Fortune Brands, Inc. (NYSE: FO, www.fortunebrands.com), the consumer products company.

Information on the Colour Marketing Group can be found on the web at www.colormarketing.org.