I had read an article a while ago (actually, it was more of a snippet, and there was no mention of the source of the information) in a decorating magazine about the effects of the suns light on the colors in painted surfaces inside your home. For example, it stated not to paint a west facing room with yellow colorant in the paint because the light from the west will intensify the yellow, and you will not see the color true, (or something like that).
Ok, that explains why yellow paint on the walls in the west-facing kitchen was so blinding yellow (it almost brought you to your knees) that I had to paint over the yellow almost immediately. It also explains why the gray paint I chose for another west-facing room shows a warmer tone than it does on the chip - there is yellow colorant in the paint. This ended up being a pleasant mistake, but it was still a mistake.
I donÂt recall what colors to avoid for the other exposures, but I remember that a north exposure should have warm colors in the mix, especially if one lives in a region that has long winters. It also stated that red in whitish paint would have a pinkish undertone in the room- IÂve seen this before.
Interesting to note: I have a breezeway between the kitchen and the garage that has windows on the west and east side  even though there is yellow colorant in the paint, the color on the wall is true to the chip, and a different room with a north and east exposure showed true to the chip as well. The living room has east, west and south windows like the bedroom mentioned below, and that color is true to the chip, except that it is more of a chameleon color, and regardless of the time of day, it always looks great. (there has to be yellow in that chip as well). Is east light the great equalizer?
I have two big rooms that I plan on re-painting this winter:
1. The kitchen - for the third time in 6 years. I want to get the color right this time as I will also be re-painting the kitchen cabinets.
2. The master bedroom is in desperate need of the right color. This room has windows on the east, south, and west walls. The east window is in a dormer, so I donÂt think it has as much effect as it does in other room where the widows are larger and are not tucked between the walls of the dormer. Now that I think about it, the west window is in a dormer as well, so IÂm not sure how much effect it has either. Even when I read the article, I was confused as to what colorants to avoid in that room because the article didnÂt mention rooms that had light coming from three sides. Currently, the wall color in room feels cold, almost to the point of being uncomfortable. The problem is - I donÂt know what colorants were used in that paint, so I have no way of trying to figure out what went wrong. On first impulse, it would be easy to say make sure there is a warm color in the mix so you donÂt get that cold feeling, but I believe there is yellow in the mix because the color is a green. The room has dormers, closets, built-ins, many wall angles, and the ceiling has to be same color, so itÂs an extremely difficult room to paint, and it is critical to my neck, back, and sanity that I get it right this time ;-)
I discovered when painting the kitchen yellow, that you really donÂt get the full effect of the color until the room fully painted, so buying sample paint to test, especially in the bedroom, is still too risky  I just canÂt trust it alone. Because of this, I am looking for as much information as I can get even before testing.
I donÂt remember what magazine I saw the article in, so I was wondering if any one knows where I can find these rules, or should I call it a theory? Perhaps you know the rules/theory and would be so kind to post it here, or if there a book explaining the effects of the sunlightÂs direction on the colors in a painted surface in a room.
pirula
janetpetioleOriginal Author
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janetpetioleOriginal Author
pirula
janetpetioleOriginal Author
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