Too many people, when decorating, underestimate the importance of getting the color right. color has tremendous power if used correctly and, if applied without appropriate forethought, can kill any decorating scheme stone-dead. Professional decorators make full use of the range of colors to achieve a contrast or a color match that enhances any scheme they are promoting. A particularly valuable tool is the color wheel which gives you access to literally thousands of color combinations, many of which you might never think would go together. However, regardless of any professional's opinion, the first step to any decorating scheme is to choose the colors you like - after all, you're the one who has to live with the finished result.

A color wheel identifies color families that relate to each other. All colors result from the primary colors which are blue, yellow and red. All other colors are combinations of these basic colors: as an example, if you want brown, you simply mix all three of the primary colors together in equal quantities. To obtain the secondary colors of violet, green and orange, you mix equal quantities of two primary colors together: red and blue produces violet; blue and yellow produces green; and red and yellow produces orange. To obtain tertiary colors you need to mix a larger quantity of one primary color with a smaller amount of another primary color: a reddish-violet is obtained through one part blue with two parts red.

In every color there is a hue and a tone so, for instance, if you have a light blue and a dark blue, blue is the hue. The importance of tone when organizing a color scheme for your decorating project cannot be emphasized enough. Tone represents the reflective quality of the color and its actual density. There is a color scale, graduating from white to black and a saturation scale which relates to a color's boldness and purity. It is a well-known fact that color does affect mood. Warm shades give a feeling of strength and are considered to be cozy colors which radiate warmth in a room. Reds in different shades are now very popular colors for dining rooms, kitchens and bedrooms.

I am sure you wouldn't want to walk into a room with all four walls decorated in pure orange - it would be a bit overpowering! Yellow, however, has different connotations depending on the shade, hue, tone and value. Pale yellow, such as primrose, is a very pleasant, soothing color for a room while bright yellow can aggravate. If it is feelings of trust you want to generate you need to choose the cool colors, such as a very soft green like mint green, or the color of celery. Blue can be used in any room of the house and always works. A light blue room always appears to be bright and refreshing, giving peaceful undertones. Dark blue will promote a more restrained mood. An atmosphere of serenity can be achieved with the color violet. This color is connected to romance and is becoming a popular choice for bedrooms and living rooms. Regardless of the color scheme, you do need to acknowledge the power of color - used correctly it creates the right mood. Wrong colors can have a completely adverse effect regardless of how carefully it is applied.