Spring Decorating and Color Trends
I know by now, most of you are sick of winter and any day that holds promise of sunshine and a little bit of warmth has you itching to get outside! I’m working on a whole new set of videos that I’ll be releasing the first part of April, but in the meantime, I wanted to share with you my hints and tips for spring decorating and give you some creative inspiration!
Don’t know where to begin? First, find a color palette that speaks to you! Below is my 2015 Spring Decorating Color Palette and a take on the Pantone color trends for spring.
Find your inspiration photo. I used one that I took from our Garden Patio set at this past CHA show. You can look on pinterest or select one from your favorite magazine.
I absolutely love the bright colors, yet they are somewhat muted to give off a sense of warmth. I think that is so important when decorating, especially for an outdoor patio – Make it inviting!
Pick your BASE color – that is, the wall color or the main color you want featured. For this I tend to keep it neutral. Now you might be thinking that the rustic orange featured on the wall is anything but neutral – but, it is. It’s an earthtone that, as you can see goes with any color. If you’re having a little trouble picking a color – try any earth tone shade – like green – earthtones go with everything!
How to build a color palette in Photoshop in 5 Easy Steps
- Open up a blank workspace. My dimensions are 640 x 480 and I use a low resolution simply because I wanted to put this up on the internet.
- Open up your inspiration photo and drag it to your blank workspace on the left side
- Create 5 rectangle boxes (doesnt matter the color at the moment) and position them on the right like you see above, evenly spaced.
- Select your color picker (looks like a little medicine dropper) and click on your main color. Select the rectangle box at the bottom layer, click the bucket fill icon and then click into the selected rectangle layer to drop in the color.
- Repeat the above step by clicking on accent colors in the photo. You can see I selected a rustic orange, a muted slate blue, a gold color and an earthy green. You can play around with the order of the box colors until you are satisfied.
Now you have made your spring decorating color palette. Slip this easy reference chart into your purse or wallet and carry with you for easy reference.
Next – CREATE your Springtime PROJECTS! I created this garden patio setting by using my spring decorating color palette chart and combined bright colors with muted industrial accents. I love working with perforated metal sheets from MD Hobby and Craft and chicken wire. I think what I love most is the juxtaposition that these elements have with the soft elements. The combination of the bright and muted color palettes, along with the hard and soft lines makes for an interesting and pleasing look as well as an inviting space to entertain!
Here’s a close up of some of the spring craft projects featured in this setting along with a look into the garden room. The HOME sign above is one of my favorite spring decorating projects that I created for this garden patio room scene. I used a 6 in x 12 in galavanized sheet and soldered industrial elements to the base. Super Fun! The cheese grater birdhouse was a real hit as well and I simply used some of the left over metal pieces from other projects along with some pine cones to create the look of a school house. Birdhouses always seem to be a big part of my spring decorating and I think the birds like them too!
You can find the materials you need – like the Perforated Metal Sheets in a variety of patterns along with metal working tools at your local JoAnn Fabric and Craft stores as well as joann.com
Watch the video where I share more spring decorating ideas! – watch the video on youtube
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Creating an outdoor living area is a great way to expand your space without adding on to your house. We are in the process of creating our patio this summer and I can’t wait to share with you how it turns out.
Counting down to Spring – 3 days to go!! Happy Spring Decorating Everyone!
P.S. Here’s a bonus – 30 Spring Decorating Ideas you don’t want to miss!