When I say “Warm vs. Cool” you might be thinking about temperature, and in a sense that’s what I’m referring to, but in interior design I’m thinking of the colors and finishes that make up a house. These color tones transcend a home making it feel masculine or feminine, modern or cozy and so much more! You may think that choosing a brushed nickel faucet is just that a choice, and it is, but it’s a choice that affects the feel of your space. Grays tones, black, white, blue and green are all on the cool side; while ivories, yellows, reds, pinks and browns are on the warm side. It’s my belief, that I live by with most of my designs, is that in most cases the very best designs use a combination of both warm and cool tones creating a balanced atmosphere, but there are exceptions! For example: I recently did a bathroom that was all blues and greens with a white background and chrome fixtures - this is an all “cool tone” bathroom; but it feels open and inviting in a way that you might not expect with these colors. Because green and blue are both associated with a clean feeling, a bathroom is the perfect space, just as a kitchen would be. These particular cool tones make you want to be in this bathroom, make it inviting and luxurious giving the impression of a well rounded space! And while cool tones generally give us the impression of a masculine or modern or minimalistic space, and warm tones give us a cozy, homey or feminine feeling, neither is always true. You can have modern with warm tones and cozy farmhouse with cool tones, it all depends on the design. 

As I mentioned above, kitchens and baths are the perfect examples of when cool tones do perfectly well on their own. It’s also more modern as you’ll find a lot of out-of-date kitchens and bathrooms with warm tones like burgundy and yellow that make younger people cringe. But trends change all the time and while right now in the average house remodel you’ll find cooler tones, in the really trendy bathrooms you’ll find more earth tones of pink-brown and gold. These trends take 10-15 years to trickle down and some never really catch with the average homeowner, but these changes indicate that from one decade to another our view of how colors change. It was only 10 years ago that gray was the most popular room color for a new or remodeled home. Now I hear clients saying how much they hate gray and want it out of their homes. In kitchens bright gold was the predominant trend for the last 10 years, and now I’m seeing more and more chrome, which at one time I thought was gone for good! Right now I love a kitchen or bathroom that includes a warm tone vanity - such as a stained wood or clay color with a monochrome floor like gray black and white and a champagne bronze faucet and other fixtures that’s neither bright gold nor bronze brown. Add a few faux or real plants and you’ve got a fabulous combination of both warm and cool tones that make the bathroom both modern and inviting, clean and cozy! Now I just need the right client to say “that sounds perfect!” Any takers? 

Living Spaces like living rooms, dining rooms, dens and sunrooms are designed more for a guest feel with some personal touches. These rooms usually lend themselves to a neutral background in wall color and furniture and pick up color and pattern in art, pillows, curtains and accessories. Typically more modern, masculine, and minimalistic design leans towards cool tones picking up grays, whites, blacks and blues, while many other design styles will mix the tones of a room creating a balanced space. Does that mean that a monotone room is bad? Absolutely not! It’s about how you want your room to feel to you and your guests - cool and sleek to warm and cozy. Each is beautiful in its own way. 

Bedrooms are even more about personal choice than main living spaces are. So color and tone are very important when designing these spaces. From the bachelor pad to the feminine glam and everything in between, color changes how you feel about your bedroom. A lot of couples will choose a mix of colors and tones for their rooms, especially if they have been together a long time, they know each other’s preferences and naturally balance suggesting colors to their designer. For younger couples I recommend the same thing, but with more assistance combining their individual favorite color and tones to create a joint space. For singles it’s entirely an individual decision which can lend itself to very stark contrasts. For example: a couples room may lean towards the in between tones of blue, green, purple and brown as wood stain which appeal to both and I suggest accents of more masculine or feminine colors - gray to pink to create a balance with personal highlights. While a single might choose more cool monotones or bright colors on the masculine side, and warm monotones or warm colors on the feminine side. However, as this is a truly personal space the client will always surprise the designer! 

The final feel of a room is the best combination of the client and designer working together in harmony. I want to use my instincts to pick up on the clients wants and needs based on what I see in their home and inspirations already, as well as listening in detail to what they want in case they want a big dramatic change! Some styles lend themselves to being particularly warm and cool as well. Such as bohemian design can be quite warm, and glam style can be quite cool. As a self proclaimed “eclectic” designer I love all styles and colors, so each new room is an adventure in color and style, and balance of cool and warm is my favorite.