As if there isn't enough for us to consider when renovating or decorating or just painting a space - now more than ever we need to be aware of what our lighting choices do to color!
New and more efficient lighting is available and our old incandescent bulbs/lamps are quickly disappearing. I for one would appreciate light boxes in paint stores where we could quickly see how the various bulbs/lamps change our favorite paint colors.
In the photo, right, my gorgeous blue paint is even more blue and gorgeous with the halogen spot lights on it. Ah, but the very same paint out of the very same paint can is quite green above the kitchen area cabinets lit by fluorescent tube lighting.
Wow. That green was not what I had in mind next to the warmth of the Maple cabinetry and Brazilian Cherry floors. I needed a blue to cool the place down a bit.
A mixture of lighting even changed the paint color from the gorgeous blue of the halogen spot lights to more of a green blue with the same lights mixed with natural light from the windows. Notice the color around the white door frame in the picture below.
Regular incandescent lighting from the sconce and desk light made the paint a little greener than the rest of the large wall shown below.
Goodness Gracious! I see at least six different paint colors from one can of paint and four lighting sources. What can be done?
First of all, we could limit the number of lighting sources. In this example space, I would use halogen bulbs/lamps in the sconce and desk light and other ceiling sources. I would remove the light above the kitchen area cabinets or change it to halogen.
These photos were taken in the early 90's. Today we have even more lighting options. Knowing how we see color and which color pigments are in the paint bucket would certainly help paint color decisions. At the very least, we should do what has been recommended for years and that is to buy sample paint and put it in various places of the space to be painted. Even natural day time lighting versus evening lighting can have dramatic and different color results.
In a recent kitchen renovation, I loved a golden yellow historic paint color next to dark walnut stained cabinets. That is until the energy efficient fluorescent light fixtures were installed.
There were only two types of light in the kitchen, the natural day lighting and the energy efficient fixtures. Still, the fixtures changed the paint color so much during the daytime even, with lots of natural light coming in from the windows, that I was shocked. Closer to the fixtures it looked like we carelessly painted an entirely different color - an unnatural green!
Beware my friends and check that paint with the light fixtures and bulbs/lamps you will use!
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