Are you looking to spice up bland rooms or add style to wall color in your home?

Before you worry about what paintbrushes or rollers to purchase for an all day project, local paint professionals offer some bold and bright ideas and tips to help in solving your paint dilemmas.

“Stick with a color palette,” said Robert Fails, manager for Sherwin-Williams Paints in Selma. “If you use a dark green in the bedroom, you may want to use a lighter green in the hallways.”

Fails said though colors a person chooses to use are all about preference, the colors used in a hallway will offset the colors used for each bedroom. The lighting throughout the house, Fails said, will determine the best shades to use. “For example, if you had a medium shade of green in the master bedroom, you may want to use a lighter shade of green inside a bathroom, because you’d want the lighting to reflect color well,” Fails said. “Lighting matters.”

And for those who are still unsure of what colors to use, Fails recommends color sampling.

“Every house has different lighting, so sampling is good to test what colors would look good throughout the home,” Fails said. “For example, if you like taupe, you might want to test colors within the taupe family, or do the same if you like beige. The colors will come out more up against white trim.”

What colors look best for each room? Fails gives the following advice. “Lighter colors look best in hallways,” Fails said. “Golds look good in kitchens; reds in dining rooms; and beiges, greens and taupe tend to look good inside bedrooms. Make sure color scheme flows throughout the house, especially if rooms open up to other areas in the home.”

Fails also recommends Durable paint, Harmony (with interior acrylic latex) and HGTV brand paints for the home. “Durable paint is washable and scrubbable — can take off any crayon or marker,” Fails said. “Our Harmony paint has a green seal, which means it’s environmentally friendly and has low odor. It’s also great for those who are allergic to paint odor.”

Here are some more tips from paint experts:

4 Don’t be afraid to use color and don’t overlook the basics. Know the basics of the color wheel and how different color schemes work. Don’t forget the 60-30-10 rule: divide color choices up into percentages of 60 percent dominant, 30 percent secondary color and 10 percent accent color, to create a color scheme that’s aesthetically pleasing.

4 Don’t ignore your lighting. Always consider how lighting will affect your color choices. Before choosing final colors, see how each color will look in the room during different times of the day.

4 Don’t overload your palette. While a mixture of colors can be beautiful, too many of the wrong shades together can create a disastrous look. Follow a favorite color scheme like monochromatic or complementary.  Remember to stick to the 60-30-10 rule to create a perfect palette. Don’t always rely on color trends. Choose colors that will stand the test of time.

4 Don’t be too gender specific. Pink isn’t just for girls just as blue isn’t just for boys. Bring shades that are usually marked for gender specific rooms into other areas of the home.