The ABCs of good wood and color combinations

Just as the arrival of spring often rhymes with "cleaning," it also rhymes with "new projects"! Projects are born in our minds at the same time we begin to see buds at the tips of branches. Whether we're talking about moving, renovating, or rearranging our space, these projects often involve "refreshing" our living environment.

A refresh means paint, paint means color, and color means KARINE MATTE of Matte and Glossy . It was impossible for us not to think of Karine when we started brainstorming this blog post topic. Just take a look at her super eclectic Instagram account to see her talent as a stylist and decorator for yourself.

So we went and found the cream of the crop to help you make the best decisions regarding wood and color combinations, because if you already follow us a little on social media (Instagram, Facebook and Pinterest) you have probably noticed that we are not color pros (haha)!

Without further ado, we hand over our pen to the talented Karine so that she can enlighten you with the upcoming layout choices you will have to make at home, through your next projects!

When I started my career as a stylist two years ago, I was afraid to use color on my clients' walls… Even in my own home, probably due to a lack of confidence, white was omnipresent. 'You can't go wrong with white, right?'

Before venturing into the wonderful world of color, which is now an integral part of my DNA, I obviously tested (a lot) on the walls of my home and mainly in my dining room!

One Pinterest image came to haunt me, and without really thinking about it, I painted the main wall blue! And it was that day, without even realizing it, that I learned so much about the power of color and its surroundings! Oh, how beautiful it was! But my eyes told me otherwise… something was wrong… My inspiration photo was far removed from the reality that lay before my disappointed eyes…

To understand, we need to go back to our art classes! (I'm from the old school, art class is probably not called that anymore!) It's all in the famous color wheel!

Ta-daaaam!

When we think of wood, neutral colors come to mind, and we often overlook this element of nature when creating our decor. Wood, whatever its type, displays natural colors, ranging from light beige to dark brown, and even including red, orange, or yellow!

If I go back to the theory of the color wheel, the secret to a harmonious decor lies in the arrangement of complementary colors! Yes, there are also monochromes, analogies, and triads, but my example of the blue wall is linked to its complementary color: orange! A little reminder from art classes around 1984; complementary colors are two colors opposite each other on the color wheel: blue and orange, red and green, yellow and purple.

Let's get back to the big problem (futile, I know!): in my new dining room decor, I had a huge crush, and a big disappointment...

Let's start with the positive! I have two magnificent teak furniture pieces placed against the blue wall! To my great delight, the orange wood tones stood out even more!
Wow!

And the downside? My floor!!! I'd hated my floor ever since I bought the house… The varnish was turning orange, which is why I changed the decor so often; to try and forget about it! But with the blue wall, without even realizing it, the orange-tinged wood was even more noticeable!! The horror!!

And that's the magic of complementary colors! Two complementary colors placed side by side intensify each other! They feed off each other and become even more vibrant! So you can understand why my orange floor was now fluorescent! It was too much; it was time to sand it!!

My new floor is now honey-colored and I am the happiest woman in the world (even more frivolous!). The brown-orange teak furniture stands out beautifully and the paler wood essence of the floor finally harmonizes!

Light wood (maple and natural oak): white, ivory, black and pastels like old rose and mint.

Golden woods (natural oak or hickory) : emerald green, mineral blue, carmine red.

Orange woods (teak or cherry) : teal blue, amethyst purple.

Dark woods (walnut or stained oak): All variations of white.

So, a little friendly advice: check the background color of the wood species (more bleached, golden, orange), this will greatly influence the color of your walls!