So, you’ve reached the creative end of the design process – congratulations! For many people, choosing the colour palette for their new Territory Homes build is the fun bit. For others though, it can represent an incredible challenge. There’s a lot of pressure when coming up with the colour palette for your home. You want something that’s going to suit your family’s needs and personalities – but not something you’re going to hate six months down the track.

We’ve put together the top pointers the Territory Homes design team uses when advising clients on colours to help you start considering your colour scheme.

1. Consider your floor finishings first

Floor finishings may be something you’ve decided on by the time it comes to picking the colours for the rest of your home. Don’t forget to factor your floors in when choosing your colour palette, too. If you’ve picked a dark charcoal floor tile, look for a softer shade that complements it for the walls. Floors are expensive to change and a dominant design factor in any space, so you want to make sure you work with them, not against them.

2. Neutral wall palettes are often the safest bet

There are a thousand ways to add colour and personality to a home through adding bright furniture and accessories. We suggest people think long and hard before painting the main living and dining room of their home lilac, for example. Picking a neutral base colour in grey or off-white to use through the house is a good place to start. You can then check all the additional colours you’re adding to the space against this base colour. Paint companies offer suggested colour palettes on their printed colour charts, or a simple Google or Pinterest search will also net thousands of ideas. However, it’s hard to go past personal advice! Your Territory Homes consultants are more than happy to spend time with you working through your design choices, so you’re guaranteed to get an end result you love.

3. Decorate from dark to light, vertically

If you want to incorporate dark colours into your home, a general design tip is to keep them lower in the room. You might use a dark carpet with a lighter shade on your walls, with the lightest shade saved for the ceiling. Designers say this is a more accurate representation of how we view the outside environment – with dark Earth and light skies – and sub-consciously, tends to look more ‘right’ than reversing the order. Dark ceilings also tend to close rooms in and make them feel smaller – so sticking with light shades on the ceiling is always a safe bet.

4. Think about what moods different colours can create

We’ve know a lot of people look to choose the interior colour selections for their homes based on their favourite colours. But, while red may be the colour of your car and favourite t-shirt, it may create a whole different mood when used on your bedroom walls. Colours like red and orange are strong and bold colours, and work well when used in spaces like studies or entertainment rooms. Cooler colours like blue and green create more restful environments, so are good choices for bathrooms and bedrooms.

5. Use the three colour rule

Many designers swear by the three colour rule. This involves choosing three colours that work well together and then using them across your room. For example, you may choose a soft grey for the walls, a dark grey for your lounge suite and yellow accent cushions.

6. Inspiration is everywhere!

Keep a Pinterest board for your favourite ideas. You can research online, scour Real Estate websites for other homes near you, or take snaps of your favourite café! Look around you for inspiration and don’t be afraid to borrow people’s ideas -after all, they probably borrowed them from somewhere too.

7. Consider the use of your home

If you’re planning to stay in your home for many years to come, then you have a lot more luxury to play around with colours and styles than someone planning to rent the home out, or sell it in a few years time. If your property is primarily an investment, keeping it contemporary, safe and neutral is generally the safest best. Remember, you can still stamp your personality on it while you live there, through adding prints to the walls, bright cushions and other accessories.

8. Remember that rules are made to be broken!

If you just REALLY want to paint your kitchen orange, then that is exactly what you should do! Design rules are there to help, but they’re also made to be broken. It’s important that your finished home is something that represents you and your personality.