Beauty is in the Eye of the Beholder - So is Size
April 28, 2008
Philosophers have written numerous essays about"Beauty'. Is beauty a fact of reality or is it relative to perception and cultural norms? Whether something or someone is beautiful can be argued ad infinitum.
Size, on the other hand is a fact. A room is 10 x12 feet with a square foot area of 120 square feet. Size can be verified by anyone using a mathematical system. What is interesting is how individuals might perceive size. Early on in my real estate career, I learned that what I regarded as a "large yard" was regarded by my clients as a "small yard". I learned that small and large are relative to a particular frame of reference.
This past weekend I read an article in the Los Angeles Times newspaper about how the perception of a room's size can be influenced by the decor - in particular, the color of the paint on the walls.
Here is a sample from Debbie Zimmer, a paint and color expert from the Philadelphia based Rohm and Haas Paint Quality Institute. Light colored paint will make a small room appear bigger while darker shades will make a large room appear more intimate. Zimmer recommends three easy ways to change the perceived size of spaces.
1. If a ceiling feels too low, bright white can raise the eye's perception of its height. A vertical striped wallpaper could also add to the perception of height. (Of course, in today's world, wallpaper is not seen as a plus if you are planning to sell your house.)
2. Choosing a dark shade for a large room can create a cozy look and shrinks the perceived size. If your room is long and narrow, painting the two shorter walls a deeper color than the longer walls, you will make the room seem wider.
3. (This is a new recommendation to me.) Selecting the sheen of the paint is just as important as the actual color. Zimmer writes that glossier finishes lend greater warmth and depth to surfaces than do flat paints. For example, a room with white gloss paint on the ceiling will seem larger than a room whose ceiling is painted with a white flat paint.
As you tour homes, check your perceptions and check out this paint research.
Philosophers have written numerous essays about"Beauty'. Is beauty a fact of reality or is it relative to perception and cultural norms? Whether something or someone is beautiful can be argued ad infinitum.
Size, on the other hand is a fact. A room is 10 x12 feet with a square foot area of 120 square feet. Size can be verified by anyone using a mathematical system. What is interesting is how individuals might perceive size. Early on in my real estate career, I learned that what I regarded as a "large yard" was regarded by my clients as a "small yard". I learned that small and large are relative to a particular frame of reference.
This past weekend I read an article in the Los Angeles Times newspaper about how the perception of a room's size can be influenced by the decor - in particular, the color of the paint on the walls.
Here is a sample from Debbie Zimmer, a paint and color expert from the Philadelphia based Rohm and Haas Paint Quality Institute. Light colored paint will make a small room appear bigger while darker shades will make a large room appear more intimate. Zimmer recommends three easy ways to change the perceived size of spaces.
1. If a ceiling feels too low, bright white can raise the eye's perception of its height. A vertical striped wallpaper could also add to the perception of height. (Of course, in today's world, wallpaper is not seen as a plus if you are planning to sell your house.)
2. Choosing a dark shade for a large room can create a cozy look and shrinks the perceived size. If your room is long and narrow, painting the two shorter walls a deeper color than the longer walls, you will make the room seem wider.
3. (This is a new recommendation to me.) Selecting the sheen of the paint is just as important as the actual color. Zimmer writes that glossier finishes lend greater warmth and depth to surfaces than do flat paints. For example, a room with white gloss paint on the ceiling will seem larger than a room whose ceiling is painted with a white flat paint.
As you tour homes, check your perceptions and check out this paint research.
posted by shirley harry at 8:05 AM
0 Comments:
Post a Comment
<< Home