RELAX
Start the new year with
a new coat of paint in the
nursery room! Lene Liew,
Marketing Manager of
Nippon Paint, gives a few
timeless colour tips.
Putting together your child’s nursery
can be very exciting, or stressful. While
each of us has our own taste and style,
there are some things to keep in mind
to help you welcome your child’s arrival
with an ideal environment:
1 Location Matters
Pick a room that is near the master
bedroom so that you will not need to
walk across the house in the middle of
the night. The amount of sunlight that
gets into the room is important too. A
room that is too sunny may not be ideal
for a child to rest.
2 Mapping the Layout
Have the crib near the door so that you
will not have to trip over things just
to get to your baby at night. Setting
aside “activity zones” for changing,
playing and sleeping, can be helpful in
planning out what you need. Plan for
enough storage as your child’s toys and
things will grow very quickly.
Top: @ courtesy of Whites D’zigno Pte Ltd
Bottom: @ courtesy of Blackjack Interior
3 Baby-Proof Your Walls
It’s time to paint those walls.
Developing a theme or a colour scheme
can help you get organised very quickly
and identify what you need to have a
complete room look. However, bear
in mind that a pretty wall should be
safe for you and your child too. Look
for paints that are near zero VOC level
(Volatile Organic Compounds), antibacterial, and free from chemicals
such as lead, mercury, or ammonia
that might harm your baby.
4 Don’t Forget the Ceiling
Decorate the ceiling, too! Remember,
your child will spend a lot of time on his
or her back.
5 It’s a Joyful Occasion
Take your time and have fun - plan
and progress on your nursery design
project one step at a time. It should
be a fun exercise. If you find it too
stressful, get creative and let your
spouse help or get a professional
painter to take over.
Colour psychology, which is the study
of colour and how it affects human
behaviour, is believed to be a primitive
instinct and reaction to the specific
colours. For example, we know to avoid
the danger of a bee’s yellow and black
stripes, while grey skies can make
us feel down, and brightly coloured
flowers can often cheer us up.
When choosing colours for decorating,
always remember that each colour
incites an emotional reaction.
Depending on the usage and mood that
you desire for your home and rooms,
you can use the emotive impact of
colour to your advantage.
Blue
A bold shade of sky-blue invigorates
the bedroom of a young child.
Different shades of blue serve as
the backdrop for fun prints and
accessories. An all-white wicker
bed adds to the casual and carefree
hideout for the kid. You may pair Jewel
Blue (1197) together with the use of
Raindrop (1160), a lighter shade of
blue to provide a cool and fresh vibe.
Blue is a cool colour with low
reflective value, so it diffuses and
softens light, making the room feel
cool and comfortable.
Purple
Deep purple shades can seem
overpowering, but knock them back
with white, and their mood becomes
refreshing and serene. A combination
of various purple tones creates the
perfect ambience.
When purple is used, its varied
shades can be calming in a bedroom.
A musky shade of Violet Shadow
(8186) with its quieter shades of
Persian Silk (8187) emphasises
serenity in the bedroom while
soothing the senses and spirit.
Yellow
The beauty of yellows is that it
works almost in all spaces. Warm
yellows with browns and creams
relay a country touch and are great
for dinings or kitchens, while softer
cream yellows are a contemporary
and clean touch to family rooms.
Avoid overly bright yellows in
children’s bedroom; go for a milder
shade of yellow instead, as excessive
exposure to it may cause fatigue.
You may try various shades of light
coloured yellow such as Lime Tint
(5077) or Odour-less Premium Allin-one Moon (1106) for the walls
which will create a sense of calm and
serenity in the household.
Pink
Different shades of pink are a great
way to add a dash of drama or liven
up your home. The colour for cotton
candies and little girls’ rooms,
with the right shade, it can also be
spirited. Transform your child’s room
into a playful retreat with hues of
pink and lilacs with the use of the
combination of Raspberry (5044) and
Liliac White (5064) on perpendicular
walls.
The Nursery Room
Makeover!
Neutrals
Notably, earthly hues are known to
be soothing and calming in nature.
Neutrals can also create an air of
sophistication. Bringing about a mood
of serenity and abundance in nature,
earth neutrals are also known to
work very well with other colours.
Warm neutrals like Beige (5029) and
Whisper Grey (5009) can be used for
the walls to give a warm and relaxing
mood to your child’s room.
For more colour suggestions, visit
Nippon’s Colour Paint Chart at
www.nipponpaint.com.sg.
Dec 2013/Jan 2014 • Family & Life
27