Choosing a Carpet Color

With so many designs and colors to choose from, how do you settle on the “right color match” for your home? The reason a lot of homeowners find choosing a carpet color tricky is because color has such a dramatic impact on the layout of a house. Judging from a small swatch, it is not always easy to visualize the color in a large space.

Consider these factors when choosing a carpet color for your house.

Traffic. The more people you have in the house treading on your rug, the higher the risk of spills, stains, and dirt accumulation is. Lighter colors can be treated to be more stain resistant, but that only works with high quality fibers. Cheaper ones will still show signs of stains and will tear much faster than darker-colored carpets.

Use of space. Is it your intention to brighten up a dark room or tone down a brightly lit room? Red is a good choice for living rooms, hallways and darker family rooms. It wears rather slowly and it does not show signs of stains as plainly as some of the brighter colors. In addition, if there is a great deal of light entering the room, fading might be a problem for darker tones.

Personality match. Do you want the carpet to blend inconspicuously into the existing design or one that makes its own statement? When setting up furnishings in the house, each room will require its own focal point. Your carpet can be just that. Find a way to complement existing colors. Or perhaps try introducing a new base color with your carpet. Either way, make sure the colors do not compete, as that could be confusing.

If all else fails, consider beige. It blends easily with white walls and works with a myriad of colors, making it a safe choice for a carpet. If you have pets, a light brown color will camouflage pet tendencies and stand up well to daily wear.