Color is one of the most potent elements in any staging plan. Its impact is undeniable. When you’re staging to reach a broad audience, it makes sense to neutralize the entire space using tints and tones of color. When staging for a niche audience like Seniors70yrs+, a bolder, more dramatic approach, that includes deeper shades and even saturated hues is the best plan of action.
When I’m staging a Seniors’ residence, I opt for a monochromatic color scheme to introduce color on a wider scale. In monochromatic schemes, the color hue is the dominant focus, and the neutrals act as the secondary color. Not only does this contrast in color help to integrate principals of Universal design, this scheme, offers the ability to focus on design for wellbeing without losing the science of staging as colors work to create visual space or movement.
Here are Four Senior lifestyle descriptions that impact color:
Grandparents of teens discover quickly that mealtime is perhaps the only time they can get everyone in one place for quality time. The kitchen or dining room becomes an important room to spice up using an accent color or a dramatic art piece to draw attention to the seating area and create an inviting atmosphere.
Serene-stay-at-homes have pursuits that demand relative quiet, such as reading or enjoying music. For an airy sophisticated retreat that offers interest beyond white and still showcases the architecture, contrasting shades of calming colors are good options for this lifestyle
Retro-boomers have a penchant for things of the past. They often still have their original dining room set and are the progenitors of nostalgic design. Considered “hip†by Millennials and Gen-Z with endearing renaissance lifestyle-types like Coastal Grandmother and Snowbirds. Using a monochromatic scheme to feature beloved art or designate the vibe of a space
would suit this lifestyle well.
Craftspeople and hobbyists always have specific space needs to follow their pursuits, safely and conveniently. Contrasting hues of color from the same family to identify storage space and organize supplies can be integrated into built-ins and used in a playful way to create inspiring spaces.
In a marketplace ready to embrace your passion for pure bright colors, you can also provide rest for the eye and repose for the spirit by balancing them with bold sweeps of neutral color.
These are three of my favorite Color Families for Staging:
Easy-Going Neutrals
Neutrals are the matchmakers of the color world because they enhance and strengthen the other colors used with them. The neutral color family can visually expand a space, create a restful atmosphere, or add a level of sophistication to the look & feel of a room. For the well-trained Stager, neutrals serve as a blank canvas to bring excitement, interest, and, engagement to a property with the skillful use of colorful furnishings.
Life-Giving Greens
Have you ever seen a plant whose color looked out of place? The features of Biophilic design and the principles of Designing for Health and Wellness can be found in the use of color. Because color creates emotion. Green emotes feelings of calm, beginnings, openness, and a natural and holistic state of being. Composed of both warm yellow and cool blue, and the green scheme is easy to live with if done well. It is a family that can be warm and cool at the same time and elegant yet comfortable (some might say an ‘emotionally intelligent’ color family!)
Blend-able Blues
Used with white, blue is one of my favorite monochromatic colors. It is a beautiful lifestyle color, as it suggests serenity, hope, depth, and spaciousness. Just consider the sea, sky, and ocean which are all part of this color family. Blue offers range because it’s so blendable and is easily affected by other colors. It lives happily at both ends of the spectrum – it can be both warm and cool.
Living colorfully begins with the color combinations that you create in your client’s homes. Technology has helped to uncover countless variations of color that can be applied using paint, wall covers, and textiles. Take maximum advantage of the rainbow of colors that you can use to improve the lives of others.