It’s said to be the colour of passion, romance, excitement and danger. Red, more importantly, is one of the few colours that can dramatically brighten up the mood of the entire room. The colour is a bright spark that can liven up any interior.

However, if it’s overdone, the room will definitely look garish. Hence, red, in any shade, is best used sparingly. How much of the house or the room one decides to paint in the colour reflects the personality of the home owner. Unfortunately, not too many people are comfortable using this colour excessively. The reason? Red is also famed as a dangerous colour, one that can make people irritable and invoke feelings of rage and hostility.

Hence, one option is to use it on a single wall and then accessorise (upholstery and decor) using the colour or to go in for a dual tone painting style using two complementing shades of the colour. So, if you’ve been debating about getting your bedroom or living room painted in this awesome colour, here’s what you need to keep in mind.

Choose the right shade

Like most colours, red comes in a number of shades ranging from a light blushing red to deep crimson, from a rustic village red to dark burgundy and from a tomato red to a cherry red among others. It’s most important to choose the right shade.While at this task, apart from your personal favourite, keep in mind the furniture and other fixtures that are already in the room or the kind of decor you intend for the room.

Colour experts suggest that one should choose the shade depending on the mood one wants to build in the room. Red is an ideal colour for the interiors as it reacts beautifully with yellow or white light. Another plus point of this colour is that it’s one of those rich colours that don’t tend to fade out very fast. When using it in a room, painting one wall red will give the room a chic feel while if it’s drama and fun you’re looking for, paint the whole room in the colour.

Sample it

These days, most paint brands offer sample packs that one can take home and try out on a wall. A tip here: sample the colour in both, a bright and a dark part of the room. This way you’ll know exactly how the colour looks at all times of the day and in both, natural and artificial light. Remember, how a colour looks in the morning and in bright sunlight is not what it will look in the dark and with the effect of artificial light.

Keep the samples on for a few days and observe the colour under different settings. The shade you fell in love with at the showroom may in fact, look quite disastrous on your wall and you may need to go in for a lighter or darker one.

Prepare the room

Before painting a wall, you need to use a base primer. Going in for a white primer is not always a good idea. Instead, as experts suggest, use the primer as advised by the paint brand that you are using to get the desired effect of the shade.

Also, while painting, colour is bound to splash on the floor. And it being red, the stains will be difficult to clean or hide. Hence, carefully cover the edge of the floor using sheets of newspaper, old linen, sackcloth or even masking tape. Remember to cover a good portion of the edge to avoid post-painting hassles.

Paint it up

Now that you’ve started the painting process, remember you’ll need to give the walls at least two coats of the colour. In some cases, you may even need a third coat to get the desired shade of the colour, be prepared for this. It’s also important to allow the paint to dry between coats to ensure a smooth finish.