Choosing the Right Wall Color for your Media Room

Whether it takes shape as an enclosed high–tech den or an open family hangout, a large screen is most often the ticket to happiness in a media room. Decorating revolves around the viewing experience. After that, choose comfy furnishings and use color and lighting to enhance the overall effect.

Darker hues are natural choices for a media room because they create a pleasing cocoon and minimize diversion from the action on the screen. Inspired by a leather sofa and club chairs, a tobacco brown and cream combination makes viewing a pleasure, day or night.

The media center may be the focal point of the room, but it doesn't have to dominate the whole décor. Pick up the rich, dark tones of the cabinetry in the wall color in order to blend furniture into the rest of the room. With neutral furnishings, almost any dark hue can achieve this effect but using a green connects the interior with the garden just outdoors.

As a casual backdrop for family entertainment rooms, lighthearted yellows and reds supply energy even when the focus is off the screen. An egg–yolk yellow provides a youthful, good–natured backdrop, while an expanse of white cabinetry dilutes the voltage.

In both its cool and warm incarnations, white is a purifying neutral that offers a much–needed visual respite from mental and material clutter. The overall effect of white is one of peace and order; warm wood tones and reds underfoot keep it from feeling too icy.