• Choose from a variety of color schemes for your finished basement.girl painting a wall in green- background image by Cherry-Merry from Fotolia.com
  
  Finally the basement is finished, and now it is time to design and decorate. With any design project, the color palette almost always comes first. The best colors can only be found through personal analysis. Personal taste, as well as the main purpose for the basement, will ultimately drive the color scheme.
  
  

Neutral Warm Colors

• Neutral warm color options for a finished basement include browns, tans, golds and blacks. These neutral warm colors are capable of standing alone as the primary color in a design, or can help unify diverse color palettes. Each color conveys different energies. Knowing what each color conveys and what is desired of the space will help you decide on the perfect color for your finished basement. Black is dark, elegant and sophisticated but should be used carefully and sparingly, especially in dark basements. Browns and tans are warm and down-to-earth colors that pair well with taupe, beige and rich, bright hues. Beige has both warm and cool color attributes, making it a chameleon color that can be paired with bright and dark colors. Gold exudes extravagance and pairs with earthy color palettes including orange, green and brown.
  
  

Neutral Cool Colors

• Neutral cool colors include white, silver, gray and ivory. The cool attributes are less than those found in blues, giving these colors flexibility. Gray is conservative and makes a great background color. White is clean and goes with nearly any color, and is suitable for basements with small and few windows to brighten up the space. Ivory is a relaxing neutral color that will create a calming yet understated elegance in the basement. Silver is as cool as gray but tends to convey a livelier and more playful energy with many color palette matching possibilities; these include orange, bold blue, charcoal, different shades of gray or a neutral palette of silver, brown and a dash of black for an unusual color combination.
  
  

Cool and Warm Colors

• Colors with cool and warm attributes tend to excite and calm at the same time. Besides beige, other colors with both cool and warm attributes include purple, lavender, green and turquoise. A green monochromatic palette can breathe a sense of spring freshness into a dark basement all year. Green can also be paired with blues or brown and beige for an organic combination. For a sporty basement, pair green with yellow, black or white. Shades of turquoise can be feminine and sophisticated, especially when paired with lavender or pink. For a southwestern basement, pair turquoise with silver, gray, terra cotta red and light brown. Purple conveys royalty and mystery. Bright and deep purple palettes are rich, while a lighter purple palette is delicate. Purple pairs wonderfully with natural beige and tan to convey a conservative yet mysterious color palette.