• Using two different tones of paint for your hallway will give it visual appeal.paint brush image by Horticulture from Fotolia.com
  
  Using two different tones of paint in your hallway can transform its look. Paint is inexpensive, and different techniques can give your wall the appearance of wallpaper or draw attention to wood chair rails. Painting a hallway takes little effort, only requires a couple of hours in time and few supplies to give it visual flair.
  
  

Vertical Stripes

• Painting your hallway with vertical stripes gives it an interesting appearance, makes the ceiling appear higher and gives structure to a long hallway. Choose one or two paint colors that coordinate with the existing paint on the wall. Decide how wide you want each stripe, and use masking or painter's tape to mark the sections on the hallway. Paint inside the sections, and allow the area to dry before removing it. You can alternate two different colors, or use only one and vary the width of the stripes.
  
  

Horizontal Stripe

• Give the hallway the appearance of a wallpaper border by painting a horizontal stripe about halfway down the wall. Choose a color that is a darker shade than the existing wall color if you desire a monotone effect--for instance, a navy blue stripe on a baby blue wall. If your wall is a neutral color, you can choose just about any shade to create the look of a wallpaper border. For instance, if the bedroom at the end of the hallway is a sage green and the hallway is a taupe color, using sage green for the horizontal stripe will help the eye to flow visually.
  
  

Architectural Enhancements

• If you have a gorgeous wood chair rail on your wall, this is the perfect place to use a two-tone effect. If the wall is the same color on both the top and bottom portions, it tends to look bland. Adding a darker shade of paint on the bottom portion of the wall,helps to differentiate the two sections and emphasizes the attractive chair rail.