זאת לא רק בחירה של צבע, אלא גם שינוי קטן בתחושה של החדר.

זאת means this and is the feminine form. It is used here because the sentence is referring to an idea that is grammatically feminine, especially בחירה (choice), which is a feminine noun.

So the structure is roughly:

• זאת = this / this is
• לא רק... אלא גם... = not only... but also...

In modern Hebrew, you may also hear זו instead of זאת in many contexts.
You might sometimes hear זה used more loosely in speech, but in careful standard Hebrew, זאת matches the feminine idea better here.

This is a very common Hebrew pattern meaning not only ... but also ...

In this sentence:

• לא רק בחירה של צבע = not just a choice of color
• אלא גם שינוי קטן בתחושה של החדר = but also a small change in the feel/feeling of the room

So:

• לא רק = not only / not just
• אלא גם = but also

This structure is very close to English, but note that Hebrew uses אלא after a negation like לא.

A few similar examples:

• זה לא רק יפה, אלא גם שימושי.
  It’s not only beautiful, but also useful.
• הוא לא רק מורה, אלא גם סופר.
  He’s not only a teacher, but also a writer.

Both are possible, but they are slightly different in style.

• בחירה של צבע = more everyday, more conversational
• בחירת צבע = more compact, more formal or written

This is the difference between:

• a phrase with של (of)
• a construct phrase (called smikhut), where two nouns are linked directly

So:

• בחירה של צבע = a choice of color
• בחירת צבע = color choice / choice of color

Hebrew often allows both options. Using של is very common in speech and is often easier for learners to understand.

Because the idea is the choice of color in a general sense, not necessarily colors in the plural.

English does this too:

• color choice
• choice of color

That does not have to mean only one literal color item; it can refer to the general decision about color.

If someone wanted to emphasize multiple colors, they could say something like:

• בחירה של צבעים = a choice of colors

But in this sentence, the singular sounds natural and general.

In Hebrew, adjectives usually come after the noun.

So:

• שינוי קטן = a small change
• חדר גדול = a big room
• בחירה טובה = a good choice

This is different from English, where adjectives usually come before the noun.

Also, the adjective must agree with the noun in gender and number:

• שינוי is masculine singular
• so the adjective is קטן (masculine singular)

If the noun were feminine, it would change:

• בחירה קטנה = a small choice

The prefix ב־ usually means in, at, or sometimes something like in terms of.

Here, בתחושה literally means in the feeling / in the sensation, but in natural English it is better understood as:

• in the feel
• in the atmosphere
• in how the room feels

So שינוי קטן בתחושה של החדר is literally something like:

• a small change in the feeling of the room

This sounds natural in Hebrew, even though English might choose a slightly different phrasing such as:

• a small change in the room’s feel
• a subtle change in the atmosphere of the room

This is a good question because definiteness works differently in Hebrew than in English.

Here:

• תחושה is indefinite: a feeling / a sense
• של החדר specifies whose feeling it is: of the room

So the phrase means:

• a small change in the feeling of the room not
• a small change in the feeling (with a very specific already-known feeling)

If it were בתחושת החדר in a construct form, that would sound more compact and literary.
If it were בתחושה של החדר, it stays more natural and conversational.

So the lack of ה־ on תחושה is normal here.

Yes, both are possible.

• התחושה של החדר = the feeling of the room
• תחושת החדר = the room’s feeling / the feeling of the room

Again, this is the difference between:

1. של structure
2. construct (smikhut) structure

In this sentence, של החדר sounds more relaxed and spoken.

Compare:

• שינוי קטן בתחושה של החדר = more everyday
• שינוי קטן בתחושת החדר = more compact, somewhat more literary or formal

Both are grammatical.

Here it functions more like this is.

Hebrew often uses a demonstrative word like זה / זאת / זו in places where English uses the verb to be.

So:

• זאת לא רק בחירה של צבע literally looks like this not only choice of color
• but the real meaning is this is not just a choice of color

This is very common in present-tense Hebrew, because Hebrew usually does not use a separate present-tense word for is / are.

So the sentence does not need a separate word for is.

Because in present-tense Hebrew, the verb to be is usually omitted.

English says:

• This is not just a choice of color

Hebrew says:

• זאת לא רק בחירה של צבע

There is no present-tense equivalent of is in ordinary sentences like this.

This happens all the time:

• הוא עייף = He is tired
• החדר גדול = The room is big
• זאת בחירה טובה = This is a good choice

So the missing is is completely normal.

Hebrew has more than one word for but, and they are not always interchangeable.

• אבל is the general everyday word for but
• אלא is often used after a negative statement, especially in the pattern לא ... אלא ...

Since the sentence says לא רק (not only), אלא גם is the natural continuation.

So:

• לא רק ..., אלא גם ... = not only ..., but also ...

Using אבל גם here would sound wrong or at least unnatural.

In this expression, לא רק is basically a fixed unit meaning not only / not just.

So:

• זאת לא רק בחירה של צבע = This is not just a choice of color

If you move the words around, the meaning may become less natural or change the emphasis.

For learners, it is best to remember the whole pattern:

• לא רק X, אלא גם Y

That way you can easily build your own sentences:

• זה לא רק נוח, אלא גם יפה.
  It’s not only comfortable, but also beautiful.
• היא לא רק חכמה, אלא גם מצחיקה.
  She’s not only smart, but also funny.

A native speaker would usually understand it as something like:

• the feel of the room
• the atmosphere of the room
• the impression the room gives

It does not necessarily mean an emotional feeling in a very personal sense.
In design, decoration, and similar contexts, תחושה often refers to the overall sensory or aesthetic impression.

So this sentence suggests that choosing a color does more than affect appearance: it slightly changes how the room feels overall.

It sounds mostly neutral and natural, with a slightly polished tone.

Why?

• בחירה של צבע and של החדר make it sound accessible and not overly formal.
• The structure לא רק ... אלא גם ... is standard and elegant.
• The phrase שינוי קטן בתחושה של החדר sounds like something you might read in an article about interior design, hear in a presentation, or see in good marketing copy.

So it is not slangy, but it is also not unusually literary. It sits comfortably in standard modern Hebrew.