There’s more to life than white. A whole palette is available for you to paint your walls with. We show how a big splash of colour can make a positive impact on an interior. From pink to black, colourful rooms create a home to reflect your personality.

Soft pastel shades, rich dark blues or perhaps even the non-colour black make a great backdrop for your favourite place in the house. Anything’s possible when it comes to painting your walls for spatial impact. A whole palette is at your disposal to emphasise your favourite spots, to give rooms more character and generally to lend your home a more personal touch. An unfortunate consequence of the ‘rules’ on what colour to paint your walls is that most people play it safe with white. We aim to show you that coloured walls aren’t so tricky after all. The first question to consider is what you like, and how the space will be used.

Relax at home with soft greys and pastel shades

Soft greys and cool pastel shades on the walls make for a relaxing space. These are ideal colours to make a room appear bigger, as they reflect lots of natural light. These restrained colours create a gentle transition between walls and ceilings, which actually gives the space more structure. They are calming, which is ideal for bedrooms and living rooms – whether on all four walls or just one.

Strong blues and greens for a sensually cosy backdrop

Expressive colours on walls are a great way to set the scene in certain spaces within the home. Dark blues and greens are amazingly restrained: they create depth and allow us to relax – letting light-coloured and wooden furniture or murals shine through. Depending on the depth of the shade, blues and greens give off a warm or cool effect, but always guarantee a cosy feel. That makes these colours ideal for a smaller area of the living room, and great for bedrooms or studies.

Dramatic darks for contrast

Dramatic dark grey and the non-colour black are becoming increasingly popular for walls. They can be used to create strong contrasts, and are a dramatic way of setting the scene in your favourite areas of the home. You need to be brave to paint your walls in these darkest of shades, but we’ve got tips to help you achieve strikingly beautiful results.
One key rule of thumb with dark paints is: the stronger the colour, the smaller the area you should paint. Dark blue, grey and black are ideally suited to playing with the proportions of a room. A special area of a larger space can be painted in these colours for emphasis: for example, the relaxation zone around the sofa. Smaller spaces can also work with dark walls, such as your hall or downstairs toilet. The powerful colours make these spaces more expressive, and the adjoining areas seem bigger and more inviting.

Awfully versatile: on-trend pink

Is pink really only for girls? A new on-trend wall colour says otherwise. Pink makes a great backdrop for your favourite things throughout the home. Pink combines well with other colours. It fits with subtle Scandinavian looks as effortlessly as with modern designs with strong contrasts. We suggest painting just part of your wall pink and displaying your favourite decor items there.

Creating harmony

When choosing a colour for your walls, it’s worth making a sort of ‘mood board’ with your existing furniture and accessories so you can try out different colours. If it’s a room you’ll spend a lot of time in, we recommend a harmonious colour palette to ensure a relaxing atmosphere. Harmonious means choosing colours for walls, floors and ceilings that are next to each other in the colour wheel. Furniture and home textiles should be coordinated with these colours. Presenting harmonious hues makes your room appear bigger, even with dark-coloured walls.