I. Want. COLOUR!
Is there a little kid inside of you screaming for colour? It’s like this deep longing inside your soul that jumps up an down with glee every time you see bright pretty toss cushions and brightly painted walls. You are reminded of summer, and amazing vacations and sunshine and life. Oh but you can’t! What will people say? Would if you got sick of it in a year?
Blue is my absolute favourite colour.
I love this blue wall. I look at it and think “can’t someone out there want a blue wall?” And then I remind myself that if I renovate the house again, or even suggest a paint colour change; my dear, wonderful husband who just finished this house, might be a little miffed.
Bang! Bang!
Ok, so maybe you aren’t as sick of gray and white as I am. You haven’t done countless homes in that colour palette over the last ten years. But, the trends are leaning warmer now, and begging for more colour. I guess we could sneak some in? Just a little? We can warm up your grays with creamy pinks, or pops of blue? Tans and olive greens? It’s a slippery slope. You start with one fun toss cushion and suddenly you are dancing to old Ricky Martin songs and then bang bang you you have blue walls and fushia footstools! Ok, a little much. But a girl can dream.
This pea green looks great with gray and warms up an otherwise cool shade.
I know from personal experience that committment to anything “not neutral” can be frightening. It took me a very long time to pick toss cushions for my kitchen bench. There are 4, 3 dark blue and only 1 is red. So how it took me five trips to Homesense is inexplicable.
I stood in my living room for five hours to pick out a grasscloth that’s the shade of golden honey (pics will come one day). It’s totally neutral. 5 hours. And I am an actual designer.
But colour breathes life into spaces. In a country where there is more gray skies and and below freezing temperatures than anyone is ever really okay with, we spend a lot of time indoors. And if the indoors mimics the outdoors on a cold, gray winter day, then we have a bit of an issue, don’t you think?
Okay, so you have a lot of gray and white already in your house. And changing the marble floors and repainting the Stonington Gray or Revere Pewter walls isn’t in the budget? Terrific. Time to shop and spruce up the space with a few small finds that will bring some life into your home. Let’s get some colourful cushions, picture frames, throws. How about a new rug? Or maybe we wallpaper one wall, or paint one room. How about we just paint a ceilling?
Inject a little yellow! – photo cred JF Fabrics
Pick your favourite…
My personal favourite colour with gray is tan or rust. It turns an otherwise drab colour into a sophisticated one. Warm and friendly, with a nod to that feeling of old world class. You can pair the two with calm pinks or navy blues, bright greens or deep reds. Anything goes. And it’s not super trendy. Just classy. So maybe it will last a while.
A classic colour combination. -photo cred Alendel Fabrics
There is a lot that we can do to warm up, and liven up your space. And now that the Trend of Gray is nearing it’s final episode, maybe we can ease back into fun slowly. We wouldn’t want to pull a muscle.
Pro Tip: just do what makes you happy.
Have a terrific day!
Revi
