Colour has a way of changing the mood of a room. At home, I've used it both at its most bold and most subtle. Here are five ways it gives each space its own character while connecting the house as a whole.
Start With A Pattern
A pattern gives you a readymade colour palette to draw from and a direction for the rest of the room. It could be a fabric you’ve chosen for upholstery or detail on an object you love. In our bathroom, the basin influenced the design of the whole space.
My office began with a wallpaper. I took its terracotta into the woodwork and echoed its greens and block print feel in the lamp. I even painted one of its flowers onto the porcelain doorknob. Those small details are my favourite part of carrying an idea through.
Office details
Wallpaper: Petit Dapuri by Nina Campbell for Osborne & Little
Paint: Tuscan Red from Little Greene
Lamp: Penny Morrison
Lampshade: Penny Morrison
Desk stationery: Nina Campbell
Colour Cohesion
I worked with a colour consultant at Little Greene on the paint scheme for the house. Their colour families were hugely helpful. The Masquerade family we chose ranges from the palest Julie’s Dream in my eldest daughter’s room to deep Tuscan Red in my office. Masquerade itself comes in three depths, which we used according to each room’s light and purpose.
Those plaster pinks appear on every floor, including the stairways. They link the rooms without making them look alike. In our bedroom, Masquerade Light sits beside sage green trims and decorative painting; in the sitting room, mustard and the cardinal red tray give Masquerade Mid a lift. In the dining room, the same shade steps back and lets the colour and pattern of a laid table take centre stage.
Paints: Masquerade, Masquerade Mid and Masquerade Light from Little Greene
Sofa, armchair and ottoman: OKA
Trays: Addison Ross
Lamp: Penny Morrison
Lampshade: Penny Morrison
Wall lampshades: Fermoie
Vase, sheets and accessories in bedroom: Rebecca Udall
Art: Indian Art House
Layer In Colour
The arches between the dining room and kitchen make the change in palette gradual: pink on the dining room side, green inside, then warm white on the kitchen side. It’s a small detail, but it makes the transition between the rooms feel deliberate.
We kept the kitchen walls warm off-white and brought colour in through the sage-green units, the gallery wall and the objects we live with. The room feels calmer, while still having plenty of colour to discover.
Worktop: Caesarstone
Pendant & wall lights: Lights & Lamps
Switches: Focus SB
Tap: House of Rohl's Riobel
Sink: Shaws
Paint: Ferdinand from Little Greene
Mugs: O.W. London
Small & Bold
The smallest room gave us licence to be the boldest. We were designing the downstairs loo when my Condé Nast Traveller India cover, shot at Villa Palladio, came out. We framed it and let the image shape the room around it, carrying that extraordinary red across the walls and ceiling. The paint is called Atomic Red which is a colour that more than lives up to its lively name.
Paint: Atomic Red from Little Greene
Switches: Focus SB
Colour For Imagination
I approached my daughter’s room with joyful abandon. Against the pale pink walls, the coral canopy headboard is the hero. Then you notice the parrots, peacocks and monkeys I painted by hand - little memories of Jaipur, and of the time we spend there together. The headboard gives the room its bold accent; the animals bring colour and stories into the quieter corners.
Paints: Julie's Dream, Orange Aurora and Carmine from Little Greene
Switches: Focus SB
Quilt and cushion: Rosanna Falconer
Scalloped duvet cover and pillowcases: Sophie Conran
"I love how colour can shift the mood of a room, and lift your own mood along with it."
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