Fill your home with calming and comforting colours and you’ll never want to leave, even when you can, writes Leanne Moore
As well as being a place to find refuge and respite from the harried world outside, home is a place where you are totally free to be you, somewhereto live the life you want to live. When it comes to transforming a house into a home, a place that reflects you, perhaps the single most important thing is finding your colour story — and sticking to it. Colours that work in harmony create a calming look and feel.
When it comes to selecting colours, think about your entire home, not one room at a time. A consistent colour theme can make the difference between a haphazard and harmonious interior.
Write a list of the colours you are drawn to. Then stick to the list. Apply it to everything in your home, right down to cleaning buckets and tea towels. When you are looking for paint, fabrics, flooring and furniture, always refer back to your list of colours. In time, you'll get so familiar with your colour story you won't even need to look at the list.
Grey goes with everything, which is why it's such a great colour to paint a bedroom. When the walls are grey, it gives you plenty of scope to get creative, exploring colour and texture in your bedroom decor with layered linens, beautiful cushions and a soft or chunky throw.
Exploring colour and texture in your bedroom decor with layered linens, beautiful cushions and a soft or chunky throw.
Not all greys are equal, so the first thing you need to consider is how much natural light your room gets. This is crucial. A north-facing room drenched in all-day sun will be able to handle charcoals and cool-toned greys, while a south-facing room will need lighter and warmer tones.
For a subtle focal point — and an alternative to a bedhead — try this tone-on-tone wall combining Resene Double Black White with Resene Quarter Black White. The design is repeated on the floor, and you could add another layer with a toe-warming bedside rug. Resene Armadillo on the tongue-and-groove wall works well in a bedroom that gets plenty of natural light, adding depth and drama during the day and bringing an atmospheric and cosy element at night. The charcoal is lifted by an injection of warmth from the timber flooring and the dresser in Resene Lichen. The bedside table is Resene Triple Tapa.
The best thing about grey is that it can be whatever you want it to be, whether it's cool, warm, dark, light, or mid-tone. It's a go-to colour for interior architects and designers, who love it for its versatility and its ability to pull a room together. resene.co.nz
Every Room Should Sing, by Beata Heuman is the one interior design book you must buy this year. The new darling of the interior design world is based in London but was born and raised in Sweden. Heuman's Scandi style combined with her adopted homeland's passion for colour, print, pattern and a bit of whimsy, is an alluring mix. Her work and design ethos is beautifully captured and showcased in this book.
ELEVATE THE EVERYDAY
Wallpaper makes a statement with minimum effort. There are so many options available to suit any decor, from dramatic and decorative to subtle and soothing, and everything in between.
Whatever pattern you choose, wallpaper introduces instant texture and personality to a room, like the repetitive print from Resene Wallpaper Collection 296173. resene.co.nz
Timber Herringbone flooring from Artisan (artisancollective.co.nz)
Add personality
to your home with colour and texture. Italian tiles from the Mus Art collection by Sichenia (from artisancollective.co.nz), Unfold pendant lightshade by Muuto (from bauhaus.co.nz), Shibuya vase by Kartell (from backhousenz.com), timber Herringbone flooring from Artisan (artisancollective.co.nz), bespoke sisal rug, also from Artisan (artisancollective.co.nz), recliners covered in Club Tropicalia fabric by Mokum (from jamesdunloptextiles.com), striped Ada vase by Broste (from apartmento.co.nz), Dome pendant lightshade by Monmouth Glass (monmouthglassstudio.com),
Shibuya vase by Kartell (from backhousenz.com),
Paloma coffee table by Sarah Ellison (from slowstore.co.nz), kitchen in Resene Thumbs Up, and Shifts art print by Sarah Parkinson (from endemicworld.com).
Tropicalia fabric by Mokum (from jamesdunloptextiles.com)
