A Breath of Fresh Air

Walls: Duck Green No. W55 | @yukimather 

How’s this for a decorating win: all our paints, no matter the colour or finish, score A+ for indoor air quality. That’s the highest standard for the lowest possible emissions over time, leaving you free to breathe easy and admire your new mood-boosting colours in comfort.

Now all that’s missing is some inspiration on how to bring them into your home. To that end, we’ve put together some favourite looks featuring our pigment-rich paint in cahoots with another set of clean-air advocates: houseplants.

But first, the science-y bit:

What’s the deal with paint and indoor air quality?

The quality of the air inside your home can be affected by a number of things, including the paint you use.

You may have seen us write about VOCs (volatile organic compounds) before, specifically in terms of how low the levels of these compounds are in our own paints. It’s the evaporation of VOCs into the atmosphere as newly applied paint dries that can have a negative impact on your indoor air quality.

All our paint finishes are classed as Low or Minimal VOC, and in many cases far exceed the standard for inclusion in these categories, which is a handy measure for figuring out the paints you’re happy to use in your home.

The independently conducted France IAQ Test goes one better, finding out the total level of VOCs being emitted 28 days after the paint has been applied. The standard IAQ test chamber simulates a ‘standard’ EU living space, with 30m³ air volume and very specific levels of insulation and air flow.

In all cases, our paint finishes aced this test, scoring the highest possible A+ grade. So there you have it – Farrow & Ball paint doesn’t just have the lowest possible levels of VOC emissions during dry-down, but for a good while after your decorating project has ended.

16 Unbeleafable Combos

Convinced? Great. Inspired? Well, we’ll soon see to that. Here are some of our favourite rooms that combine our richly pigmented paints with the not-so-humble houseplant, those mood-boosting, clean-air-advocating powerhouses that bring us – and you! – so much joy.