How Our Favourite Designers Use Farrow & Ball

Beata Heuman

Calke Green

Photograph: Graham Atkins Hughes

"I try to design imaginative spaces where the beauty and comfort of the room makes you appreciate the moment you are in,” says Beata. “Calke Green adds to this light-filled space as it is striking and not too overwhelming. I love the association to nature and find it calming and rich at the same time.”

SUGGESTED SCHEME

Sims Hilditch

Pigeon

“Pigeon is a wonderfully versatile colour that works well in kitchen and utility spaces,” says Emma. “When choosing the cabinetry colour for this country kitchen, we opted for a shade that would pair well with two contrasting work surfaces. Here, we used a pale-toned marble for the island and charcoal quartz for the wall cabinet.”

SUGGESTED SCHEME

Sibyl Colefax & John Fowler

London Clay

Photograph: Simon Brown

“The depth of colour in London Clay blurs the parameters of this small drawing room,” says Emma Burns of Sibyl Colefax, “giving the illusion of greater space and creating a sublime background from which paintings and furniture sing out.”

SUGGESTED SCHEME

Salvesen Graham

Bone

Photograph: Simon Brown

“Bone was the perfect mid-neutral to refresh the hideaway breakfast unit nook, complemented perfectly with the subtle green notes of Off-White on the walls,” says Nicole.

SUGGESTED SCHEME

VSP Interiors

Studio Green

Photograph: Mark Bolton

“I use Studio Green because it has incredible depth and changes at different times of the day,” says Henriette. “It works as a fantastic backdrop to art, almost like white gallery walls. Everything looks good on it and really stands out. And, furthermore, if you’re lucky enough to have doors opening to your garden, it relates brilliantly with the outdoors, blurring the lines between interior and exterior.”

SUGGESTED SCHEME

Studio Ashby

Green Smoke

Photograph: Philip Durrant

I love Green Smoke because it looks so good when contrasted with warm colours like yellows, oranges and rusts,” says Sophie. “To me, it’s a very good neutral colour, if that makes sense – it seems to go with everything and is a great complement to natural materials.”

SUGGESTED SCHEME

Berdoulat

Down Pipe

Photograph: Berdoulat Studio

“I have used Down Pipe here particularly because it is a very large room – over 100 square metres!” says Patrick. “I wanted it to feel comfortable and cosy and pull all the areas together, which it does, especially at night. At the same time, it pulls in the outside. My kitchen opens up onto the main part of the garden with two French doors.”

SUGGESTED SCHEME

Brandon Schubert

Castle Gray

Photograph: Astrid Templier

“When we renovated the flat, we searched for a strong colour to create some drama and a strong backdrop for hanging pictures,” says Brandon. “Castle Gray is the perfect shade of green – not too saturated, not too dark. Brown furniture looks great against it, as do gilt picture frames. In some lights it looks green, at other times it tends towards blue. In the evening, by candlelight, it creates an incredibly warm and intimate environment.”

SUGGESTED SCHEME

Carlos Garcia

French Gray

"Hovering between green or grey depending on the light, French Gray is an elegant canvas to give country living an edge of modernity,” says Carlos. “It can also add sophistication to casual city rooms, binding with ease all types of natural materials: stone, wood, marble or terracotta.”

SUGGESTED SCHEME

Joanna Plant

Hague Blue

Photograph: Antony Crolla

“Only for the brave-hearted,” says Joanna, “glamourous and sexy Hague Blue in Full Gloss is a perfect foil for artwork and expressive fabrics, and makes for the ultimate night-time sitting room.”

SUGGESTED SCHEME

Octavia Dickinson

Mizzle

On her choice of colour, Octavia says “It was important to find a colour that went with all the fabrics used, but primarily it needed to be calming and pretty – a perfect colour for a pretty guest or child's bedroom.”

SUGGESTED SCHEME

Anna Haines

Plummett

Photograph: Andrew Steele

“I wanted to use a paint colour that could hold its weight with rich colours and textures and create a wonderful backdrop to the gilt and antique frames,” says Anna. “Plummett does just that. The blue undertones sing out against the Prussian Blue wool of the wing chair and rich terracotta in the rug and furnishings. It adds an element of grandeur during the day and yet feels cosy and inviting at night.”

SUGGESTED SCHEME

Studio Duggan

Dead Salmon

Photograph: Mariell Lind Hansen

"Dead Salmon is an all-time favourite of mine,” says Tiffany. “The perfect dusky pink, it strikes just the right balance of sweet and moody. It reads as a warm, cocooning neutral and is the perfect, flattering shade for a bedroom."

SUGGESTED SCHEME