Patrick’s New-Season Schemes for Year-Round Appeal
How do you choose a scheme that indulges your seasonal colour cravings but has the longevity to ensure you’ll love it for years to come?
There are many starting points to choose from, says colour expert Patrick O’Donnell, but none that fill us with the joys of spring quite like our Colour by Nature collection.
This palette of 16 colours, created in collaboration with the Natural History Museum in London, consists entirely of the true colours of nature as observed by 18th-century naturalist Abraham Gottlob Werner in Werner’s Nomenclature of Colours.
Below, Patrick shows us some of the many ways these 16 shades can be combined into versatile palettes for our most frequently used rooms. “These three schemes will give you the spring refresh that many of us feel the need for this time of year,” says Patrick, “but they’ll also hold equal beauty throughout the seasons.”
Hallway
THE METHOD
This space can feel like a stumbling block for many people, often being poorly lit and narrow. But don’t let these conditions constrain you – embrace the situation and go for a dark wall colour, which plays to the limitations and creates a sense of drama and opulence.
One caveat: if the rest of your home is very neutral or tonal, avoid going with too dark or contrasting a shade. Instead, try a slightly darker shade of your chosen colour family.
THE COLOURS
Try Duck Green in Modern Emulsion as your hallway wall colour. Our freshest of dark greens from the Colour by Nature collection will add elegant depth to your walls, but a little splash of yellow avoids the rich, gothic nature of many dark greens.
To give the space a more contemporary feel, err towards darker woodwork too. The Archive colour Coppice Blue, the bluest of our teal shades, will be the perfect partner in Modern Eggshell, even if you just commit to painting the spindles and handrails of your staircase and paint all other woodwork in an empathetic ‘white’.
Skimmed Milk White in Modern Eggshell will flatter both colours enormously – carry it up onto the ceiling too, but in our classic Estate Emulsion.
Kitchen
THE METHOD
We’ve been talking about yellows making a comeback for the last two years, but recent press attention has confirmed its resurgence. That, plus the warm custard tones of the new-look Sketch dining room in London, reaffirms that it’s time to embrace yellow’s sunshine nature and the injection of cheerful energy it brings!
THE COLOURS
Dutch Orange is just the ticket for a sunshine-filled kitchen. Sitting at the deeper end of the yellow family, this marigold shade delivers sublime richness when painted on cabinets in our hard-wearing Modern Eggshell.
Paint your walls, ceiling and woodwork in a single colour. New White will soften the brightness – use Modern Emulsion for your walls, Estate Emulsion on your ceiling and Modern Eggshell for all woodwork.
If your kitchen has some freestanding furniture or an island, pick this out in a dark complementary colour. Tanner’s Brown will bring an old-school elegance, or you can try Studio Green for an urban aesthetic.
Living Room
THE METHOD
Living rooms are the ‘switch-off’ space in our homes, where we all just want to relax and unwind after a hard day’s work, so consider colours that help achieve this balance. Earthy neutrals are a timeless option and make it very easy to then layer with your curtain and upholstery fabrics.
THE COLOURS
Ash Grey, a mid-grey-green neutral, will be a perfect backdrop to art and furniture. It also offers enough flexibility to bring in many other accents, from deep smoky pinks (Crimson Red) and earth browns (Broccoli Brown) to Ultra Marine Blue.
The latter can be used as a consideration for a built-in bookcase or for upcycling a pair of side tables in Modern Eggshell. This is a brilliant way to a splash of colour to an otherwise discreet palette. Look to our soft School House White in Estate Eggshell for all other woodwork.
Related Articles
A Perfect Pairing: Transforming a Dining Room
Reaching New Heights with the ELLE DECOR Penthouse
Farrow & Ball X Vinterior: Upcycling at its Finest
