Colour is a great way to switch up your look across different seasons. From adding accents like cushions or pots, to repainting an entire room, a new colour is a sure way to create a bold new look for your room – particularly over the winter season when days can be duller and nights darker.
For winter 2021, if you are considering redecorating, you are likely to have looked at a few magazines or Instagram images. These are great starting points, but be careful not to buy fully into whatever trend is most popular at the moment. Show rooms can be updated for every season. Your own home ought to have better longevity in mind.
According to Home Style magazine, the Pantone Colour of the Year 2021 was a mixture of grey and yellow. Choosing two colours to share the limelight for 2021 was a very different direction from the classic blue of 2020. Indeed, it is only the second time in the 20-year Colour of the Year that two colours share the award. On the other hand, Dulux declared a dark blue the colour of 2021; such is the divergence of opinion!
Therefore, when choosing the colours you want for your winter makeover, have an informed opinion around trends and styles, but don’t allow them to dictate the work entirely. With both style and longevity in mind, therefore, here is our advice on how to choose the best colour for your room this winter:
Going bolder for the colder months
While the neutral mainstays will keep you on-trend, you can show some courage and daring with your décor this winter. Some are declaring turquoise, olive and deep yellow as the way to add some verve to your space. These autumnal shades will warm your rooms on darker nights.
Yet, if you want to fully embrace the trends this year, then something deeper, darker and much more dramatic is called for. Shades such as Velvetine, an almost black and Dock Blue are suggested by the experts.
Many see winter this year being a rebellion against the pinks and brassy colours, and instead, homes will be going monochrome. While this suggests black and white, designers point out that a monochrome design can include any single colour white for the cleaner, sharper look.
Dulux sees the boldness of winter capture in their Night Seas, a dark blue, with their Brave Ground, an earthy green. The dark shades might make your room feel smaller, but they will also help you feel enclosed and within nature. It is a way of inducing a calm atmosphere in what can be stressful times.
Alternatively, Dulux suggests grey over much of the wall surface with accents of black. It can make for a striking look. The grey will naturally soften the space, and the black will add those moments of drama.
It’s ok to be cosy
Despite the hardness of these winter trends suggested by many, some designers feel it will be necessary to add some warmer colours to add some cosiness to home design. Touches of olive green are important this year and are likely to be frequently used as an accent colour. You may go for darker coloured soft furnishing to be on trend this year while using lighter paint on your walls.
There are plenty of reasons for choosing olive green with darker accent colours. The most important is that it is a calming and relaxing colour, which is important in the winter months and through the holiday period.
Maybe practical over fashion
While the dark and cooler colours might put you at the centre of fashion circles, they might not make the perfect home for the winter months. Some experts instead point to the use of warmer tones such as plum to add boldness and richness to your interiors. Rather than continuing the sparseness of winter, you create a sense of warmth and comfort against the cold and darker nights of winter.
As Dulux themselves note, when the temperature drops and the darkness is prevalent, we want a space to retreat to and get cosy. We do not want to feel austerity but instead experience the warmth and be lifted by the colours we choose.
Go classic
Of course, the easiest way to survive the trends is to go for something classic. Layered neutrals not only add warmth to a room, but the different shades add depth. Painting walls in subtle shades of the same colour palette, such as those in the beige range, can be made more sumptuous with darker throws and rugs to add that cosiness you desire.
By going for the more neutral paints and setting the trend with soft furnishing, you can adapt to the changing seasons. When Spring 2022 comes around, and the trends move on, you can change your cushions and your floor coverings and keep the neutral walls as they are.
In short What does all this mean? Well, if you want to be at the cutting edge of home décor in the Winter of 2021, you need to go dark and bold. If you are happy to hint at this trend, you can go warmer and more neutral with your paint while using soft furnishing to create the areas of interest in your home. In all, your room should be a space which you enjoy and will enjoy for at least a few years.
