Dh says it makes him feel like he lives with a serial killer!

What about green? There are so many nice shades of deep green around at the moment!

I wasn't brave enough to use red in the kitchen, so settled for a red downstairs loo instead. It looked great! It's been repainted since, this time in bright blue.

I echo what others are suggesting re burgundy, it sounds like a good compromise.

I have a black/white/red kitchen and I love it. The counters are black slate, the stove is enameled cherry red or fireman red. A huge painting of a pomegranate dominates one wall and the top open shelves are lined in red. Everything else is white.

I wouldn't force it if he hates it, but OTOH, I ordered a load of egg yolk-yellow tiles for our kitchen which I know DH would have gone "urgh absolutely not!" if he had seen them on the website page.

I did check beforehand that he was OK with me ordering and he said yes, but didn't look at it clearly because when they arrived he went "Oh... I didn't know they would be so... bright"

But then when we got them out of the pack and spread them out to mock up the look he said "Actually - it's OK - it isn't as overwhelming as I thought it would be."

I ended up having to send them back because something wasn't right, BUT because he has now seen what the colour looks like, he's much more on board with a bright colour for the kitchen backsplash, which I'm pleased about because TBH at the moment the kitchen is way too monochrome, it needs a splash of colour.

I think sometimes people can struggle to imagine the effect of a bright or deep colour when used carefully in a balanced way. They see the brightness/darkness and get scared by it, whereas an accent wall, or a backsplash or careful accessories for example can work wonders to liven up a space without being too much.

I've got farrow and ball Calke green in my kitchen (every wall!).
It's my absolutely favourite colour - and varies in colour dependant on the light coming in

Terracota mixed with orange and peach is what she is after

Couldn't agree more. My heart sinks with every "it has to be LIGHT" comment. Dark colours are absolutely luxurious and can make small spaces look bigger. I have no idea why people are so scared of colour that they live their lives in greige.. It's not like you can't ever repaint.

My library is a deep red; I have dark wooden shelves and furniture in there, and I really like the depth the shade gives. It could be dark I suppose, but with lamps and candles it's really cosy!

@Pippyls67 - yup go for it.
It will grow on him 🤣 🎨🖌️

I've got feature walls (not full rooms) in my Victorian house in several rooms. And I think they are fab (luckily my DH does too, but more in a "go on then, what you do usually works..." kind of way. Rather than something he'd probably do without my input...

F&B Eating Room Red in the diner part of the kitchen (it is quite a dark room too, so the other walls are Tallow, which really glows with the red.). Looked at Raddiccio but too purplish for wanted.

Then full on F&B Citron for one wall of kitchen end (rest Tallow)

Brinjal wall in lounge - deepest darkest aubergine, plus on one wall of our office.

I'm planning to paint the Entrance Hall / boot room off the kitchen half F& B Dutch Orange and half Hague Blue soon too.

Go for it! It's only paint, if he really hates it after living with it for a while you can always paint over it.

Wow, that sounds wild!

I like the burgundy and blush @TheGirlattheBack posted, that’s a lovely mix. My last bathroom had a redcurrant wall and cream tiles, similar vibe.

How about a strong yellow - it's cheerful and strong but not as hard to get right as red.

Or burnt orange?

It doesn't really matter why he doesn't like it - you should pick colours that the two of you both like!

I think the decor in the kitchen should be chosen by the person that spends most of the time in there. Red sounds great.

I lived in a Victorian terrace house years ago and the previous owner had painted the back room a deep pepper red - one of my friends called it 'the bloodbath room' 😂 I quite liked it, but there was quite a lot of darkish wood in the room too, and it was a bit too 'heavy' overall.

How about a deep but muted/soft-ish terracotta? Or even pink - another friend did her bathroom in, iirc, Ointment Pink from Farrow & Ball and against wooden skirting/door frame it looked fab.

My kitchen is very much my room, in a slightly overcrowded house. My desk is in here and I sit, work, write and paint in the kitchen behind my Japanese screen! Of course every bugger else has to use it too but I do think of it as my space.

Mustard or yellow or very orangy peach is what you are after, not red

As someone with a 300 year old house that spent bloody AGES painting over red paint from previous owners, don't do it. It was so dark and dismal and looks much better now it's a light colour. I actually don't mind red on high ceiling period homes, I just don't think it works on beamed, low ceiling cottages. And it's an absolute fucker to get rid of.

Burgundy works in this deVol kitchen, mixed with (what looks like) F&B sulking room pink.

what colour are your units?

I don't find red a restful colour. With kitchens I always imagine what they would be like to sit in with a hangover or migraine- not that I particularly get either, but I can imagine. My friend has just had hers done all red walls and it looks smart but I couldn't live with it. One feature wall might be tolerable.

When we moved in our kitchen reminded me of my student union bar, it was very 1990s. Walls were painted purple, orange and red. We painted it coffee and cream colours, fitted travertine tiles with pastel shades and had light Maple coloured wood units fitted. So relaxing.

I painted my kitchen walls red once, thinking it would be cheerful. Hated it.
what about a terracotta, reddish, but lighter and not so gloomy.

One wall burgundy & a deep cream on the others?

I'm all for embracing a dark and cosy vibe in old / dark houses (our north-facing sitting room is painted dark green for eg) but red is a very difficult colour to get right.

In my old job I used to visit a house where the sitting room was painted dark red - they also never opened the curtains, had huge samurai swords on the wall, skulls on the shelves and lots of reptiles in heated cages around the room. Now that was a serial killer vibe!