Does this work as a "whole house" colour scheme?

[TeamEponine]

I've always been very boring with decor. Usually I like the same thing throughout, so typically either white or some form of cream. This has been throughout the house, other than once having a different colour in the bathroom.

I'm now thinking of doing a whole house redecorate, but I want to try to be adventurous and have some variation in the colours, but with it all "working together" IYSWIM. I also want to move from my usual cream and brown type colours to a more contemporary grey look, so I have no confidence in my decisions at all!

Might something like this work, and any suggestions for better colours would be much appreciated. I'm trying to keep with relatively pale colours...

Main colour: For hall, stairs and landing, plus office upstairs and most of the main bedroom (will have a feature wall) and eventually the kitchen - pale grey. Dulux Grey Steel 4: www.dulux.co.uk/en/colour-details/grey-steel-4

Main bedroom: I'd like a feature wall behind the bed. This is one I'm quite undecided about, but maybe a muted teal colour? Dulux Celestial Cloud 1: www.dulux.co.uk/en/colour-details/celestial-cloud-1

DD bedroom: Dulux Dusted Fondant: www.dulux.co.uk/en/colour-details/dusted-fondant

Spare bedroom: Dulux Willow Tree: www.dulux.co.uk/en/colour-details/willow-tree

Lounge: Really can't decide! We have a gorgeous faded tan leather couch which we would want to keep. I'm tempted by Willow Tree, but don't want to use that in two rooms.

Any feedback or alternatives?!

Thanks

Anyone?!

Otherwise I will have to rely on DH for a second opinion 😱

Hi there!

If you always liked having the same colors throughout, you have to think carefully before starting using different colors and "themes" for each room.

I'm the same and once I tried painting walls in different colors etc it just felt like "visual clutter" to me and I got tired of it quickly.

Having white walls and the same flooring throughout most of the house (same carpet all over upstairs and same wood floor downstairs) gives me a peaceful feeling.

To still be able to add color and texture without the commitment of painting walls and changing carpets, I just accessorise with "big" items. By big I mean something that has interesting proportions, interesting texture or colours that make me happy when I see them.

One idea I really like is "wallpaper panels", instead of putting wallpaper on the wall you get a big panel which comes with a lightweight frame and hang it on the wall or put it against the wall. It makes a proper feature out of the pattern of the wallpaper. Once you're tired of it in that particular location, you can move it around... You can also combine it with a striking lamp next to it and things like that. Have a Google around.

I think a bedroom colour for DD really works and allows individuality. I think if you use the grey throughout with a couple of rooms a different colour, that can work well and add a different mood.

There is no reason why the grey cannot Work with the settee. There are shades that blend with grey that are more subtle than teal for a bedroom, which will make it feel small, in my view. I would certainly go lighter. There are some wonderful blue/grey colours that are restful.

Regarding the tan settee, lots of colours go with this. You could use something like Elephants Breath from Farrow and Ball and a pale blue, or a stone colour. F&B have an inspiration booklet you can download. I’m not necessarily saying you use their paint, but they are good for inspiration. They also have a booklet that shows you paint families. So darker and lighter colours and accent colours. This takes the hard work out of worrying if something works with another colour. No doubt other paint companies do the same. Little Greene and Paint Library perhaps?

I’m not sure I would use the Willow colour with the grey. I would try and find colours that blend more seemlessly with your basic grey. You can tie everything together, if you wish, by using the same pure white for all woodwork. This brings all the schemes together.

Just a warning about Willow Tree - we once painted our baby son's bedroom in it thinking it would be good to get some colour in the house and when its actually up over four walls it really is quite a strong colour. i really grew to dislike it as it was so overpowering!

I'm with you and now have 95% white walls (or I will once i fully redecorate the new house which has mustard walls, grey woodwork and dark green carpet...) The only room that has a different colour is our bedroom which has duck egg white. On the tin it looks so pale it actually looks like white but once its on the walls it has a definite light duck egg blue colour.

I think you need to paint a whole wall to get a good feel of how the colour changes a room not just from a tester pot or a sample sheet sadly.

Dulux Willow Tree is a pale green - maybe only over powering in a darker or smaller room? We have it in our kitchen and it sort of fades into the background.

My house is all variations on grey, blue and white/cream, and I think it works well as a whole. It sounds similar to yours, but without the green - I love that colour too, but just couldn't make it work with the rest of the house. I'll use it in the garden instead

Everywhere has white eggshell (matte) woodwork.

Living room - strong mid-blue
Dining room - pale blue/grey
Kitchen - white
Hall and landing - pale grey
Main bedroom - will be pale purple/grey when we get around to decorating
Spare room 1 - pale blue/grey
Spare room 2 - cream (my partner's choice as it's his hobby room, I'd have gone for white/grey)
Bathroom (teeny tiny) - white

Downstairs is mid-brown wood flooring, stairs and landing are white and grey striped carpet, bedroom carpets are yet to be replaced but will eventually be pale grey.

I'm delighted to have colour in the house after so many years of rental magnolia!

Thanks all!

The Willow Green is the colour that I'm least certain about. I'm wondering whether I need to stick to a smaller range of colours.

The more I look at the Dusted Fondant, the more I like it, so I think I'm good for that one.

I'm worrying that Celestial Cloud 1 is too dark, but I do like the colour, so maybe the paler version, 3. Would this work as a feature wall with a pale grey? www.dulux.co.uk/en/colour-details/celestial-cloud-3

Maybe Celestial Cloud 5 (the palest) would work well for the spare room? Then it is, essentially, the same colour across the two bedrooms, just a paler version on all walls in the spare room?

to be fair we had willow tree in a north facing bedroom with one window which possibly didn't give it the fairest chance of being subtle!

I don't like feature walls, so wouldn't advise you do that - but if you think it looks good feel free!

I'd advise getting lots of testers and painting them on A5 paper (I bought a massive drawing pad from The Works), then stick them on each wall to see how the light changes. Do bear in mind paint looks slightly different on a wall, as the paper often contains brighteners. And make sure you look at the middle of the paper to judge the colour, rather than the edges where it contrasts a lot with the differently coloured wall.

I almost sent myself mad choosing paint colours last year, so I do sympathise but it was so worth the hours and £££ on testers as all the colours in my house make me so happy now.

I think it helps if you can find colour “families”, so that it is complementary throughout. I’m thinking of something like Neptune’s paint palettes (attached).

I’m considering an F&B colour consultation in our new house, as labour (decorator) is so expensive, I don’t want to make the decision alone!

I too wouldn’t have a feature wall unless the room is huge. They often make a room look smaller and it’s difficult to get the colour join lines straight! Introducing colour with pictures or a bedspread looks better.

The F&B inspiration gives you colours that complement each other not ranges of the same colour. That’s why it’s useful. It talks about warm and cool and architectural colours that give light. It’s helping you make sense of colour and how they go together.

I think the willow green is the outlier here and perhaps you need to look for a grey blue. Or use a grey and have grey/green accessories and rug/carpet.

Yes!! We have gone for a version of grey neutrals throughout the house. We bought a new build and have the carpets cream throughout and tiles in the kitchen, hall and bathrooms are all a mid grey. It really works and pulls the whole house together.

What do people think of this as a colour to go alongside grey?

It is Dulux Tumbled Glass: www.dulux.co.uk/en/colour-details/tumbled-glass-0

I hate picking colours, but I love the look when I go through Pintrest.