How to Work with Color

Classic with a colorful, modern twist.

Feel things out. Color makes me happy. It’s very emotional, very visceral. Living in the Richmond in San Francisco, I feel like I use color to decorate my way out of the fog. Bright white rooms depress me. I also think it’s a statement of confidence to use color in a room—an acid green sofa takes a certain devil may care attitude to pull off. If you’re color-shy, remember you don’t have to go from zero to one hundred—start by dipping a toe in and see what works.

Commune with nature. So much of choosing a palette is instinctual. But even as a decorator I still have to work at it—there’s a lot of trial and error. This is going to sound cliché but I’m always confident working off of palettes found in nature. Flowers come in the craziest color combinations like chartreuse and orange and pink, and if it looks pretty in nature there’s no reason that shouldn’t look pretty in your house. Personally, I love moss green paired with bright yellow and robin’s egg blue. It’s actually pretty obvious, if you imagine greenery set against a blue sky and yellow sun.

Choose wisely. Another way to select a palette is by basing it off of a fabric print you like. Pick out two or three of the less dominant colors in the pattern to come up with a scheme for a room. A good way to add depth to whatever palette you’re working with is to use more than one shade of the same color, which gives a lot of sophistication.

Add some interest. Lamps are a great place to introduce color, and having a bright table lamp feels a little more unusual than a bold throw pillow, where color is more expected. I love an accent chair in a poppy hue—it really goes a long way in making your house more unique. I also think that painting little nooks like exposed shelves or the interior of a bookcase in a strong color like red looks really fresh and crisp.

Let it flow. I don’t like to repeat color schemes throughout a house. If you have an open floorplan, or there are no or very little divides between rooms, this becomes a little trickier. Some colors need to carry through. So say you have a palette that consists of five different colors in one area, the adjacent room needs to incorporate at least one or two of those colors in its scheme for continuity. Use color as a thread.

Think big. You always need to have a master plan in mind when decorating. You can’t just buy an orange sofa one week and yellow chairs the next. Gather swatches and photos, and look at everything together before you buy. It’s also helpful to look at fabric samples to scale, clipping larger pieces of fabric to represent a couch than, say, a throw pillow. This makes it a lot easier to step back and consider the big picture.

Have fun. Certain kinds of rooms lend themselves to color. I tend to play it safe with more neutrals in the formal spaces, like a main living room. In those areas, you don’t need or want to replace things as quickly. In higher trafficked family rooms and kids’ rooms I tend to let it rip. From a practical standpoint, color makes furniture more durable. Saturated colors are more forgiving than soft ones. And if you’re afraid of color, it’s always good to test it out on less expensive pieces.

Photos: Palmer Weiss.

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