Tone it up

Tone it up

We've been locked into a neutral palette for years, so it's time to seek inspiration in livelier colours, interiors expert neville knott tells Valerie Shanley

Neville Knott: 'We could all do with a little more colour in our lives just now'

Blue, grey and mint green are among the colours making their mark this year

Emma Webb

Robbie Young

Mary Grant

Damien Keane

Dermot Boyd

When it comes to decorating a home, the one thing you can be sure about is indecision. And it's the cheapest decorating effect that causes the biggest headache. Just what colour should you paint your walls? Interior designer and lecturer Neville Knott knows from the experience of hosting the popular RTé makeover programme Showhouse that colour choice remains the number-one dilemma for most homeowners. It's the reason why the so-called neutrals of off-white and cream have dominated homes for the past decade, he says.

"People are terrified of colour, possibly because it says so much about who you are. If you choose one that is a little too edgy for your personality, you fear your friends coming in will judge you and think you have no taste. And people are afraid of that because painting the walls a wildly inappropriate colour is like going out to a charity ball in a tracksuit."

The colour question is considered so weighty because the aim is to create the right atmosphere, says Knott, who is a Crown Paints colour consultant. In the latest brochure, he is advocating a palette of 'Nudes' (only slightly removed from the neutrals that remain popular) which features caramels and flesh tones to contrast with palest apple and stone shades. While trends in colours have barely shifted in recent years, he says that when people do embrace strong colour, the biggest seller is red.

"I think red is somehow in our genes. Historically, it was used in medieval times in tapestry, through to the Georgians who favoured red in their dining rooms, and then the Victorians who used dark reds in kitchens and hallways. It's a colour that's surprisingly versatile in modern homes too. It sits well with dark woods, perhaps as one feature wall if people don't wish to be too bold. It features in a number of guises in the new colour brochure too, from an old-style Georgian red in the 'Gold Mine' palette and a hot, tribal tone in the 'Natural Primary' range."

Blue also makes its mark this year, in the azure tones mingled with violet, green and gold in the futuristic 'Space' shade card. Does Knott believe he can convince dithering homeowners to move on from the safe neutrals and start painting walls in something a bit more lively? "I think colour choices will remain something of a dilemma, but the paint brochures are there to inspire. We could all do with a little more colour in our lives just now."

Nail your colours to the mast...

We asked some people working in design how their tastes in paint colour have changed over the years.

Emma Webb, Interior designer

"In my very first apartment I can remember exactly that I had orchid white on the walls, strong green walls in the bedroom, and an orange bathroom – which sounds hideous but actually was stunning! There was very much a Mexican theme, with terracotta floor tiles throughout – although I didn't go as far as rag rolling the paint which was a big thing then. Now my place has dark wood chevron floors, white walls and black accessories, with the only colour coming from the art work. After 18 years as a designer, I've never used wallpaper – paint is so much more versatile."

Robbie Young, TableLightingChair

"When you first move home, everyone always says to paint the entire place magnolia or white, and that's what we did. Then we opted for the fashion for painting the chimney breast a different colour, then papering on one wall. Our own place is still a work in progress and it tends to be a retro furniture item that dictates the colour on the wall.

"In work, we have found there's now a big trend in using pale green with brown – it seems to complement that 1950s revival in teak furniture. On two separate commissions we've seen that combination in a brown-patterned wallpaper on one wall, pale green paint on the remainder – and it looks really well."

Mary Grant, Fashion designer

"When I bought my first house in 1992 that was also my first chance to get my hands on a paintbrush – and did I run amok with it! Minimalism was most certainly not on my mind at the time. I did everything from half-and-half paper with the lovely paper border in between, to stenciling my kitchen the night before it went on the market. I've been in my third house for 10 years now and I suppose my taste has become more minimal. I think working in fashion, your tastes are always evolving and this spills over into other areas. Although once that paintbrush comes out again, you wouldn't know what could happen to my poor house!"

Damien Keane, Landscape and garden designer

"With my first home I chose very soft colours – light primrose, sky blue and soft pink. It's only recently that I've realised how much my career as a garden designer has impacted on the style of my house.

"My approach to colour has not changed too much but I like to throw in a quirky piece or a strong colour such as vivid red here or there to add a little heat. I was really taken with the colours in Upstairs Downstairs on TV over Christmas, and although these 1940s colours seem a lot more vibrant, they were not loud or overpowering, so I think I will be experimenting with some of these new – or should I say old – colours this spring."

Dermot Boyd, Architect and lecturer

"I used white in my first home. White light holds the full spectrum of colours and this is why white remains an ever-constant in architecture and interior design. I love the architect Le Corbusier's view on the use of white in the home: 'If the house is entirely white, the design of things stands out without possible transgression, the volume of things appears clearly, the colour of things is explicit.' I see colour as implicit in architecture – colour is the means by which you create an atmosphere, feeling or mood in the space.

"When we do use artificial pigments, I like to use strong colours as contrast or to highlight an architectural feature. I still see white, however, as the primary backdrop. When choosing colour I always ask myself, 'Why does food always look better on a white plate?'"

January 23, 2011

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