Interior design done right: The colour blue

Johannes van Graan Johannes van Graan
The most amazing home office space you have ever seen, Claire Alexandra Designs Claire Alexandra Designs Modern study/office
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From dark and dramatic Navies to sweet and subtle Turquoises, there exists a myriad of different ways to sport the colour blue. Especially when it comes to interior design and architecture. But we all know that the wrong colour blue can very easily swallow up an entire room (visually speaking). Or clash with other tints. Or just make your entire space seem cold and clinical. 

But instead of bashing blue, let’s show our appreciation for its versatility by guiding you through some right (and wrong) ways to use this colour in your interiors.  

1. Mixing and matching different blues

Regardless of a room’s size, painting the entire space blue can result in a quite intense look. Luckily, mixing and matching various blue tints is a fantastic way to not only break up the monotony of a one-colour palette, but also make the room look and feel more calming rather than stimulating. 

Keep in mind that you can also include different patterns in your furnishings and accessories to ensure enough contrast and character within a room while still keeping the colour the focal point.

2. Trying out dark blues

Don’t just jump into a dark-blue palette for your interiors, as it can make your room feel much darker and smaller. Consider pairing it with gold finishes, light-tinted wood, yellow colours and other bright hues (in the form of furnishings and decorations) just to tone down that dark and dramatic look a tad. 

Pale furniture in off-white is also a great way to separate those walls’ dark look from your living space while still enjoying their visual appeal. 

3. Playing with the colour wheel

Why does blue and orange make such a perfectly contrasting-yet-complementary pair? Or pink and green? Or yellow and purple? Because they are directly opposite each other on the colour wheel (be sure to Google it right now). 

Thus, if you’re not sure what to pair with your blue wall (or sofa, or rug… ), consider something in a sweet and sunny orange! 

4. Contrasting blue and crisp white

Adding a bright white trim around blue wallpaper or paint (or even a closet design as shown in our example) is a great way to make those cool blues come to life (and provide excellent contrast against the adjoining whites) without overthrowing your entire space. 

5. Deciding on a blue accent wall / backsplash

The great thing about accent walls and backsplashes is that they give you the chance to experiment a little. Since they take up very little space, those bright colours and visually arresting patterns won’t seem as much as they would on all four walls of a room. 

Thus, if you’ve been dying to bring a bright blue (which would be way too much coating up all of the walls in a room) into your home or kitchen, feel free to commit this colour to your backsplash. Especially if it’s surrounded by neutral-coloured cabinets (for a visually welcoming look) as shown in our example. 

6. Trying blue in a small room

Similar to light colours (white, soft greys, etc.), soft blue also reflects (rather than absorb) light, which can help to make a space seem bigger. Therefore, rather go with a cool-toned, icy blue on your walls instead of a broody Indigo or Peacock blue. 

Bonus points if you manage to add in a gleaming-framed mirror as in our example! 

7. Why not to use blue in your kitchen or dining room

Don’t misunderstand us: as fond as we are of the colour blue, research and colour psychology suggest that blue, with its calming and soothing qualities, also doesn’t stimulate the appetite. Which is why it’s never the first choice when styling up kitchens and dining rooms.

However, with the right blue (tranquil, inviting, graceful, elegant) and the right amount in the right spot (a tiny backsplash in the kitchen or the upholstered dining room chairs), this natural colour can really let your entire space come to life!

From one set of colours to another, let’s enjoy these 11 kitchens that prove red is right!  

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